US 4,392,791 AGranted

Pressure pumping and priming pump apparatus

OwnerHarold Mandroianinventor

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Abstract

A pump apparatus for transferring precise amounts of fluid from a container to a patient has a defined volume pump chamber divided by a first diaphragm to define a first chamber and a second chamber. A pumped fluid enters the first chamber through a one-way valve as the first chamber volume increases and is exhausted through a second one-way valve as the first chamber volume decreases. A third one-way valve is coupled to the first and second one-way valves in such a way as to prevent the pumped fluid from flowing through the pump in response to a pressure head at the input or output ports. A priming chamber is divided by a second diaphragm to define first and second sections, respectively. A passageway extends between the first section and the passageway connecting the second and third one-way valves. The second section is coupled to either a pressure varying source to prime the pump by causing the diaphragm to move or to a passive pressure sink to effect damping and smoothing of the pumped fluid pressure at the output port. Control circuitry may be provided to vary the pulse repetition rate, the pulse width, or the pulse amplitude to control the pumping rate. A pressure transducer may be coupled to the second section to provide a feedback control signal to the control circuitry.

Claims10

Dependent claims

A pumping apparatus for moving a pumped fluid from a reservoir to a destination in response to variations in the pressure of a first pumping fluid and for being selectively primed in response to externally impressed variations in the pressure of a second pumping fluid comprising:

a pump member having
an input port for receiving pumped fluid from the reservoir,
an exit port for expelling pumped fluid to the destination,
a pumping chamber,
a priming-damping chamber,
an input passageway,
an exit passageway, and
a passageway network between the input passageway and the exit passageway;
a first diaphragm bifurcating the pumping chamber for defining a first pumping chamber section for receiving the pumped fluid and a second pumping chamber section for receiving the first pumping fluid,
variable pressure means for intermittently varying the pressure of the first pumping fluid for alternately increasing the volume of the second pumping chamber section to increase the pressure applied against the pumped fluid and expel it from the first pumping chamber section and decreasing the volume of the second pumping chamber section to decrease the pressure applied against the pumped fluid and draw it into the first pumping chamber section;
a first valve positioned between the input passageway and the passageway network and responsive to the pressure of the pumped fluid in the first pumping chamber section;
a second valve positioned in the passageway network for being responsive to the pressure of the pumped fluid in the first pumping chamber section, the first valve being opened when the second valve closes and the first valve being closed when the second valve opens;
a third valve coupled between the exit passageway and the second valve in the passageway network for preventing pumped fluid flow through the pump member in response to a pressure head at the input or exit ports, the third valve coupled for closing at least one of the first, second, or third valves in response to the head pressure at the input and exit ports;
a second diaphragm bifurcating the priming-damping chamber to define a first priming chamber section for receiving the pumped fluid and a second priming chamber section for receiving the second pumping fluid, the first priming chamber section being interconnected to the passageway network between the second and third valves whereby the pressure of the pumped fluid in the exit passageway is altered in response to deflections of the second diaphragm.

11 more elements

A pumping apparatus for moving a pumped fluid from a reservoir to a destination in response to variations of the pressure of either a first pumping fluid or a second pumping fluid comprising:

an input passageway for receiving pumped fluid from the reservoir;
an exit passageway for expelling pumped fluid to the destination;
a pumping means defining a first chamber with a first volume;
a first diaphragm for bifurcating the first chamber into a first section for receiving the pumped fluid through the input passageway and a second section for receiving the first pumping fluid, the first diaphragm being movable in response to variations in the pressure of the first pumping fluid in the second section;
unidirectional flow control means for transferring pumped fluid through the pumping apparatus in only one direction comprising:
a first valve for controlling the flow of pumped fluid into the pumping apparatus in response to movement of the first diaphragm, and
a second valve for controlling the flow of pumped fluid out from the pumping apparatus in response to the movement of the first diaphragm, the first valve opening and the second valve closing in response to first diaphragm movement in one direction and the first valve closing and the second valve opening in response to first diaphragm movement in a second direction;
flow-through prevention means for preventing pumped fluid flow through the pumping apparatus in response to a pressure head in the input passageway or exit passageway comprising:
a third valve interconnected for being closed in response to a pumped fluid head pressure in the input passageway which is larger than the head pressure of the pumped fluid in the exit passageway, the third valve further interconnected for closing one of the first or second valves when the third valve is opened in response to a pumped fluid head pressure in the input passageway which is less than the head pressure of the pumped fluid in the exit passageway;
and priming-damping means defining a second chamber with a second volume,
having a second diaphragm for bifurcating the second chamber into a third section for receiving the pumped fluid and a fourth section for receiving the second pumping fluid, the third section being interconnected to the unidirectional flow control means for altering the pressure of the pumped fluid expelled from the exit passageway in response to deflections of the second diaphragm.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.