System, device and method for ventilating a room

• US 7,361,082 B2
• Filed: 09/04/2003
• Issued: 04/22/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/04/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Johnson Medical Development
• Original Assignee: Johnson Medical Development Pte. Ltd.
• Inventors: Nilsson, Agne
• Primary Examiner(s): McAllister; Steven B.
• Assistant Examiner(s): OREILLY, PATRICK F
• Application Number:
  US10/526,756
• Publication Number:
  US 20050250436A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,692 Days
• Field of Search: 454/187, 454/188, 454/189, 454/190, 454/284, 454/296
• US Class Current: 454/187
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 13/108 Means providing sterile air at a surgical operation table or area treatment rooms A61G10/00; instruments or implements for sterile operation A61B90/00; sterilisation of air A61L9/00; purification of air in air-conditioning systems F24F3/16, F24F8/00
• CPC Class Codes: F24F 3/163 Clean air work stations, i.e. selected areas within a space which filtered air is passed

Abstract

A system and method for ventilating a room in which the system has at least one air supply unit and one air exhaust unit. The air inlet unit has a guiding slot diffuser for guiding an airstream in a certain direction, such that a patient, lying down in a bed on his back, receives the airstream frontally. The exhaust unit is arranged near the floor and near a head end of the bed such that air is arranged to leave the room after having ventilated the patient. The air supply unit is also provided with a booster fan arranged in air communication with the guiding slot diffuser such that fresh air can be forced through the diffuser by the aid of the booster fan forming a first an airstream. The first airstream leaves the diffuser bringing with it a larger mass of fresh air leaving the air supply unit via perforated sheets, forming the airstream devised to cool the patient.

Claims

1. An air supply unit for providing conditioned air to a patient lying in a bed, comprising:

a booster fan, arranged to force air through a guiding slot diffuser for guiding an airstream in a certain direction, said diffuser having two slots, and one area of perforated sheet, being arranged at an outlet side of said diffuser, where the area of perforated sheet is arranged in close proximity of the slots such that an airstream of air passing through both of the perforated sheet and the diffuser slots assumes a direction as controlled by the direction of the diffuser slots, and the diffuser slots form an angle α

to a base plane of said supply unit such that air is guided obliquely down towards the patient, and wherein the at least two slots of the slot diffuser are arranged proximate to each other, and two main diffusers are provided and are arranged with the two main diffusers separately and opposingly disposed at two sides of the proximately arranged slot diffusers, and wherein each slot has a length, a width and a depth, wherein the depth is substantially larger than the width, and wherein the depth is ten to twenty times larger than the width and, wherein the width is approximately 2 mm.

2. An air supply unit as recited in claim 1, wherein said base plane is arranged horizontal.

3. An air supply unit as recited in claim 2, wherein said angle α

is between 5 and 16 degrees.

4. An air supply unit as recited in claim 3, wherein said diffuser slots are adjustable sideways to enable setting the direction of the airstream.

5. An air supply unit as recited in claim 4, wherein an angle (GAMMA) is formed between the depth axes of each slot, and the angle (GAMMA) is acute.

6. An air supply unit as recited in claim 5, wherein the angle (GAMMA) between the depth axes is arranged to be adjustable.

7. An air supply unit as recited in claim 5, wherein the angle (GAMMA) between the depth axes is arranged to be 10 degrees.

8. An air supply unit as recited in claim 1, further comprising light tubes and corresponding reflectors for providing adequate lighting to a bed area of the room.

9. A method for supplying fresh air to a patient lying in a bed in a room comprising the following steps:

providing a first, relatively fast flow of air, relatively small in volume;

providing a second, relatively slow flow of air, relatively large in volume, and adjacent to the first flow of air such that said first flow of air co-ejects air from the second flow;

providing a low speed large volume suction for evacuating the supplied air;

providing the first flow of air by forcing air through two elongated slots having converging axes of depth;

providing the first flow of air by forcing air parallel to a vertical plane parallel to a side of said bed;

providing the second flow of air by forcing air through a perforated sheet of metal or similar material having a hole content of approximately 30%; and

providing the second flow of air with an air speed of less than 5% of the air speed of the first flow and with volume flow of more than double the volume flow of the first flow.