Device and method for inducing sputum and collecting samples
First Claim
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1. A device for thinning lung secretions, comprising:
- a housing encompassing an air mass flowing through said housing when a patient blows air into said housing;
a reed disposed in said housing, said reed producing low-frequency sound in a range of about 12 Hz to about 30 Hz when vibrated by the air mass flowing through said housing over a surface of and past the reed; and
an acoustical resistance that couples the air mass in said housing to an air mass in a lung cavity of the patient to create a virtual air cavity comprising a virtual air mass that is larger than the air mass in said housing, the virtual air cavity assisting said reed to produce the low-frequency sound,wherein the low-frequency sound vibrates the air mass in the virtual air cavity, thereby vibrating the patient'"'"'s lung cavity to thin lung secretions.
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Abstract
A device for thinning lung secretions comprises a housing, a reed disposed in the housing, and an acoustical resistance. The reed produces a low-frequency audio shockwave in a range of about 12 Hz to about 30 Hz when vibrated. The acoustical resistance couples a patient lung cavity to the audio shockwave, thereby vibrating the patient'"'"'s lung cavity to thin lung secretions.
93 Citations
55 Claims
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1. A device for thinning lung secretions, comprising:
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a housing encompassing an air mass flowing through said housing when a patient blows air into said housing; a reed disposed in said housing, said reed producing low-frequency sound in a range of about 12 Hz to about 30 Hz when vibrated by the air mass flowing through said housing over a surface of and past the reed; and an acoustical resistance that couples the air mass in said housing to an air mass in a lung cavity of the patient to create a virtual air cavity comprising a virtual air mass that is larger than the air mass in said housing, the virtual air cavity assisting said reed to produce the low-frequency sound, wherein the low-frequency sound vibrates the air mass in the virtual air cavity, thereby vibrating the patient'"'"'s lung cavity to thin lung secretions. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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40. A method for thinning lung secretions, comprising the steps of:
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blowing an air mass through a housing of a lung vibrating device; vibrating a reed disposed in the housing via air flow over a surface of and past the reed to produce low-frequency sound in a range of about 12 Hz to about 30 Hz; and providing en acoustical resistance in the housing that slows an air flow rate within the housing to couple the air mass in the housing to an air mass in a lung cavity of a patient'"'"'s lungs, thereby creating a virtual air cavity comprising a virtual air mass that is larger than the air mass in the housing, wherein the low-frequency sound vibrates the air mass in the virtual air cavity, thereby vibrating the patient'"'"'s lungs to thin lung secretions. - View Dependent Claims (41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54)
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55. A device for thinning lung secretions, comprising:
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a housing encompassing an air mass flowing through said housing when a patient blows air into said housing; a reed disposed in said housing, said reed producing low-frequency sound in a range of about 12 Hz to about 24 Hz when vibrated by the air mass flowing through said housing over a surface of and past the reed; and an acoustical resistance that couples the air mass in said housing to an air mass in a lung cavity of the patient to create a virtual air cavity comprising a virtual air mass that is larger than the air mass in said housing, the virtual air cavity assisting said reed to produce the low-frequency sound, wherein the low-frequency sound vibrates the air mass in the virtual air cavity, thereby vibrating the patients lung cavity to thin lung secretions, and wherein said reed vibrates at a frequency in the range of about 24 Hz to about 48 Hz to produce the low-frequency sound as a sub-harmonic in the range of about 12 Hz to about 24 Hz.
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Specification