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EP-4520374-B1 - NEBULIZATION MEDICAMENT DELIVERY DEVICE

EP4520374B1EP 4520374 B1EP4520374 B1EP 4520374B1EP-4520374-B1

Inventors

  • WU, Hung Ju
  • LU, Yi Shen

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20240906

Claims (13)

  1. A nebulization medicament delivery device (1), comprising: a mouthpiece opening (10); an airway (11); at least one first vent (12) configured to introduce external air into the airway (11); a nebulization module (13) comprising a mesh configured for nebulization; a first pressure sensor (14) disposed inside the nebulization medicament delivery device (1) and to be air-tightly isolated from the airway (11), and configured to detect external air pressure outside the nebulization medicament delivery device (1); a second pressure sensor (15) disposed adjacent to the airway (11) or within the airway (11), and configured to detect air pressure inside the airway (11); and a controller, characterized in that the nebulization medicament delivery device (1) further comprises: a medicament cup (21) configured to contain a medicament; and a detection module comprising a piezoelectric element; wherein the medicament contained in the medicament cup (21) is nebulized by the mesh, and under the condition that nebulization is being performed by the mesh, the detection module detects the pressure applied by the medicament onto the mesh through the piezoelectric element to convert the pressure into a voltage signal or a current signal, and transmits the voltage signal or the current signal to the controller for detecting an amount of the medicament contained in the medicament cup (21); wherein the mouthpiece opening (10) is in communication with the at least one first vent (12) through the airway (11); wherein the controller drives the nebulization module (13) to perform nebulization based on air pressure difference between the external air pressure and the air pressure inside the airway (11).
  2. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 1, characterized in that the nebulization medicament delivery device (1) further comprises a medicament cup cover (17), wherein a top of the medicament cup (21) cover defines three holes near the mouthpiece opening (10) arranged to improve backflow of air near the mouthpiece opening (10), thereby reducing residue of the medicament.
  3. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 1, characterized in that the controller determines whether the nebulization module (13) stops nebulization based on air pressure difference between a measurement value of the first pressure sensor (14) and a measurement value of the second pressure sensor (15).
  4. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 1, characterized in that under the condition that the air pressure difference between the external air pressure and the air pressure in the airway (11) is greater than a threshold, the controller drives the nebulization module (13) to perform nebulization.
  5. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 1, characterized in that the nebulization medicament delivery device (1) further comprises a body (16), wherein the first pressure sensor (14), the second pressure sensor (15) and the controller are disposed inside the body (16), and the medicament cup cover (17) defines the mouthpiece opening (10) and at least part of the airway (11).
  6. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 5, characterized in that the medicament cup cover (17) defines the airway (11) and the at least one first vent (12), and a housing of the body (20) defines a ventilation hole (27) configured to allow the first pressure sensor (14) to detect the external air pressure outside the nebulization medicament delivery device (1).
  7. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 5, characterized in that the medicament cup cover (17) defines the airway (11) and the at least one first vent (12), and the body (16) does not define the airway (11) or the first vent (12).
  8. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 7, characterized in that the space within the medicament cup cover (17) comprises a dead zone (18) and a live zone (19), wherein the airway (11) is in communication with the live zone (19) and is not in communication with the dead zone (18).
  9. The nebulization medicament delivery device of claim 7, characterized in that the at least one first vent (12) comprises two oppositely disposed vents defined by the medicament cup cover (17).
  10. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 8, characterized in that an inner wall of the medicament cup cover (17) protrudes radially inward to form at least one first rib (23) in close contact with an outer wall of the medicament cup (21), thereby dividing space within the medicament cup cover (17) into the dead zone (18) and the live zone (19), and the dead zone (18) and the live zone (19) are not in communication with each other.
  11. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 10, characterized in that the first rib (23) defines a second vent (24), wherein the second vent (24) penetrates the first rib (23), so that the mouthpiece opening (10) is in communication with the at least one first vent (12) through the airway (11) and the second vent (24).
  12. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 10, characterized in that the outer wall of the medicament cup (21) protrudes radially outward to form at least one second rib (25) in close contact with the first rib (23), thereby dividing the space within the medicament cup cover (17) into the dead zone (18) and the live zone (19), and the dead zone (18) and the live zone (19) are not in communication with each other.
  13. The nebulization medicament delivery device (1) of claim 10, characterized in that the outer wall of the medicament cup (21) defines a third vent (26) near bottom, wherein the third vent (26) is in communication with the mouthpiece opening (10) and the airway (11), and the third vent (26) faces toward the second pressure sensor (15), so that the second pressure sensor (15) detects the air pressure inside the airway (11).

Description

FIELD OF INVENTION The present disclosure relates to a nebulization device, particularly relates to a nebulization medicament delivery device. BACKGROUND OF INVENTION Nebulizers have been widely used in the treatment of respiratory diseases. They convert medicament solutions into a nebulized form, which can be effectively inhaled into user's lungs through a nozzle of the device. However, due to the structural design of conventional nebulizers or the lack of other additional structures (e.g., only a vent), the nebulized medicament cannot be completely inhaled into a user's body, resulting in the residue and waste of the medicament. In addition, when a user inhales, due to the uneven airflow in the nebulizer, strong pressure is laid on the user's lungs, resulting in severe discomfort. It is clear that there is still considerable room for improvement on the structure of conventional nebulizers. DE102020110258B4 discloses an inhaler comprising a housing, an air channel extending between at least one air inlet opening and a suction opening in the housing, a dispensing element for nebulizing or vaporizing liquid supplied to the dispensing element for admixture with air flowing in the air channel, an electronic control device, an electronic data storage device, and a sensor system comprising a flow measuring device for measuring the volumetric and/or mass flow of the airflow flowing through the air channel. DE102020122651A1 discloses an inhaler, comprising a housing having a main body, the main body being configured and adapted to receive an active substance container containing an active substance, an air channel extending within the housing between at least one air inlet opening and one inhalation opening, an administration element for nebulising or vaporising the active substance fed from the active substance container to the administration element for mixing with air flowing in the air channel, an electronic control apparatus, an electronic data storage device and a sensor system having a flow measuring device for measuring the volume flow and/or mass flow of the air flowing through the air channel and/or of the active substance flowing through the air channel for storage as active substance delivery data in the electronic data storage device. WO2019209994A1 discloses an interactive apparatus for detecting and measuring inspiratory characteristic parameters of an inhalation system in use, including, inhalers and a patient's use of an inhaler in conjunction with the apparatus. Furthermore, the flow sensing technology of dual pressure sensors is used in conventional nebulizers. The two pressure sensors are arranged inside the flow channel of the nebulizer to achieve differential pressure calculation, and the output signal of the nebulizer is a flow signal, but the disadvantage is that it is more expensive than a nebulizer using a single pressure sensor. In addition, there are also nebulizers using a single pressure sensor. However, when the sensing value of the single pressure sensor deviates in the environment, or the pressure value cannot regress properly, inaccuracy and failure may be caused, resulting in a waste of a medicament and a low dosage rate. Furthermore, the nebulizers with conventional single pressure sensor and flow sensor are expensive and large in size, requiring more space to be placed in the nebulizer. In view of the above, it is necessary to provide a nebulization device that is different from conventional nebulizers to solve the problems existing in the conventional technology. SUMMARY OF INVENTION The invention is defined in the appended claims. In order to solve the above technical problems, the present disclosure primarily provides a nebulization medicament delivery device, including: a mouthpiece opening;an airway;at least one first vent configured to introduce external air into the airway;a nebulization module including a mesh configured for nebulization;a first pressure sensor disposed inside the nebulization medicament delivery device and to be air-tightly isolated from the airway, and configured to detect external air pressure outside the nebulization medicament delivery device;a second pressure sensor disposed adjacent to the airway or within the airway, and configured to detect air pressure inside the airway; anda controller,wherein the mouthpiece opening is in communication with the at least one first vent through the airway;wherein the controller drives the nebulization module to perform nebulization based on air pressure difference between the external air pressure and the air pressure inside the airway. In some embodiments, the nebulization medicament delivery device further includes a medicament cup configured to contain a medicament and a detection module including a piezoelectric element. In some embodiments, the medicament contained in the medicament cup is nebulized by the mesh, and under the condition that nebulization is being performed by the mesh, the detection module