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EP-4188580-B1 - GAS FILTER HOUSING WITH REPLACEABLE GAS FILTER MEDIA FOR MEDICAL VENTILATION SYSTEMS

EP4188580B1EP 4188580 B1EP4188580 B1EP 4188580B1EP-4188580-B1

Inventors

  • DUNDEK, MICHELLE
  • PREMKUMER, Akash
  • NG, ELLIE
  • BURKE, THOMAS

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20210810

Claims (8)

  1. A medical breathing gas filter housing (20, 50) comprising: a first housing body (250) comprising a first conical body (272), a first tubular body (332), and a first flange (274), the first conical body (272) tapering from a first end to a second end, the first tubular body (332) attached to the second end of the first conical body (272) to form a first port (210), the first flange (274) disposed at the first end of the first conical body (272); and a second housing body (240) comprising a second conical body (262), a second tubular body (322), and a second flange (264), the second conical body (262) tapering from a first end to a second end, the second tubular body (322) attached to the second end of the second conical body (262) to form a second port (200), the second flange (264) coupled to the second end of the second conical body (262); characterized in that the filter housing (20, 50) further comprises: a plurality of snap clips (230), each snap clip (230) comprising: a rigid projection (232) having opposing planar surfaces, the rigid projection (232) extending from the first flange (274); a hook (234) attached to an end of the rigid projection (232); and a slot (236) defined in the second flange (264), the slot (236) configured to removably receive the hook (234) and the rigid projection (232); wherein: the gas filter housing (20, 50) is configurable between a closed state and an open state, in the closed state: the first flange (274) is disposed on the second flange (264) such that first and second interior sides (243, 253) of the first and second housing bodies (240, 250), respectively, define a cavity (310), the cavity (310) sized to receive a replaceable gas filter media (105, 120), and in each snap clip (230), the hook (234) and the rigid projection (232) are inserted through the slot (236), and the hook (234) engages the second flange (264) to secure the snap clip (230), and in the open state: in each snap clip (230), the hook (234) is disengaged from the second flange (264), and the hook (234) and the rigid projection (232) are removed from the slot (236), and the first flange (274) is spaced apart from the second flange (264) to provide access to the replaceable gas filter media (105, 120), and wherein the filter housing (20, 50) further comprises a hinge (220) attached to the first and second housing bodies (240, 250).
  2. The filter housing (20, 50) of claim 1, wherein: a first ridge (252) extends from the first interior side (253) of the first housing body (250), a second ridge (242) extends from the second interior side (243) of the second housing body (240), and when the gas filter housing (20, 50) is in the closed state, the first and second ridges (242, 252) engage top and bottom sides, respectively of the replaceable gas filter media (105, 120), wherein the first and second ridges (242, 252) are preferably aligned when the gas filter housing (20, 50) is in the closed state.
  3. The filter housing (20, 50) of claim 2, wherein: the first and second ridges (242, 252) are first and second inner ridges (242, 252), respectively, an outer ridge (254) extends from the first interior side (253) of the first housing body (250), a groove (340) is defined in the second interior side (243) of the second housing body (240), and when the gas filter housing (20, 50) is in the closed state, the outer ridge (254) is disposed in the groove (340).
  4. The filter housing (20, 50) of claim 3, wherein when the gas filter housing (20, 50) is in the closed state, the outer ridge (254) and the groove (340) form a seal.
  5. The filter housing (20, 50) of claim 4, wherein: the outer ridge (254) is a first outer ridge (254), a second outer ridge (244) extends from the second interior side (243) of the second housing body (240), and the groove (340) is defined between the second outer ridge (244) and the second flange (264).
  6. The filter housing (50) of claim 5, wherein: a sealing outer ridge (514) extends from the first interior side (253) of the first housing body (250), a sealing channel (510) is defined between the sealing outer ridge (514) and the first outer ridge (254), and a gasket is disposed in the sealing channel (510), wherein the gasket preferably comprises an O-ring (500).
  7. The filter housing (20, 50) of claim 6, wherein the second housing body (240) further comprises an annular body (520), the annular body (520) disposed between the second conical body (262) and the second flange (264), the annular body (520) further defining the sealing channel (510).
  8. The filter housing (20, 50) of claim 1, wherein the first and second ports (200, 210) are aligned along an axis of symmetry of the filter housing (20, 50).

Description

Technical Field This application relates generally to gas filters for medical ventilation systems. Background Medical breathing systems such as mechanical ventilators, Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) systems, oxygen delivery systems, etc. deliver breathing gases to patients and/ or remove excess and exhaled gases. CPAP systems are effective at providing non-invasive ventilation often supplemented with additional oxygen for newborns with respiratory distress, over one million of whom die each year before 28 days of life. In a hospital setting, it is possible to connect tubes from a tank of air and a tank of oxygen to provide a mixture of air and oxygen, which is generally necessary since 100% oxygen is associated with damage to the eye, brain, and other organs. A pulse oximeter is used to monitor the blood oxygen concentration of the patient. In hospital settings especially in high-resource areas, CPAP systems require electric power, either via connection to an electric wall socket or to a battery, to control the heat, humidification, and oxygen concentration of oxygen-enriched air to the patient. Such systems are expensive and difficult to transport due to the weight of the air tank, oxygen tank, the pump-based CPAP with pressure control, and accessories. Furthermore, there is a need for electric power to operate these systems. In bubble CPAPs (bCPAPs), the positive airway pressure is provided by breathing into a bottle containing water (bubbler) with the tube containing the expired air maintained at a known depth in the water. The water-depth of the exiting expired air from the patient controls the amount of back pressure to assist in ventilation at the alveolar level. An advantage of some bCPAPs is they do not use an air tank or electricity to produce a blend of air and oxygen to the patient, but instead use ambient air, which enters the oxygen stream through air entrainment ports of a device referred to as an ambient air-oxygen blender. Air exhaled by patients on CPAP and bCPAP systems is emitted into the patients' rooms. This may increase the risk of infection to hospital staff, visitors, and other patients due to pathogens that may be present in the consumed air. For example, in the 2020 global pandemic for the COVID-19 virus, it is desirable to reduce and/or eliminate airborne particulates, aerosols, droplets, and/or other particles in the consumed air that may be contaminated with the COVID-19 virus. This is one reason these systems often require bacterial viral filters to filter the inspiratory and/or expiratory gases. These filters can perform a variety of roles, including but not limited to: filtering breathing gases from non-medical grade sources, such as air sourced from the ambient environment, before they reach the patient; filtering the exhaled gases of the patient before they are exhausted into the room, to protect others being exposed to any pathogens in the exhaled gases; and/or connecting to the inlet of a machine, such as a ventilator, to prevent contamination of the reusable components of the machine from the patient's exhaled gases. These filters are disposable, and typically last 24-48 hours. As multiple filters may be used simultaneously for one patient, who could be getting treatment for an extended time, the disposable nature of these filters creates a lot of waste. Additionally, the bulky shape means these filters take up a large amount of space, which makes them difficult to store and expensive to ship. During the 2020 global pandemic for the COVID-19 virus, as demand for ventilators has expanded, so has demand for the consumables needed to support a patient on a ventilator, including bacterial viral filters. This has created a shortage of these filters, which has been exacerbated by the limitations described above. Prior art document US 20080157420 A1 discloses a two-part housing for a filter, comprising an upper and a lower housing part to be joined to form a cavity and provide an inlet and an outlet. The housing parts may be attached to each other using screws or snap hooks and the filter housing is primarily intended to be used for air filtering in the intake air of an internal combustion engine. The production process includes introducing a plastic powder into a hollow mold, heating the hollow mold to melt the plastic powder, followed by rotating and cooling of the mold. Furthermore, prior art document US 20080028734 A1 is known and discloses a filter assembly including a two-part filter housing, a first and a second nipple, wherein at least one of the nipples is adapted to engage with a tube. The filter assembly may further include at least one engaging member that is adapted to releasably engage with an engaging member of a manifold. Rotation of the filter housing of up to 180° is disclosed as a suitable means to releasably engage the filter assembly with the manifold. Furthermore, prior art document US 5337739 A1 is known and discloses a disposable bacteria fil