Abstract:
A portable oxygen concentrator designed for medical use where the adsorbent beds, are designed to be replaced by a patient. The concentrator is designed so that the power supply and adsorbent bed mount is one module and the compressor and air filter are part of another module configured to provide a unitary cooling and air supply system. Replacement beds may be installed easily by patients, and all gas seals will function properly after installation.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Not Applicable 
       FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH 
       [0002]    Not Applicable 
       SEQUENCE LISTING 
       [0003]    Not Applicable 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    The invention generally relates to gas concentrators, and more particularly relates to medical oxygen concentrators used by patients in the home care setting where cost and frequency of maintenance performed by a technician should be minimized. 
         [0005]    The application of oxygen concentrators for therapeutic use is known, and many variants of such devices exist. A particularly useful class of oxygen concentrators is designed to be used in a patient&#39;s home or workplace without the assistance of a medical practitioner or caregiver. These home concentrators are typically referred to as stationary concentrators, as they are not designed to be carried by a patient, distinguishable from portable concentrators which are designed to be carried by a patient for most ambulatory activities. Most of these oxygen concentrators are based on Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA), Vacuum Pressure Swing Adsorption (VPSA), or Vacuum Swing Adsorption (VSA) designs which feed compressed air to selective adsorption beds, sometimes also referred to as sieve beds. In a typical oxygen concentrator, the beds utilize a zeolite adsorbent to selectively adsorb nitrogen, resulting in pressurized, oxygen-rich product gas. This class of oxygen concentrator may also contain one or more systems to extend the service life of the equipment. These systems may include software algorithms to alter the PSA timing, input flow, or operating pressure to extend the performance of the adsorption beds as their capacity is reduced over its operating life as described in common inventors&#39; prior disclosures U.S. Pat. No. 7,857,894 and its related applications incorporated in their entirety by reference. In these systems the adsorption beds may also include desiccant layers before the main adsorbent layer to remove water and other contaminants or dedicated water removal components such as membrane air dryers as described in common inventors&#39; prior disclosures U.S. Pat. No. 7,780,768 and its related applications, incorporated in their entirety by reference. 
         [0006]    The main elements in a typical home-use therapeutic oxygen concentrator are shown in  FIG. 1 . Air is draw in, and typically filtered, at air inlet  1  before being pressurized by compressor  2  to a pressure of 1.2 to 2.5 atmospheres. The pressurized air is directed by feed valve arrangement  9  through adsorbent beds  3 . An exemplary adsorbent bed implementation, used in a concentrator design developed by the inventors, is two columns filled with a lithium exchanged zeolite adsorbent in the ratio of about 1 gram of adsorbent per 1-10 ml of oxygen produced. The pressurized air is directed through these adsorber bed columns in a series of steps which constitute a gas separation cycle, often a PSA cycle or some variation including vacuum instead of, or in conjunction with, compression yielding overall compression ratios of about 1.5:1 to 4.0:1. Although many different arrangements of adsorber vessels and gas separation cycles are possible, the result is that nitrogen is removed by the adsorbent material, and the resulting oxygen rich gas is routed  10  to a product gas storage device at  4 . Some of the oxygen product gas can be routed back through the bed to flush out (purge) the adsorbed nitrogen to an exhaust  6 . Generally multiple adsorbent beds, or columns in the exemplary device, are used so at least one bed may be used to make product while at least one other bed is being purged, ensuring a continuous flow of product gas. The purged gas is exhausted from the concentrator at the exhaust  6 . 
         [0007]    Such gas separation systems are known in the art, and it is appreciated that the gas flow control through the compressor and the adsorbent beds is complex and requires precise timing and control of parameters such as pressure, flow rate, and temperature to attain the desired oxygen concentration of 80% to 95% purity in the product gas stream. Accordingly, most modern concentrators also have a programmable controller  5 , typically a microprocessor, to monitor and control the various operating parameters of the gas separation cycle. In particular, the controller controls the timing and operation of the various valves used to cycle the beds through feed, purge, and pressure equalization steps, which make up the gas separation cycle. Also present in oxygen concentrators is an output control system  7  which acts to ensure that the therapeutic output flow of oxygen is continuous and steady even during the pressure swings associated with the production of the oxygen. A typical oxygen concentrator will also contain a user/data interface  8  including elements such as an LCD display, alarm LEDs, audible buzzers, and control buttons. Portable oxygen concentrators would necessarily also include one or more battery packs for portable use. 
         [0008]    To be conveniently used by an individual in a home or workplace environment needing therapeutic oxygen, the stationary home oxygen concentrators should be less than about 2100 cubic inches and preferably less than 1600 cubic inches in total volume, less than about 25 pounds and preferably less than 20 pounds in weight, and produce less than about 45 decibels of audible noise, while retaining the capacity to produce a flow of product gas adequate to provide for a patient&#39;s oxygen needs, usually a flow rate prescribed by a medical practitioner in about the range of 1 LPM to 5 LPM. Although stationary PSA based concentrators have been available for many years, such fixed site units may weigh 30-50 pounds or more, be several cubic feet in volume, and may produce sound levels greater than 45 dBA. Thus they are loud and difficult to move around. To achieve these beneficial improvements in noise and size/weight, improved home oxygen concentrators involve a significant amount of miniaturization and efficiency improvements, leading to smaller, more complex designs compared to older designs. System size, weight, and complexity may lead to fewer mitigative options or design choices against contamination and other wear and tear effects that can lead to an unacceptably short maintenance interval, and therefore require novel design features to achieve both the improvements in size and noise while maintaining adequate lifetime. 
         [0009]    It is therefore necessary to design home oxygen concentrators such that zeolite contamination is handled in a manner that avoids costly or frequent maintenance by a field technician or equipment provider. The inventors have previously disclosed a system that achieves long sieve bed life by removing water prior to the feed gas as described in the above cited references. This approach may desirable for some portable oxygen concentrators where the beds are even smaller than a home based stationary system, but because of the cost involved, may not be appropriate to stationary home based system where the price point needs to be very low. It is therefore desirable to design a home oxygen concentrator that minimizes size and weight and cost as a function of oxygen output with commonly available commercial adsorbents such as Z12-07 manufactured by Zeochem or Oxysiv MDX manufactured by UOP. While eliminating water removal components such as membrane air dryers or pretreatment layers such as activated alumina or a NaX type zeolite will reduce the cost of the adsorbent beds it will also reduce the service life of the beds to an unacceptable level. Oxygen equipment used for Long Term Oxygen Therapy (LTOT) is optimally deployed for 3-5 years without any service requirements. Any service requirement within that time interval simply adds to the overall cost of the equipment, which substantially reverses any cost benefit gained by removing a membrane air dryer or pretreatment layer. Further, allowing sieve bed contamination without prevention or service may lead to providing 82-87% purity oxygen instead of 87-95% pure oxygen to the patient. To reduce the overall cost of delivering oxygen therapy, devices must be designed that do not require field service by a technician or equipment provider, and also minimize the cost, size, power consumption, and noise of the equipment that is used inside of the patient&#39;s home. 
         [0010]    A typical adsorbent bed or adsorber is constructed of a column with an inlet port and an outlet port arranged at opposite ends. The adsorbers would typically be connected to the valve manifold of the concentrator through tubing or a direct manifold connection. Either prior art construction method resulted in a robust pneumatic connection that was only meant to be disconnected by a trained service technician who could access the internal components of the concentrator and disconnect or disassemble the inlet and outlet connections. Some columns, such as those that are adhesive bonded to an integrated manifold, may not be removable at all in a field service environment and must be replaced in combination with other system components to achieve zeolite replacement. Therefore user-replaceable adsorber beds are desirable and provide an approach that may increase the service life of a concentrator without the costly water removal components and without the need for factory or factory trained service. Techniques for producing a medical concentrator of the portable type with user replaceable adsorber beds are described in U.S. application Ser. Nos. 13/016,706 and 13/449,138 by common inventors and incorporated in their entirety by reference 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0011]    The invention is an improved stationary home oxygen concentrator, including a PSA/VPSA/VSA core section capable of mating with user replaceable adsorbers, the core section including:
       a housing   a controller   a user interface   at least two user replaceable adsorber beds   at least one compressor, air control valve, and air filter, making a PSA/VPSA/VSA oxygen system when mated with the user replaceable adsorbers   a patient delivery apparatus
 
The concentrator also includes a module of at least one AC-DC power supply and docking elements for the user replaceable beds. The concentrator includes another module including the compressor and an air blower. The blower, and air inlets and outlets are arranged to form a unitary cooling and acoustic damping air flow system drawing air in from one side of the housing over the beds and over the compressor and power supply while directing exhaust gas from the beds to the muffler and both exhaust and cooling air directed out of the housing on an opposite side from the inlet.
       
 
         [0018]    Preferably, the concentrator weighs less than 25 pounds, produces less than 50 dba acoustic noise when operating, and has an output gas flow of 5 lpm or less. 
         [0019]    In some embodiments, the concentrator has an input to receive the output from an external rechargeable battery capable of running the concentrator for greater than 2 hours. The concentrator may in these embodiments be switched between operating from the internal AC-DC power supply and the external battery. The adsorbers and the power supply module may be enclosed in a lower housing component that has rubber vibration and noise isolating feet or wheels. 
         [0020]    In other embodiments the DC power input may also include a communication bus to communicate state and power information to the microprocessor on the concentrator. The concentrator in some embodiments may also include a diagnostics interface. 
         [0021]    In some embodiments, an inlet filter is mounted to the exterior of the concentrator (which may form an ornamental surface of the exterior). The inlet filter may also form a portion of a mount for a humidifier. The inlet to the inlet filter is preferably directed into the interior of the concentrator to reduce external noise sources and source air from filtered air that has passed through the gross particle filter. Preferably the chassis directs airflow over at least the compressor and the power supply and the inlet cooling air is directed over the adsorbent beds. 
         [0022]    In some embodiments the compressor subchassis is interconnected to the chassis via rails to provide a high amount of surface engagement to distribute shock load and prevent breakage of the chassis. 
         [0023]    In some embodiments, the intake silencer and exhaust muffler are a common structure. Preferably, the lower housing cover may be removed to access the replaceable adsorber beds 
         [0024]    In additional embodiments the detachable lower housing may be equipped with either rubber vibration isolation feet or wheels to increase ease of movement within a house and best fit a patient&#39;s mode of usage for the equipment. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0025]    The understanding of the following detailed description of certain preferred embodiments of the invention will be facilitated by referring to the accompanying figures. 
           [0026]      FIG. 1  shows the general elements of gas concentrators as applicable to certain embodiments of the invention. 
           [0027]      FIG. 2  illustrates the general concept where the concentrator platform is one portion and the user replaceable adsorber is another portion that together form a complete portable oxygen concentrator. 
           [0028]      FIG. 3  shows an exemplary external layout of the concentrator. 
           [0029]      FIG. 4  illustrates an exemplary modular design of the concentrator. 
           [0030]      FIG. 5  illustrates additional exemplary elements of the concentrator. 
           [0031]      FIG. 6  depicts the novel open airflow design of the concentrator. 
           [0032]      FIG. 7  illustrates the novel air connection design of the concentrator. 
           [0033]      FIG. 8  depicts a protective covering for the power supply/bed module. 
           [0034]      FIG. 9  depicts an exemplary view of the external power supply input, air filter, and diagnostics port of the concentrator. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0035]    An ideal home stationary concentrator should still be light and compact enough for ease of movement and placement for use by a patient as opposed to a technician or caregiver. This class of equipment should preferably operate reliably for many years without the need for professional service and maintenance. These improved home oxygen concentrators are typically in the range of 10 to 20 lbs and produce from 0.3 to 5.0 LPM of oxygen. A particularly effective embodiment of the invention is an oxygen concentrator where the sieve bed cartridges or adsorbers can be removed and replaced without removing any fasteners or exposing internal operating components.  FIG. 2  illustrates an embodiment of an exemplary concentrator suitable for the invention. One skilled in the art will appreciate that the alterations of design elements and arrangement of components from the exemplary design shown are possible to practice the novel elements of the invention. Thus the exemplary design shown is not limiting and the invention is limited only by the claims. The novel stationary concentrator incorporates multiple elements distinct from the portable concentrator with user replaceable beds described in application Ser. No. 13/016,706, but also benefits from a replaceable bed design. As shown in  FIG. 2  beds  21  interface to the other concentrator components  20  through feed gas connections  201  and  211 , product gas connections  212  and  202  and are secured with retention mechanisms  213  and  203 , examples of which are disclosed in application Ser. No. 13/016,706. The novel stationary concentrator has additional elements modularly attached to the core control and compressor section of the concentrator. The filter and power supply are located on the outside of the core structure while the adsorbent beds are internal to the outer casing to provide additional forced cooling air to pass over the adsorbent beds. The product gas connection  202  for each adsorber has been joined into a common element to reduce part count. Feed gas connections  201  and mating element  203  have also been integrated into a single element to reduce part count. A compressor inlet silencer  130  is added to the airflow system and the whole air intake/cooling system is a unitary design that achieves multiple objectives with a relatively small number of elements. In addition the novel stationary concentrator preferably operates with a power supply  17  which can be plugged into an AC power source (wall power) as well as optionally operating off of DC power  18 , such as an external battery pack  18 . The DC power option is particularly useful if the user&#39;s ambulatory needs include wheeled appliances such as walkers or wheelchairs, which can easily transport a concentrator in the size range envisioned, thus adding an element of portability to the novel stationary concentrator. 
         [0036]    Referring to  FIG. 3 , some exterior elements of an exemplary concentrator  100  are shown. The outer housing panels include a front and rear panel,  13  and  12 , control panel  16  with an optional mount  11  for an external humidifier. Also shown are an intake panel  14 , containing the gross particle filter  1  and exhaust panel  15  and a lower housing  101 . In the exemplary concentrator design front  13  and rear  12  panels are removable by hidden screws that can be located when lower housing  101  is removed. The lower housing can be removed without tools to access the removable adsorbers. Lower, front, and rear panels can be removed during operation of the concentrator for easy service and troubleshooting. The front  13  and rear  12  panels are removable in such a way that they are the last elements of installation before the lower housing. Removing them exposes the internals of the concentrator while the intake housing  14  and the exhaust housing  15  continue to support the control panel housing  16 . This exemplary arrangement is beneficial for repair and troubleshooting. 
         [0037]      FIG. 4  illustrates internal elements of the novel concentrator. The concentrator includes two modules, the compressor module  120  and the Power supply/bed dock module  110 . Blower  140  is part of the compressor module  120  as are silencing elements exhaust muffler  130  and compressor intake silencer  131 . Since the predominance of the noise from the concentrator originates at the compressor intake, the intake silencer is located between the compressor and the externally mounted air filter to prevent noise being communicated to the exterior of the concentrator. The muffler likewise must handle the large volume of gas generated when an adsorber is exhausted. This exhaust gas is routed into the compressor chassis to maximally contain the exhaust sound and to prevent the nitrogen rich exhaust gas from being recycled into the compressor intake. Referring to  FIG. 5 , the compressor is mounted to a modular load dispersing element  121  to prevent chassis damage during shipment. This structure has a high surface area interface to the chassis and prevents the fasteners from being load concentrating elements by utilizing a sliding rail system to retain the structure in multiple orientations. The load dispersing element  121  also contains cooling ducts  123  from the compressor module to the power supply module to ensure the cooling fan is actively cooling the power supply. The compressor module contains exhaust gas ducting  124  to the muffler as well as compressor cooling ducting  122 . The power supply/bed dock module  110  contains the adsorber alignment guides  112 , adsorber retention latches  113  and the lower housing (boot) latches  111 . The bed retention system may be one of several forms, such as those described in application Ser. No. 13/016,706 
         [0038]      FIGS. 6 and 7  illustrate the unitary cooling/acoustic damping airflow system of the concentrator  100 .  FIG. 6  illustrates the open flow portion of the air system. Blower  140  intakes air from the intake gross particle filter  14  in a tortuous path over the adsorbent beds  160 . This air path ensures that the adsorbent beds are cooled with the coolest possible air and that the heat generated from the compressor  180  and power supply  190  is not directed back to other components in the system. The blower discharge air is directed over the compressor heads and cylinders  16  which are the most temperature sensitive parts of the system. The cooling air then passes over the compressor  180  motor and power supply  190  before being expelled out the exhaust to minimize the heat build up in the system and minimize the escaping noise through the vents. This progressive cooling system ensures that the sensitivity of the component to heat is commensurate with its location in the cooling air path. The cooling layout is also optimized to ensure that heat buildup occurs near the exhaust exit to minimize heat retention in the system and thermal heating of non-heat generating components such as the valves and circuit board. 
         [0039]    The concentrator  100  piped airflow portion is shown in  FIG. 7 . Intake connection  171  collects ambient air as it is drawn in through the gross particle filter and air inlet  160  and draws it into the compressor air filter  174 . The intake air is routed to intake silencer  131  from the compressor air filter whose output is routed to the compressor by compressor connector  172 . Bed product gas is routed toward patient by connection  173 , while exhaust gas is routed to muffler  130  by connection  170 . Muffler output is vented  123  to the compressor module as shown in  FIG. 5  location  124 . Where it is pushed to the panel outlet by the open airflow through the compressor module  120 . Thus the blower is the single point of origin for the unitary air system, which includes silencing elements for both compressor input and exhaust output, as well as comprehensive cooling and exhaust gas management. 
         [0040]      FIG. 8  illustrates an embodiment which may include a removable protective boot  150  which fits over the bottom panel  101 . This boot preferably is easily removable, by the user, and when removed provides access to the beds and bed retention mechanisms. Thus the beds may be removed and replaced simply by removing the boot with no other disassembly required. The boot may optionally include isolation feet and/or wheels. As was shown in  FIG. 5  the adsorber and power supply subchassis  110  houses the power supply and the adsorber mounting, two of the critical components of the oxygen concentrator covered by lower housing component  101 . To ensure that these components are protected from external damage or contamination from water and debris, the lower housing component  101  in  FIG. 8  is a snap on cover that offers protection to the internal components of the power supply and adsorber subchassis. Optional rubber isolation feet  102  are depicted in  FIG. 3  to ensure that the vibration and noise from the concentrator are not rigidly coupled to the floor or other operating surface of the concentrator. The removable lower housing can be removed by the user to access and change the adsorbent beds. Therefore, the removal of the lower housing without tools is important to allow the user to change the adsorbent beds rather than a technician or service provider. 
         [0041]      FIG. 9  illustrates how the preferred embodiment of the improved stationary concentrator includes the adaptability of an alternate power input port  90  designed to operate the system on DC input power. The DC power may be supplied by an external battery system or other DC power source such as a vehicle. In this preferred embodiment, the power input connector includes at least one communication line to facilitate identification of the type and configuration of the DC power source. This is the preferred embodiment because it allows for flexible power moding such that the concentrator may restrict its allowed flow settings to match the available power of the DC power source. For example, a standard automobile power outlet may supply only 120 W and the concentrator may limit operation to 3 LPM or less to prevent malfunction or damage to the DC power source. Whereas the presence of a larger external battery or power supply may allow full range operation and the information communicated between the power source and the concentrator&#39;s DC input system can allow for this optimized operation. 
         [0042]    In another embodiment of the improved stationary concentrator, there is a diagnostic interface  92  located on the rear panel of the concentrator as seen in  FIG. 9 . This connector serves a range of purposes that may include providing a display output to show additional information about the internal operating conditions of the concentrator. The diagnostic connector may also include other functionality such as a USB interface or software update port that was previously a discreet output on portable oxygen concentrators where cost is less of a concern. This diagnostic port connector allows for cost to be removed from the host concentrator system and moved to a diagnostic interface system such that the cost is not incurred on every concentrator. 
         [0043]    The preferred embodiment depicted in  FIG. 9  additionally includes an externally mounted air intake filter  91  that feeds air into the compressor. The topside external location of this filter allows easy access by the user to check the dirt loading of the filter and to replace the filter as needed without the assistance of a technician or service provider. Unlike other stationary concentrators that locate the filter behind a trap door, the filter  91  depicted in  FIG. 9  does not require any opening of the concentrator for access. The filter further includes a clear housing component that allows direct visual evaluation of the filter element by the user so that the replacement of the filter can be limited by need rather than specified at discrete or predetermined intervals of time or run hours. The topside location also allows ease of access to the user so that the user does not have to kneel down of lift the concentrator up to access the filter for inspection or replacement. In a preferred embodiment the air filter may form an ornamental portion of the concentrator case and my include features such as slots  93  to mount the humidifier accessory to the concentrator. This mounting location ensures the filter is located in a commonly accessed location. This specific configuration also ensures that any damage to the humidifier mount can be replaced by replacing the user replaceable intake filter thus avoiding a repair by a technician or service provider. 
         [0044]    The inlet filter depicted in  FIG. 9  is directed to intake ambient air into the compressor system from the intake side of the air blower. This optimal configuration ensures that the compressor receives cool ambient air that is free from concentrated nitrogen because the exhaust gas is directed into the exhaust side chamber of the air blower. The air inlet configuration depicted in  FIG. 9  further contributes to low noise operation because the intake filter ports  94  are directed into the interior of the concentrator so that the intake valve noise from the compressor that escapes back through the filter element and housing is not directed to the exterior of the concentrator where it would be more audible to the user. 
         [0045]    In an optional configuration, the lower housing  101  depicted in  FIG. 3  can also be modified to meet specific user needs and can be easily swapped during any stage of manufacturing or deployment of the concentrator since the lower housing can be removed and replaced without tools. For example, the rubber vibration isolation feet  102  can be substituted for caster wheels or a battery cart mounting system in alternate configurations. The changeable lower housing serves to allow the concentrator to serve a multitude of purposes as well as providing for easy replacement in the case of damage. A common failure mode or prior art stationary concentrator is the caster wheels being broken during shipping, transport or usage. When these caster wheels are broken, the entire housing must be replaced since the housings are typically composed of large clamshell type enclosures or intricate lower housings that are integrated to such other components such as compressor mounts or internal chassis. The separate and simple lower housing in the invention further simplifies service, configuration, and maintenance of the concentrator while in service and reduces the need to remove the concentrator from service to perform repairs. 
         [0046]    The foregoing description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention has shown, described and pointed out the fundamental novel features of the invention. It will be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form of the detail of the apparatus as illustrated as well as the uses thereof, may be made by those skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit of the invention. 
         [0000]    Consequently, the scope of the invention should not be limited to the foregoing discussions, but should be defined by appended claims.