Patent Publication Number: US-7581718-B1

Title: Atomizer

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   This invention relates to an atomizer, more particularly to an atomizer including an air inlet conduit for accelerating discharging of mist. 
   2. Description of the Related Art 
   An atomizer is a device for aerosolizing a liquid with a pressurized air, and has been used in the medical industry for delivering medicines to a patient&#39;s lungs. 
   In order to achieve highly efficient delivery of medicines, an air inlet conduit has been incorporated into the design of the atomizer.  FIGS. 1 and 2  show conventional atomizers provided with the air inlet conduit. As shown in  FIG. 1 , an air inlet conduit  21  of the conventional atomizer  2  is used to introduce external air into an inner space  22  of the atomizer  2 . The introduced air accelerates the aerosolizing mist of a drug to flow toward a mist-discharging conduit  23 . Since the flow path of the introduced air is tortuous, the efficiency for delivery of the drug from the conventional atomizer to the patient is unsatisfactory. 
   As shown in  FIG. 2 , the conventional atomizer  3  includes an air inlet conduit  31  formed with a plurality of holes  311  in a peripheral wall thereof. Although the pathway of the introduced air into the inner space  32  is straight, the introduced air passing through the holes  311  formed in the peripheral wall cannot efficiently accelerate the mist to flow to a mist-discharging conduit due to a relatively long distance from the holes  311  to a mist forming zone S 1 . The mist is also likely to flow into the air inlet conduit  31 , thereby resulting in an unstable output. In addition, in the conventional atomizer  3 , since a cap  33  and a jacket  34  are two individual parts, costs for manufacturing the atomizer  3  are increased, and the manufacturing process is relatively complicated. Moreover, since the jacket  34  is relatively small in size, it is likely to be misplaced. 
   Therefore, there is a need in the art to provide an atomizer that provides a high efficiency for delivery of a drug to a patient&#39;s lungs. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an atomizer that can overcome the aforesaid drawbacks of the prior art. 
   According to this invention, an atomizer includes: an enclosed reservoir defining an inner space adapted to receive a liquid therein; a jet nozzle provided in the inner space for passage of an air jet therethrough and formed with an air outlet; a jacket sleeved around the jet nozzle to define a fluid-introducing gap therebetween, the fluid-introducing gap being in fluid communication with the inner space for passage of the liquid therethrough; an air inlet conduit extending into the inner space, disposed above and connected to the jacket, and including a bottom wall having a jet-blocking portion aligned with the air outlet of the jet nozzle in a jet-ejecting direction so as to permit impingement of the air jet from the air outlet of the jet nozzle, and a plurality of through-holes disposed around the jet-blocking portion and opening in the jet-ejecting direction; and a mist-discharging conduit extending sealingly into and in fluid communication with the inner space for passage of a mist therethrough. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment of this invention, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 
       FIG. 1  is a cross-sectional view of a conventional atomizer; 
       FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of another conventional atomizer; 
       FIG. 3  is a schematic view of the preferred embodiment of an atomizer according to this invention, illustrating the position relationship between through-holes of an air inlet conduit and a mist-discharging conduit; 
       FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the preferred embodiment taken along line IV-IV in  FIG. 3 ; and 
       FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view of the preferred embodiment taken along line V-V in  FIG. 3 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   Referring to  FIGS. 3 ,  4 , and  5 , the preferred embodiment of an atomizer  4  according to the present invention is shown to include: an enclosed reservoir defining an inner space  54  adapted to receive a liquid  8  (e.g., a liquid drug) therein; a jet nozzle  53  provided in the inner space  54  for passage of an air jet therethrough; a jacket  67  sleeved around the jet nozzle  53  to define a fluid-introducing gap  7  therebetween; an air inlet conduit  64  extending into the inner space  54 , and disposed above and connected to the jacket  67 ; and a mist-discharging conduit  62 . 
   Specifically, the enclosed reservoir includes a container  5  and a cap  6  connected detachably and securely to the container  5 . The container  5  includes a surrounding wall  51  and a partition wall  52  extending from the surrounding wall  51  to the jet nozzle  53  and confining a bottom side of the inner space  54 . The surrounding wall  51  is formed with a plurality of engaging flanges  511 , each of which extends radially and outwardly from a top periphery of the surrounding wall  51 . 
   The cap  6  includes a cover plate  61  and is formed with a plurality of engaging parts  63  on an inner side of a periphery of the cover plate  61 . The engaging parts  63  of the cap  6  engage the engaging flanges  511  of the surrounding wall  51  of the container  5 , respectively, so as to secure the cap  6  to the container  5 . 
   The jet nozzle  53  extends sealingly in a jet-ejecting direction (X) through the partition wall  52  and into the inner space  54 . The jet nozzle  53  includes an air inlet  533  and a tapered air outlet  534 . 
   The air inlet conduit  64  is aligned with the jacket  67  in the jet-ejecting direction (X), and has a peripheral wall  68  extending from the cover plate  61  toward the jet nozzle  53 , and a bottom wall  65  extending transversely from a periphery of the peripheral wall  68 . The bottom wall  65  includes a protruded jet-blocking portion  66 , and is formed with a plurality of through-holes  651 . Two connecting members  662  are spaced apart from each other and interconnect the air inlet conduit  64  and the jacket  67 . The jet-blocking portion  66  is aligned with and is disposed adjacent to the air outlet  534  of the jet nozzle  53  in the jet-ejecting direction (X) so as to permit the air jet from the air outlet  534  of the jet nozzle  53  and the liquid flow from the fluid-introducing gap  7  to impinge a surface  663  of the jet-blocking portion  66 , thereby producing the mist of the liquid in a mist forming zone S 2  between the jet-blocking portion  66  and the air outlet  534  of the jet nozzle  53 . The through-holes  651  are disposed around the jet-blocking portion  66 , and open in the jet-ejecting direction (X) such that the mist thus produced can be accelerated to flow toward the mist-discharging conduit  62  through the assistance of the external air flowing into the mist forming zone S 2  through the through-holes  651 . 
   The jacket  67  has a surrounding wall  673  extending in the jet-ejecting direction (X), and an end flange  674  extending radially and outwardly from the surrounding wall  673 . The jacket  67  further includes a tapered end that defines a restricted opening  671  and that is aligned with the jet-blocking portion  66  in the jet-ejecting direction (X) such that the fluid  8  flowing out of the restricted opening  671  through the fluid-introducing gap  7  impinges the jet-blocking portion  66 . 
   The mist-discharging conduit  62  includes a surrounding wall extending outwardly from the cover plate  61  of the cap  6 , and is in fluid communication with the inner space  54  for passage of the mist therethrough. In this embodiment, the air inlet conduit  64  and the mist-discharging conduit  62  are arranged in parallel (see  FIG. 3 ). 
   In this embodiment, the cap  6 , the air inlet conduit  64 , the mist-discharging conduit  62 , and the jacket  67  are an integrally formed single piece. 
   In use, when a high-pressure air jet passes through the jet nozzle  53  from the air inlet  533  to the air outlet  534 , the liquid  8  in the inner space  54  flows through the fluid-introducing gap  7  because of a negative pressure generated in the fluid-introducing gap  7 , and is atomized by the high-pressure air as the liquid  8  leaves the restricted opening  671 . Thereafter, because of inertia, the atomized liquid impinges the jet-blocking portion  66 , thereby resulting in a mist having smaller molecular size. In addition, because of the difference in pressure between the two sides of the bottom wall  65  of the air inlet conduit  64 , external air is automatically sucked into the inner space  54  through the through-holes  651 , thereby accelerating the mist formed at the jet-blocking portion  66  to flow toward the mist-discharging conduit  62 . 
   Note that, in the present invention, an air shutter (not shown) can be provided to control the flow rate of the external air and to minimize noise when the external air passes through the through-holes  651 . 
   According to the present invention, with the design of the through-holes  651  aligned with the air outlet  534  of the jet nozzle  53  in the jet-ejecting direction (X), the flow rate of the mist to the mist-discharging conduit  62  can be improved, and the problem that the mist flows into the air inlet conduit can be eliminated. Moreover, since the cap  6 , the air inlet conduit  64 , the mist-discharging conduit  62 , and the jacket  67  are an integrally formed single piece, costs for manufacturing the atomizer can be decreased, and the problem associated with misplacement of the jacket in the conventional atomizer can be eliminated. 
   While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation and equivalent arrangements.