Ergonomic and adjustable respiratory mask assembly with frame
First Claim
1. A frame for a respiratory mask assembly that delivers breathable gas to a patient, the frame comprising:
- a main body having a front surface and a rear surface adapted in use to face the patient, the main body having an aperture extending through the front surface for the introduction of breathable gas into a nasal breathing cavity defined by the frame; and
an inner wall and an outer wall each extending rearwardly from the rear surface, the inner and outer walls being spaced to define a channel therebetween that is structured to receive a side wall of a cushion such that the cushion may be repeatedly attached to and detached from the frame, wherein the main body and the inner and outer walls are formed in one piece and the inner and outer walls are spaced in parallel, wherein a length of the inner wall is different than a length of the outer wall such that the inner wall protrudes away from the rear surface a distance that is different than a distance the outer wall protrudes away from the rear surface,wherein at least a portion of the channel is shaped and dimensioned to generally follow a contour of the patient'"'"'s face, andwherein the channel has a generally triangular shape, and wherein the side wall of the cushion is adapted to be positioned between the inner and outer walls when attached to the frame.
6 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A respiratory mask assembly for delivering breathable gas to a patient includes a frame having a front surface and a rear surface, opposite the front surface, and adapted in use to face the patient. The frame defines an inner wall and an outer wall extending from the rear surface, the inner and outer walls being spaced to define a channel therebetween. A cushion is removably attachable to the frame such that the cushion and frame are repeatably engagable with and disengagable from one another. The cushion includes a side wall to be inserted into the channel of the frame, the side wall having a first interlocking surface that engages a second interlocking surface provided in the channel when the cushion and frame are engaged with one another. The first and second interlocking surfaces interlock with one another to removably attach the cushion to the frame.
198 Citations
97 Claims
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1. A frame for a respiratory mask assembly that delivers breathable gas to a patient, the frame comprising:
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a main body having a front surface and a rear surface adapted in use to face the patient, the main body having an aperture extending through the front surface for the introduction of breathable gas into a nasal breathing cavity defined by the frame; and an inner wall and an outer wall each extending rearwardly from the rear surface, the inner and outer walls being spaced to define a channel therebetween that is structured to receive a side wall of a cushion such that the cushion may be repeatedly attached to and detached from the frame, wherein the main body and the inner and outer walls are formed in one piece and the inner and outer walls are spaced in parallel, wherein a length of the inner wall is different than a length of the outer wall such that the inner wall protrudes away from the rear surface a distance that is different than a distance the outer wall protrudes away from the rear surface, wherein at least a portion of the channel is shaped and dimensioned to generally follow a contour of the patient'"'"'s face, and wherein the channel has a generally triangular shape, and wherein the side wall of the cushion is adapted to be positioned between the inner and outer walls when attached to the frame. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A frame for a respiratory mask assembly that delivers breathable gas to a patient, the frame comprising:
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a base having a front side, a rear side, and an aperture therethrough for the introduction of breathable gas into a nasal breathing cavity; an elbow assembly movably supported on the front side of the base; and an inner wall and an outer wall having a generally triangular or trapezoidal channel therebetween that is structured to receive a side wall of a cushion so as to allow repeated attaching and detaching of the cushion and the base, at least a portion of the channel being shaped and dimensioned to generally follow a contour of the patient'"'"'s face, wherein the inner wall includes a protrusion configured to contact the side wall of the cushion so as to removably attach the cushion to the base; the channel has a width in the range of about 2-10 mm; the base comprises an alignment feature configured to align with an alignment feature on the cushion; the cushion can be attached to the frame to substantially simultaneously retain the cushion to the frame and form a seal with the frame; and a depth of the channel is selected such that at least a portion of an end of the side wall of the cushion may contact a bottom surface of the channel; and wherein each of the inner and outer walls extends from the rear side, and the inner wall extends a different distance than the outer wall, and wherein the side wall of the cushion is adapted to be positioned between the inner and outer walls when attached to the frame. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38)
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39. A frame for a respiratory mask assembly that delivers breathable gas to a patient, the frame comprising:
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a substantially rigid main body, the main body comprising; a front surface and a rear surface adapted in use to face the patient, and an aperture provided therethrough for the introduction of breathable gas into a nasal breathing cavity defined by the frame; a generally triangular or trapezoidal channel extending from the rear surface of the main body, the channel being structured to receive a side wall of a cushion so to removably attach the cushion to the frame, the channel comprising; an inner wall and an outer wall spaced from and extending parallel to each other, and a channel floor extending between the inner and outer walls, wherein the outer wall defines at least a portion of the outer perimeter of the main body, the channel having a generally horizontal upper section dimensioned to be positioned over the patient'"'"'s nasal bridge region, a generally horizontal lower section that is generally parallel to the upper section, and side section to join the upper and lower sections; and wherein each of the inner and outer walls extends from the rear surface, and the inner wall extends a different distance than the outer wall, and wherein the side wall of the cushion is adapted to be positioned between the inner and outer walls when attached to the frame. - View Dependent Claims (40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56)
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57. A respiratory mask assembly for delivering breathable gas to a patient, comprising:
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a rigid frame having a front surface and a rear surface, opposite the front surface, and adapted in use to face the patient, the frame defining an outer wall and an inner wall with at least the inner wall extending from the rear surface, the inner and outer walls being rigid and spaced to define a generally triangular or trapezoidal channel therebetween, the channel including a bottom surface defined by the frame and having a shape including a top region adapted to face the patient'"'"'s nasal bridge, a bottom region, and two cheek regions that connect the top region and the bottom region, the inner wall having at least a first protruding portion that protrudes into the channel, wherein the frame, the inner wall, the outer wall, the channel bottom and the first protruding portion are formed in one piece; and a cushion being removably attachable to the frame such that the cushion and frame are repeatably engagable with and disengagable from one another, the cushion including a flexible and generally triangular or trapezoidal side wall to be inserted into the channel of the frame and is positioned between the rigid inner and outer walls of the frame, thereby forming a sealed connection therewith, the side wall having a shape that matches the shape of the channel, the side wall having an interior surface that engages the first protruding portion provided on the inner wall of the channel when the cushion and frame are engaged with one another, wherein, during assembly of the cushion and the frame, the interior surface and the first protruding portion engage one another to deform or compress the side wall in the vicinity of the interior surface and provide a retaining force to help maintain the sealed connection between the cushion and the frame such that the cushion is sealed and retained relative to the frame without an additional retaining member, and wherein each of the inner and outer walls include an end, and the inner wall end projects a different distance than the outer wall end. - View Dependent Claims (58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68)
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69. A frame for a respiratory mask assembly that delivers breathable gas to a patient, the frame comprising:
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a substantially rigid main body having a generally triangular or trapezoidal shape and having a curvature adapted to generally follow at least a part of the facial contour of the patient'"'"'s face, the main body comprising a front surface and a rear surface adapted in use to face the patient, and an aperture provided therethrough for the introduction of breathable gas into a nasal breathing cavity defined by the frame; a channel structured to receive a side wall of a cushion so to removably attach the cushion to the frame, the channel comprising an inner wall and an outer wall spaced from and extending generally parallel to each other, and a channel floor extending between the inner and outer walls, wherein the outer wall defines at least a portion of the outer perimeter of the main body and the inner wall extends from the rear surface and is formed in one piece with the outer wall, the main body and the channel floor, at least a portion of the channel having a curvature adapted to generally follow at least a portion of the facial contour of the patient'"'"'s face and a generally triangular or generally trapezoidal shape; and wherein the inner wall extends a different distance than the outer wall, and wherein the channel is structured to retain the cushion and form a seal without an interior or exterior member, and wherein the side wall of the cushion is adapted to be positioned between the inner and outer walls when attached to the frame. - View Dependent Claims (70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79)
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80. A respiratory mask assembly for delivering breathable gas to a patient, comprising:
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a frame having a main body, an outer wall, and an inner wall extending from the main body, the inner and outer walls having different extended lengths so as to establish a relative distance, said inner and outer walls being spaced to define a channel therebetween, the channel having a generally triangular or trapezoidal shape, wherein the inner wall includes a retaining element that protrudes into the channel, and wherein the main body, the inner wall, outer wall and retaining element are formed in one piece; and at least one silicone cushion being removably attachable to the frame such that the cushion and frame are repeatably engagable with and disengagable from one another, the cushion including a deformable side wall to be inserted into the channel of the frame and being retained between the inner and outer walls of the frame, wherein the side wall frictionally contacts the inner and outer walls, the side wall including at least one sealing lip positioned at or adjacent an end of the side wall, the sealing lip extending outward from an exterior surface of the side wall and running around the periphery of the side wall, thereby forming a sealed connection with the outer wall of the frame, the side wall having a shape that matches the shape of the channel, wherein, during assembly, the relative distance between said extended lengths of the inner and outer walls of the frame assists in initial alignment of the side wall and the channel, wherein the retaining element provided on the inner wall of the channel is positioned below a top edge of the inner wall such that during initial engagement between the cushion and the frame, the side wall begins to frictionally contact the inner and outer walls, before an interior surface of the side wall engages the retaining element provided on the inner wall of the channel, wherein, after the cushion and frame are initially engaged with one another, and upon further insertion of the cushion into the channel, the interior surface and the retaining element engage one another to deform or compress the side wall in the vicinity of the interior surface to at least partially provide a retaining force to help maintain the sealed connection between the cushion and the frame, and wherein the cushion is both sealed and retained relative to the frame without the need for a strap, an interior or exterior clip, or an additional retaining device. - View Dependent Claims (81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97)
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Specification