Liquid warming bag and bag warmer

• US 8,224,166 B2
• Filed: 07/23/2009
• Issued: 07/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Stihler Electronic GmbH (Gentherm Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Wwt Technischer Geraetebau GmbH
• Inventors: Theilacker-Beck, Wolfgang, Theilacker, Matthias, Schmider, Klaus
• Primary Examiner(s): CAMPBELL, THOR S
• Application Number:
  US12/458,803
• Publication Number:
  US 20100021148A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,090 Days
• Field of Search: 392/470, 604/113
• US Class Current: 392/443
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/3627 Degassing devices; Buffer reservoirs; Drip chambers; Blood filters
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/36 with means for eliminating or preventing injection or infusion of air into body dialysis systems, blood oxygenators A61M1/14; haemofiltration equipment A61M1/34; automatic tube cut-off A61M39/281
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/365 Air detectors A61M5/1684 takes precedence; in extracorporeal blood circuits A61M1/3626
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/44 having means for cooling or heating the devices or media
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/445 the media being heated in the reservoir, e.g. warming bloodbags
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 137/7287 Liquid level responsive or maintaining systems

Abstract

A liquid heating bag 50 is proposed, in particular, a blood heating bag, with a flow volume 1 that is formed from at least two flexible plastic foils connected to each other by welding at four delimiting edges 3,4,5,6, has a flat, substantially trapezoidal basic shape that is limited by the delimiting edges 3,4,5,6, and an inlet line opening 10 and an outlet line opening 11 for a liquid to be heated that are disposed at an upper delimiting edge 3 of the delimiting edges 3,4,5,6 to be disposed at the top during liquid heating, wherein the upper delimiting edge 3 extends sufficiently obliquely with respect to its adjacent delimiting edges 4,6 that a gas reception volume 8 is formed in the region of an acute angle of the flow volume 1 subtended between the upper delimiting edge 3 and a delimiting edge 6 adjacent thereto, and a liquid flow guiding seam 13 that is formed by connecting the plastic foils in the region of the flow volume 1 and divides the upper delimiting edge 3 into a lower inlet line opening region and an upper outlet line opening region on the gas reception volume side. A degassing opening 23 is disposed at the upper delimiting edge 3 in the region of the gas reception volume 8 between the outlet line opening 11 and the delimiting edge 6 adjacent to the outlet line opening region.

Claims

1. A liquid heating bag or a blood heating bag, the bag defining a flow volume for a liquid being heated, the bag comprising:

a first flexible plastic foil;

at least one second flexible plastic foil connected to said first foil to form a flat, substantially trapezoidal basic shape defined by delimiting edges, said delimiting edges including an upper delimiting edge disposed at a top of the bag during liquid heating and an adjacent delimiting edge, wherein said upper delimiting edge extends obliquely with respect to said adjacent delimiting edge to define a gas reception volume in an acute angular region subtended between said upper delimiting edge and said adjacent delimiting edge;

a liquid inlet line opening disposed at said upper delimiting edge;

a liquid outlet line opening disposed at said upper delimiting edge at a separation from said inlet line opening;

a liquid flow guiding seam disposed between said inlet and said outlet openings, said guiding seam formed by connecting said first and said second plastic foils in a region of the flow volume, thereby dividing said upper delimiting edge into a lower inlet line opening region and an upper outlet line opening region disposed at a gas reception volume side of the bag; and

a degassing opening disposed at said outlet line opening region of said upper delimiting edge proximate to said gas reception volume and between said outlet line opening and said adjacent delimiting edge.

2. The liquid heating bag of claim 1, further comprising a separating seam disposed between said outlet line opening and said degassing opening and extending from said upper delimiting edge to protrude into the flow volume and partially separate said gas reception volume from the flow volume.

3. The liquid heating bag of claim 2, further comprising a gas bubble guiding edge formed at said liquid flow guiding seam and extending from said liquid flow guiding seam to protrude into an outlet opening sided volume of the flow volume, at least as far as a free end of said separating seam is separated from said liquid flow guiding seam.

4. The liquid heating bag of claim 1, further comprising at least one gas bubble rise impediment edge disposed in an outlet line opening sided volume of the flow volume to form a gas collection volume.

5. The liquid heating bag of claim 1, further comprising an insertion tab disposed on a lower delimiting edge opposite said upper delimiting edge, said insertion tab being formed as a part of plastic foil that projects past said lower delimiting edge.

6. The liquid heating bag of claim 1, wherein the flow volume is defined by welding said first and said second plastic foils directly to each other at said delimiting edges, said liquid flow guiding seam being constituted as a weld seam between said first and said second plastic foils.

7. The liquid heating bag of claim 1, wherein said basic shape is elongated and said upper delimiting edge is opposite to a lower delimiting edge, said upper and lower delimiting edges being narrow edges, wherein delimiting edges connected between said upper and said lower delimiting edges essentially extend parallel to each other to form long sides, said liquid flow guiding seam extending from said upper delimiting edge substantially parallel to said long sides.

8. A bag heating means for the liquid heating bag of claim 1, the bag heating means comprising:

a first substantially rectangular heat exchanger plate constituting a heating element and having a first flat heat exchanging surface;

a second substantially rectangular heat exchanger plate constituting a heating element and having a second flat heat exchanging surface, said first and said second heat exchanger plates being disposed opposite each other such that said first and said second heat exchanging surfaces define a gap, said gap having a width suitable for receiving the liquid heating bag;

at least one liquid level sensor and/or means defining a monitoring opening for detection of a liquid level in the liquid heating bag; and

means defining three grooved shoulders disposed at an upper narrow side edge of said first and said second heat exchanger plates, said grooved shoulders being shaped complementarily to said inlet line opening, said outlet line opening, and said degassing opening, wherein an inlet line connected to said liquid inlet line opening, an outlet line connected to said liquid outlet line opening, and a degassing line connected to said degassing opening are positively held in said grooved shoulders while the liquid heating bag is inserted into the bag heating means.

9. The bag heating means of claim 8, wherein at least one of said first and said second heat exchanger plates has a cavity or a cut recess in a region adjacent to said upper narrow side edge of said first and said second heat exchanger plates for shaping said gas reception volume of the liquid heating bag.

10. The bag heating means of claim 8, further comprising a degassing valve means for connecting said degassing opening of the liquid heating bag when the bag is inserted into the bag heating means.

11. The bag heating means of claim 10, wherein said degassing valve means comprises a tube.

12. The bag heating means of claim 10, wherein said liquid level sensor and said degassing valve means are connected to a control unit, the control unit being structured to control said degassing valve means for closing said degassing opening when a liquid level detected by said liquid level sensor rises above a predefined liquid level in said gas reception volume of the liquid heating bag and to control said degassing valve means to open said degassing opening and/or to control pumping away of gas in said gas reception volume when the liquid level detected by said liquid level sensor falls below the predefined liquid level in said gas reception volume of the liquid heating bag.

13. A liquid heating system having the bag heating means of claim 8.