Patents Examined by Rachel Young
  • Patent number: 9937306
    Abstract: The invention relates to pharmaceutical active substances, active substance mixtures and formulations for use as an aerosol in propellant-containing [1.1.1.2-tetrafluoroethane (HFC-134a) or 1.1.1.2.3.3.3-heptafluoropropane(HFC-227)] metered-dose aerosols and the metered-dose aerosols for administering these active substances, active substance mixtures and formulations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 10, 2018
    Assignee: Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH
    Inventors: Herbert Wachtel, Hubert Hoelz, Marc Rohrschneider
  • Patent number: 9901510
    Abstract: A portable apparatus for providing chest therapy to a user may include a wearable pack. A chest band may be coupled to the wearable pack. The chest band may include one or more chest band segments and may be configured to be worn around a chest of the user. A plurality of vibrating elements may be coupled to the one or more chest band segments. The plurality of vibrating elements may provide a vibrational force to the chest of the user when the chest band is worn around the chest of the user. The portable apparatus may further include a nebulizer treatment component, which may also be coupled to the wearable pack. A user input component may be electrically coupled to the plurality of vibrating elements and the nebulizer treatment component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2018
    Inventor: Brett Gene Smith
  • Patent number: 9895506
    Abstract: A positive airway pressure apparatus is automatically adjusting. Pressure increases in response to apnea events when the apparatus is in one or more responsive states. Pressure does not increase in response to apnea events when the apparatus is in a non-responsive state. The apparatus switches between responsive and nonresponsive states depending upon any of a number of different criteria that help differentiate between open airway apnea events and closed airway apnea events.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2018
    Assignee: Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Limited
    Inventors: David Robin Whiting, Andrew Gordon Gerred, Fiona Elizabeth Cresswell
  • Patent number: 9884160
    Abstract: A breathing assistance apparatus is disclosed, for use with delivery of respiratory gases to a patient. The breathing assistance apparatus includes a patient interface, having a body section adapted to cover the nose, or nose and mouth of a patient and a sealing interface. The sealing interface includes at least an outer sealing member. The outer sealing member is adapted to attach to the body section in a sealing manner and has a substantially thin section in at least its nasal bridge region. The thin section is substantially thinner than the rest of the outer sealing member. The patient interface comprises a mask body and a seal assembly. The seal assembly includes a flexible seal, and a rigid seal clip, the seal assembly being removably attached to the mask body via the rigid seal clip. The mask body and rigid seal clip are profiled to match the contours of a user's face so that the seal has a substantially constant wall depth.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2017
    Date of Patent: February 6, 2018
    Assignee: Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Limited
    Inventors: Alastair Edwin McAuley, Gregory James Olsen, Kamman Law, Ivan Milivojevic, Aidan Mark Shotbolt
  • Patent number: 9861775
    Abstract: An emergency resuscitation apparatus with external air volume control includes a housing having top and bottom plates pivotally coupled so as to siphon air into an internal reservoir via an inflow port and propel air out through an outlet port to a patient. A volume control plate is coupled to the bottom plate externally adjacent a second end wall, the volume control plate having a plurality of volume selectors. An air volume limit arm is operatively coupled to the volume control plate and selectively movable between and coupled to a selected volume selector. A volume limiting flange associated with the volume limit arm are positioned in a common vertical plane with top plate such that the volume limit flange prevents upward movement of the top plate beyond the setting of the volume limit arm so as to regulate a quantity of air being expelled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 20, 2017
    Date of Patent: January 9, 2018
    Inventors: Charles A. Farmer, Tammy L. Maras
  • Patent number: 9855124
    Abstract: The present invention provides an advanced water flosser utilizing a direct water source, such as, but not limited to, an attachment to a shower head, that also may embody a reservoir and/or compartment capable of introducing other desirable substances designed to enhance the teeth cleaning process, such as, but not limited to fluoride, antibiotics, mouthwash, whiteners and the like.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2014
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2018
    Assignee: J.F.S. Innovations, LLC
    Inventors: Jason F. Schepis, James Wickstead
  • Patent number: 9855187
    Abstract: An oral device includes an intraoral bolus simulator having an exterior surface and an interior volume fillable with a fluid. An extraoral user interface extends from the bolus simulator, and can be used to locate or position the intraoral bolus simulator. In various embodiments, the fluid may be a gas or a liquid, or combinations thereof. In other embodiments, an oral device includes an extraoral handle, a shield connected to the handle, a tether extending from the shield, and a bolus simulator connected to the tether.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2018
    Assignees: Trudell Medical International, The University of Western Ontario
    Inventors: Ruth E. Martin, Marcus Sieffert, Peter Scarrott, Andreas Rifani, Kelly Armstrong
  • Patent number: 9855181
    Abstract: An exoskeleton for a limb of a user wherein the limb has an upper portion that is pivotally mounted to another part of the exoskeleton about a pivot axis and the upper portion is drivingly connected to the exoskeleton by a force applied via a drive force transmission axis that is vertically offset from the pivot axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: January 2, 2018
    Assignee: BIONIK LABORATORIES, INC.
    Inventors: Thiago Caires, Michal Prywata
  • Patent number: 9839573
    Abstract: A compact mini air pump includes a rectangular, box-shaped body having a standard AC power cord extending from it, two air supply output ports, and a control and information panel with user-operated buttons and status lights located on its front side. Within the hollow interior of the body is an air compressor, a dual-output electromechanical valve having to two air output tubes, an air pressure sensor, a DC battery power supply, an AC power connection, and an electronic circuit board controlling the mini air pump's function. The air supply output ports, an extension of the air tubes within the body, supply air to Intermittent Pneumatic Compression (“IPC”) Therapy device garments through flexible air supply tubes. The mini air pump device is sized to be held by one hand for portability.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 17, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2017
    Assignee: Compression Therapy Concepts, Inc.
    Inventors: Orlando Mansur, Jr., Leonard Nass
  • Patent number: 9839759
    Abstract: A breathing assistance apparatus and method of controlling a breathing assistance apparatus is disclosed. Particularly, the breathing assistance apparatus is controlled such that it has a drying cycle to enable drying of the tubing that supplies gases to a user and prevent the harboring of pathogens within the tube. The drying cycle is preferably operated automatically by internal controllers in the apparatus. However, it may be manually activated by pressing a button on the apparatus. The drying cycle is preferably activated at the end of a user's treatment session.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2015
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2017
    Assignee: Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Limited
    Inventors: Matthew Jon Payton, Kevin Peter O'Donnell, Christopher Simon James Quill, Ian Douglas Makinson, Emily Joy Drake, Craig Karl White, Virginia Louise Owen
  • Patent number: 9839575
    Abstract: Disclosed herein is a massage device configured to provide a squeezing pressure. The massage device may include an elastically extensible and bendable connector element and at least two rolling massage elements. A portion of the elastically extensible and bendable connector element and the at least two rolling massage elements form a massaging zone configured to receive one or more body parts. The body parts may include feet, forearms, and the like. Accordingly, the massage device may provide relief for specific conditions such as plantar fasciitis and carpel tunnel syndrome.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 18, 2016
    Date of Patent: December 12, 2017
    Assignee: RAPTORS DESIGN, INC.
    Inventors: Alexander H. Slocum, Folkers E. Rojas
  • Patent number: 9808588
    Abstract: An oscillating positive respiratory pressure apparatus and a method of performing oscillating positive respiratory pressure therapy. The apparatus includes a housing having an interior chamber, a chamber inlet, a chamber outlet, an exhalation flow path defined between the inlet and the outlet, and a restrictor member rotatably mounted within the interior chamber. The restrictor member has an axis of rotation that is substantially perpendicular to the flow path at the inlet, and includes at least one blocking segment. Rotation of the restrictor member moves the at least one blocking segment between an open position and a closed position. Respiratory pressure at the chamber inlet oscillates between a minimum when the at least one blocking segment is in the open position and a maximum when the at least one blocking segment is in the closed position. By exhaling into the apparatus, oscillating positive expiratory pressure therapy is administered.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 7, 2017
    Assignee: TRUDELL MEDICAL INTERNATIONAL
    Inventors: Adam Meyer, Dan Engelbreth
  • Patent number: 9802013
    Abstract: An inhaler with a mixing channel (1) for producing an aerosol to be inhaled includes an outlet (9) at one end that can be inserted in the mouth of a person in order to inhale the aerosol that is produced; at least one inlet (3) at its other end for drawing air into the mixing channel (1); and at least one injection zone (6) that lies between the inlet (3) and the outlet (9) and forms part of the channel wall. The injection zone (6) has at least one nozzle orifice (10) for supplying a liquid, especially a liquid drug, wherein the inner surface of the injection zone (6) is largely flush at least with that portion of the mean surface curvature (22) of the inner surface of the channel wall (11) that is adjacent to it on the inlet end. A possible height difference (17) between the inner surface of the injection zone (6) and that portion of the mean surface curvature (22) of the inner surface of the channel wall (11) that is adjacent to it is less than 1 mm or at most 100 ?m or at most 20 ?m.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 9, 2006
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2017
    Assignee: MEDSPRAY XMEMS BV
    Inventors: Jeroen Mathijn Wissink, Wietze Nijdam, Iwan Rutger Heskamp, Marc Herman Padberg
  • Patent number: 9795531
    Abstract: This invention is related to a mechanism to be used to balance the weight of a patient or a sportsman in rehabilitation or sport based equipment. The purpose of the weight balancing mechanism subject to the invention is to prevent the legs carry the entire weight of a patient or a sportsman during the walking therapy on a treadmill by carrying a portion of their weight. The other purpose of this invention is to adjust the amount of the weight need to be carried. During the phases of walking due to changing the tension of the rope, no change will be occured in the weight of the user is the final purpose of the invention. In order to reach this aim, a mechanism is developed for adjusting the tension of the rope in the light of the rope movements.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2017
    Assignee: Bama Teknoloji Tibbi Cihazlar Danismanlik Saglik Bilisim Sanayi Veticaret Limited Sirketi
    Inventors: Murat Topcu, Akay Ozturk, Can Mehmet Ali Ciftci
  • Patent number: 9775727
    Abstract: A wearable robot may comprise: a robot unit including machinery configured to assist a wearer's muscular strength; at least one first sensor provided on the wearer's knees and configured to detect the wearer's motion of pressing the wearer's knees; and/or a controller configured to judge whether or not the wearer intends to stand up based on information detected using the at least one first sensor, and configured to transmit a control signal to assist corresponding muscular strength to the robot unit upon judging that the wearer intends to stand up.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 12, 2014
    Date of Patent: October 3, 2017
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Chang-Hyun Roh
  • Patent number: 9744385
    Abstract: Headgear for a patient interface includes at least one headgear strap and an indicator provided to the at least one headgear strap structured to indicate attainment of a desired adjustment setting of the headgear in response to headgear tension applied to the at least one headgear strap.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2007
    Date of Patent: August 29, 2017
    Assignee: ResMed Limited
    Inventors: Robert Edward Henry, Philip Rodney Kwok, Philip John Gunning, Karthikeyan Selvarajan, James Morrison, Paul Anthony Green, Christopher Kingsley Blunsden, Gregory Robert Peake, Christopher John Baxter
  • Patent number: 9730852
    Abstract: A device (7) for the rehabilitation of the movements of the foot (1) includes a supporting base (8) and a mobile platform (9) with a supporting surface (10) for resting the sole of the foot (1), wherein the mobile platform (9) is secured to the supporting base (8) by a pure rotation movement mechanism (12) with three degrees of freedom of rotary movement independent the one from the other and placed in parallel which allow rotations of the mobile platform around three axes (13, 14, 15) which intersect one another in a single rotation center (P). The supporting surface (10) is turned towards the rotation center (P) and is distant from the rotation center (P) in such a way that the rotation center (P) is positioned in correspondence to the ankle (2) of the foot (1).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHE
    Inventors: Matteo Malosio, Simone Pio Negri, Nicola Pedrocchi, Marco Caimmi, Federico Vicentini, Lorenzo Tosatti Molinari
  • Patent number: 9730854
    Abstract: A system for dynamically adjusting treatment angle under tension to accommodate variations in spinal morphology during spinal decompression therapy is provided. It provides a tensioning device including a patient-positioning means, a tension-producing actuator, a positioning device, a patient interface device, a control system and a display. The control system with feedback on the resultant tension vector applied to patient spine operationally configured to allow for adjustment of either tension producing actuator position, patient position, or both while applying tension to the patient spine during non-therapeutic tension levels. The control system automatically adjusts tension producing actuator work levels such that the resultant tension vector magnitude remains ideally constant during adjustment of resultant tension vector angle, reducing the risk of eliciting paraspinal muscle contraction due to changes in resultant tension vector magnitude.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 15, 2017
    Assignee: Beijing Ryzur Axiom Medical Investment Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Song Ren
  • Patent number: 9713692
    Abstract: A humidifier for use with a pressure support system. The humidifier includes a body having an inlet, a fluid holding chamber, and an outlet. The inlet is positioned upstream and in fluid communication with the fluid holding chamber. The outlet is positioned downstream of and in fluid communication with the fluid holding chamber. A back-flow preventing valve is positioned upstream of the fluid chamber. The back-flow preventing valve is movable between an open position, in which the inlet is unblocked, and a closed position in which the inlet is blocked. In the closed position, the back-flow preventing valve prevents fluid, fluid vapor, or both from entering the pressure support via the inlet to the humidifier.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 16, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 25, 2017
    Assignee: RIC INVESTMENTS, LLC
    Inventors: John Raymond Pujol, Patrick Truitt, Daniel R. Martin, Winslow Kevin Duff, Steven Adam Kimmel, Jeffrey Kepler, Peter Chi Fai Ho, Lance Ranard Busch, Jerome Matula, Jr., Drew A. Demangone, Anthony J. Bafile
  • Patent number: 9706800
    Abstract: A method for making face masks includes: advancing continuously a longitudinal sheet material that can be divided into a plurality of mask sheets each of which has two opposite longitudinal ends and two opposite transverse ends; cutting the sheet material at intervals to form the mask sheets; providing a plurality of strips each of which has two longitudinally opposite strip ends and each of which is folded to form a pleat between the two strip ends thereof; and bonding the two strip ends of each of the strips to one of the opposite transverse ends of a respective one of the mask sheets to form an ear loop. A structure of the face mask is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2009
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2017
    Assignee: Kang Na Hsiung Enterprise Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Jung-Chi Tai, Ho-Hsi Yang, Chien-Hsiang Lin, Chien-Chung Su