Air mattress control unit
AssigneeSunflower Medical, L.L.C.
InventorShang-Neng Wu
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The system of the present invention is a system for supplying air and controlling the flow of air into and out of the chambers of a patient supporting air mattress. It includes an electric motor powered variable speed blower, a two position rotary valve, air mattress supply lines communicating between the rotary valve and the chambers of the air mattress, a continuous exhaust line also connected to the rotary valve, stepper motor controlled valves in the air mattress supply lines, pressure sensors between the stepper motor controlled valves and the chambers of the air mattress and a control unit for controlling the stepper motor controlled valves to control the amount by which the chambers of the air mattress are inflated.
Claims6
In combination with a system for controlling the flow of air between an outside environment, a blower having an intake port and an exhaust port and an air mattress having at least one chamber, a valve comprising;
- a housing including an inlet port communicating with said exhaust port of said blower, at least one air mattress supply port communicating with at least one chamber of an air mattress through at least one line communicating with at least one chamber of an air mattress and an outlet port communicating with said intake port of said blower,
- a gate member received within said housing, said gate member divided into a first portion and a second portion, said first portion having a first port communicating with the outside environment and a second port, said second portion having a third port,
- the gate member movable between a first position and a second position, such that when said gate member is in said first position, said second port of said gate member communicates with said outlet port of said housing and said second portion of said gate member communicates with said inlet port of said housing and said at least one air mattress supply port thereby communicating the blower intake with the outside environment and communicating the blower exhaust with the at least one air mattress supply ports,
- and such that when said gate member is in said second position, said third port of said gate member communicates with said outlet port of said housing and said first portion of said gate member communicates with said inlet port of said housing and said second portion of said gate member communicates with said at least one air mattress supply port thereby communicating the blower exhaust with the outside environment and communicating the blower intake with the at least one mattress supply port to quickly deflate the air mattress.
A system for controlling the flow of air between an outside environment, a blower having an intake port and an exhaust port and an air mattress having at least one chamber, comprising;
- a valve including a housing and a gate member received by said housing,
- said housing having an inlet port communicating with said exhaust port of said blower, an outlet port communicating with said intake port of said blower, at least one air mattress supply port communicating with said at least one chamber of said air mattress via at least one air mattress supply line,
- said gate member having at least one first port communicating with the outside environment, said gate member movable between a first position for operating in a first pressurizing mode and a second position for operating in a second vacuum mode, such that when said gate member is in said first position, said at least one first port of said gate member communicates with said outlet port of said housing and said inlet port of said housing communicates with said at least one air mattress supply port of said housing so that air from the outside environment passes through the valve to the blower intake and air from the blower exhaust passes through the valve to the said at least one air mattress supply line thus supplying air to said at least one chamber of said air mattress, and such that when said gate member is in said second position, said at least one first port of said gate member communicates with said inlet port of said housing and said outlet port of said housing communicates with said at least one air mattress supply port of said housing so that air from at least one air mattress supply line passes through the valve to said blower intake and air from said blower exhaust passes through said valve to said outside environment thus rapidly deflating said at least one chamber of said air mattress.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.