Humidity sensor for incubator

• US 6,711,937 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2001
• Issued: 03/30/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Dragerwerk AG & Company KGaA (FPS Vermögensverwaltung GmbH)
• Original Assignee: Hill-Rom Services Incorporated (Baxter International Inc.)
• Inventors: Richards, John H., Kolarovic, Ronald S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Williams, Hezron
• Assistant Examiner(s): WILSON, KATINA M
• Application Number:
  US10/027,496
• Publication Number:
  US 20020143232A1
• Time in Patent Office: 830 Days
• Field of Search: 73/290.1, 73/290.2, 73/290.5, 73/250.1, 600/22, 128/1.B, 128/205.26
• US Class Current: 73/29.01
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 11/00 Baby-incubators; Couveuses
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 11/009 with hand insertion windows, e.g. in the walls
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 2203/46 for temperature
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 2210/50 for radiography
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 16/026 specially adapted for predicting, e.g. for determining an information representative of a flow limitation during a ventilation cycle by using a root square technique or a regression analysis
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 16/107 in the inspiratory path
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 16/109 the humidifying liquid or the beneficial agent
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 16/16 Devices to humidify the respiration air A61M16/1045 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 16/161 with means for measuring the humidity
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/30 for purposes related to the operation of the system, e.g. for safety or monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 11/63 Electronic processing
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 2110/20 Humidity
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 22/02 characterised by the use of electric means

Abstract

A sensor module for an incubator or other patient support includes a temperature sensor for sensing the temperature of the air within the interior of the hood of support, a humidity sensor for determining the relative humidity of air drawn from the hood, a temperature sensor for determining the temperature of the air sensed by humidity sensor, and a correlator for adjusting the sensed relative humidity to provide an indication of the relative humidity within the hood.

Claims

1. A temperature and humidity sensing module for use with an infant care enclosure of an incubator, the module having an inlet configured to receive air from the enclosure, a primary temperature sensor to sense the air received in the module, a humidity sensor disposed in the module to sense the humidity of the air received therein, and a second temperature sensor within the module and located adjacent the humidity sensor to determine the temperature of the air at the point the humidity of the air is sensed.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the module comprises a housing having a chamber within which the humidity sensor and second temperature sensor are received.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a blower positioned to move air between the enclosure and the module.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the blower is a fan.

5. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the module comprises a housing having a chamber within which the humidity sensor and second sensor are received.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the housing is formed to include said inlet and an exhaust portal and the humidity sensor is positioned within the housing between said inlet and the exhaust portal.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a correlator operatively coupled to the primary temperature sensor, humidity sensor, and second temperature sensor, the correlator configured to determine the humidity of air within the infant care enclosure in response to the temperature of the air received in the module, the humidity of the air received therein, and the temperature of the air at the point the humidity of the air is sensed.

8. A temperature and humidity sensing module for an infant care enclosure, the module having an inlet configured to receive air from the enclosure, a primary temperature sensor to sense the air received in the module, a humidity sensor disposed in the module to sense the humidity of the air received therein, a second temperature sensor within the module to determine the temperature of the air at the point the humidity of the air is sensed, and a blower positioned to move air between the enclosure and the module, the module comprising a housing having a chamber within which the humidity sensor and second sensor are received, the housing being formed to include said inlet and an exhaust portal, the humidity sensor being positioned within the housing between said inlet and the exhaust portal, the blower is being positioned within the housing between the humidity sensor and the exhaust portal.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the primary temperature sensor is positioned within the housing adjacent said inlet.

10. A method for determining the humidity of the air at the position an infant rests in an enclosure by drawing air from the enclosure past a humidity sensor spaced apart from the infant, sensing the temperature of the air drawn from the enclosure, sensing the temperature of the air adjacent the humidity sensor, and correlating the temperature sensed and humidity sensed to determine the humidity adjacent the infant.

11. A method for determining the humidity of the air surrounding an infant in an infant care enclosure comprising the steps of sensing the temperature of the air in the enclosure with a first temperature sensor, sensing humidity of the air at a point spaced from the infant, sensing the temperature at the point where the humidity is sensed with a second temperature sensor, and correlating the temperature sensed by first and second temperature sensors and the humidity sensed to determine the humidity of the air surrounding the infant.

12. A humidity sensing assembly for an incubator, the humidity sensing assembly comprising

a first temperature sensor sensing the temperature of air within the incubator, and

a module cooperating with the first temperature sensor to provide an indication of the humidity of the air within the incubator, the module comprising

a humidity sensor sensing the humidity of the air within the module, and

a second temperature sensor sensing the temperature of air adjacent the humidity sensor.

13. The assembly of claim 12, wherein the module further composes a housing including a shell defining an interior region of the housing, the humidity sensor and the second temperature sensor being received by the interior region of the housing.

14. The assembly of claim 12, further comprising a correlator operatively coupled to the humidity sensor and the first and second temperature sensors and configured to determine the humidity of air within the incubator in response thereto.

15. The assembly of claim 12, wherein the module further includes a correlator operatively coupled to the second temperature sensor and to the humidity sensor, the first temperature sensor being operatively coupled to the correlator, the correlator being configured to determine the humidity of air within the incubator in response to the temperature of the air within the incubator, the humidity of the air within the module, and the temperature of the air adjacent the humidity sensor.

16. The assembly of claim 15, wherein the module further comprises a housing including a shell defining an interior region of the housing, the humidity sensor and the second temperature sensor being received by the interior region of the housing.

17. A system for determining the humidity of air surrounding an infant in an infant care device, the system comprising

a first temperature sensor positioned to sense the temperature of the air surrounding the infant and providing a first temperature signal in response thereto,

a humidity sensor configured to sense the humidity of the air surrounding the infant and providing a first humidity signal in response thereto,

a second temperature sensor positioned to sense the temperature of the air adjacent the humidity sensor and providing a second temperature signal in response thereto, and

a correlator configured to determine the humidity of the air surrounding the infant in response to the first humidity signal and the first and second temperature signals.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the correlator includes a circuit providing a calculated humidity signal in response to the first humidity signal and to the first and second temperature signals.

19. The system of claim 17, further comprising a display operatively coupled to the correlator and configured to provide a visual indication of the humidity of the air surrounding the infant in response to the calculated humidity signal.

20. A temperature and humidity sensing module for an infant care enclosure, the module comprising a housing having an inlet port and an exhaust port, a blower for moving air from the enclosure through the housing, a primary temperature sensor within the housing for determining the temperature of the air drawn into the inlet port, a humidity sensor within the housing for determining the humidity of the air drawn into the housing, and a secondary temperature sensor within the housing and located adjacent the humidity sensor to determine the temperature of the air at the point the humidity is sensed.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, further comprising a correlator configured to determine the humidity of the air surrounding the infant in response to the temperature sensed by the primary and secondary temperature sensors and the humidity sensed by the humidity sensor.