Portable decontamination unit
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An apparatus for decontaminating a region within an enclosure, said apparatus comprising:
- a conduit having a passageway therethrough, said passageway defining a path for a carrier gas, said conduit having a first end and a second end, each of said ends being connectable to an enclosure to define a closed-loop path that includes a region of said enclosure;
a blower attached to said conduit for re-circulating a carrier gas into, through and out of said region of said enclosure;
a nozzle for injecting a sterilant into said conduit;
a space or gap defined in said conduit;
a plurality of tubular chambers, each of said chamber having an opening therethrough and each of said chamber being selectively movable into and out of said gap, an opening in a chamber being aligned with said passageway in said conduit when said chamber is disposed in said gap, wherein said opening in said chamber is aligned with said passageway in said conduit;
a heating element disposed in one of said tubular chambers operable to heat said carrier gas flowing therethrough;
a destroyer disposed in another of said tubular chambers operable to destroy sterilant in said carrier gas; and
a controller for controlling movement of said tubular chambers into and out of said gap and the operating of said heating element and said nozzle.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An apparatus for decontaminating a region within an enclosure. The apparatus comprises a conduit having a passageway therethrough that defines a path for a carrier gas. A plurality of tube sections, each of the tube sections having an opening extending therethrough, is selectively movable into and out of a gap in the conduit. A heating element is disposed in one of the tube sections and is operable to heat the carrier gas flowing therethrough. A destroyer is disposed in another of the tube sections and is operable to destroy sterilant in the carrier gas. A controller controls movement of the tube sections into and out of the gap.
7 Citations
20 Claims
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1. An apparatus for decontaminating a region within an enclosure, said apparatus comprising:
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a conduit having a passageway therethrough, said passageway defining a path for a carrier gas, said conduit having a first end and a second end, each of said ends being connectable to an enclosure to define a closed-loop path that includes a region of said enclosure; a blower attached to said conduit for re-circulating a carrier gas into, through and out of said region of said enclosure; a nozzle for injecting a sterilant into said conduit; a space or gap defined in said conduit; a plurality of tubular chambers, each of said chamber having an opening therethrough and each of said chamber being selectively movable into and out of said gap, an opening in a chamber being aligned with said passageway in said conduit when said chamber is disposed in said gap, wherein said opening in said chamber is aligned with said passageway in said conduit; a heating element disposed in one of said tubular chambers operable to heat said carrier gas flowing therethrough; a destroyer disposed in another of said tubular chambers operable to destroy sterilant in said carrier gas; and a controller for controlling movement of said tubular chambers into and out of said gap and the operating of said heating element and said nozzle. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A closed loop, flow through vapor phase decontamination system, comprising:
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a conduit having a passageway therethrough, said passageway defining a path for a carrier gas, said conduit having a first end and a second end, each of said ends being connectable to an enclosure to define a closed-loop path that includes a region of said enclosure; a blower connected to said conduit system for re-circulating a carrier gas flow into, through and out of the chamber; a nozzle for injecting a sterilant into said closed loop conduit system; a destroyer for converting the vaporized hydrogen peroxide in water and oxygen; and a heating element operable to heat said carrier gas flowing through said closed loop conduit system, wherein said destroyer and said heating element are selectively movable into and out of alignment with said passageway in said conduit, said heating element operable to heat said carrier gas and vaporize said sterilant when said heating element is aligned with said passageway and said destroyer operable to break down said sterilant when said destroyer is aligned with said passageway. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification