A device and method for measuring respiratory air flow of a subject are provided. The device includes a hollow member having a proximal end, a distal end and a flow passage formed between the proximal and distal ends. The proximal end is configured to be received in a mouth of a subject. A flow sensor, such as thermal mass flow sensor, is disposed in the flow passage and configured to sense characteristics of an air flow in the flow passage. A processor is communicatively coupled to the flow sensor and configured to determine, based on an output from the flow sensor, whether the sensed characteristics of the air flow correspond to predetermined parameters.

A portable inhalation device includes a medication storage component, a flow controller, an atomizer, a medication delivery component, and a pressure sensor. The medication storage component is configured to store medication. The flow controller is configured to cause a force to be applied to the medication stored by the medication storage component to transport the medication to the atomizer. The atomizer is configured to generate droplets from the medication. The medication delivery component includes a delivery channel extending from the atomizer to an outlet opening. The medication delivery component is configured to receive the medication in the delivery channel from the atomizer and dispense the medication via the opening. The pressure sensor is configured to detect a pressure corresponding to a flow rate of air in the delivery channel and output an indication of the detected pressure.

In particular embodiments, a method includes accessing, by a computing device, sensor data from a sensor of a client device corresponding to a user. The method further includes determining one or more segments of sensor data and selecting at least one segment of sensor data. The method further concludes determining, based at least on the selected segments of sensor data, one or more features corresponding to the user's pulmonary condition. The method further includes determining, based at least on the determined features, an assessment of the user's pulmonary condition.

Methods and apparatus infer or indicate sleep stage(s) of a patient from a respiratory flow rate signal events of the patient. The method may include applying a plurality of detection pathways to a signal representing a respiratory flow rate of the patient, wherein each detection pathway is configured to generate start events and end events indicating start times and end times of episodes respectively of a corresponding sleep stage, wherein each start event and each end event has a priority; and combining the start events and end events based on their priorities to produce an indication of the sleep stage of the patient. The apparatus may include a sensor configured to generate a signal representing a property of a flow of air within a patient interface; and a processor configured to implement a method of inferring a sleep stage of the patient from the signal.

An indicator device represents a measured value and includes a first component and a second component. The first component includes a machine-readable first reference marker, a machine-readable second reference marker spaced from the first reference marker and a guide for the second component. The first reference marker defines a first reference point and the second reference marker defines a second reference point. The position and orientation of a predetermined path are defined by the first reference point and the second reference point. The second component can be positioned along the guide by a displacement force. The second component alone, or together with the first component, forms a machine-readable value indicator. The measured value is represented by a position of the value indicator along the predetermined path. The disclosure also relates to a measuring apparatus comprising the indicator device. The disclosure also relates to a computer program product for evaluating the indicator device of the measuring apparatus.

An adapter for use in conjunction with a tracheostomy tube and/or its attachments is disclosed. It is adapted to complement conventional tracheostomy tubes and monitor and measure an assortment of breathing parameters, through one or more sensors, such as thermistors, microphones and the like. In order to evaluate whether there is a problem in the patient's airway (e.g., an obstruction), the data from the sensors is compared. By incorporating an alarm system as part of, or in conjunction with, the present invention, healthcare providers can be better able to quickly react to potential problems in the patient's airway.

A respiratory function testing system includes an air transforming device, a sound reception device and an operation device. The air transforming device is configured to collect exhaled and/or inhaled air for a predetermined period and generate a wide frequency range sound signal according to the collected respired air. The wide frequency range sound signal at least contains an ultrasonic signal. The sound reception device is configured to receive and record the wide frequency range sound signal as an audio file. The operation device is in communication with the sound reception device and is configured to receive and compute the audio file to generate a respiratory function parameter. Besides, the recorded wide frequency range sound signal may be converted into a spectrogram for further applications, and the computation of the audio file can be replaced by analyzing the spectrogram. A respiratory function testing method corresponding to the respiratory function testing system is also provided.

A spirometer includes a housing, a mouthpiece coupled to the housing, and a measurement unit. The measurement unit is configured to receive air expelled by a user, and generate an electrical quantity corresponding to a peak expiratory flow or a forced expiratory volume based on the expelled air. The spirometer also includes a processing module supported by the housing, and configured to receive the electrical quantity from the measurement unit, a display coupled to the measurement unit to display an indication of the peak expiratory flow or the forced expiratory volume, and an energy harvester. The energy harvester is coupled to the measurement unit and the processing module, and is configured to receive energy from one of a group consisting of the measurement unit and an energy sensor, store the received energy in an energy storage device, and transfer the energy to the processing module.

An acoustic device for spirometric measurement is provided. The acoustic device includes an inlet conduit configured to receive an airflow and a central cavity in communication with the inlet conduit. The central cavity includes a channel configured to guide at least a portion of the airflow into a vorticial flow about a central axis of the central cavity. The acoustic device further includes an outlet conduit configured to receive at least a portion of the vorticial flow and transduce at least a portion of kinetic energy of the vorticial flow into an acoustic emission. A frequency of the acoustic emission varies based on a rate of the airflow provided to the inlet conduit. In addition, the acoustic device includes a flow controller configured to modify at least a portion of the airflow provided to the inlet conduit.

Spirometer, mouthpiece tube and inspection method thereof. The spirometer includes at least the mouthpiece tube and an ultrasound detector configured to detect the ultrasound generated by the gas flowing through the mouthpiece tube, wherein the mouthpiece tube has a shell having an opened end, a closed or opened end, and an ultrasonic generator configured to be inserted into different portions of the shell in different situations. Therefore, by inserting the ultrasonic generator into different portions of the shell during expiration and inspiration, the gas flow during expiration and inspiration may be converted into the ultrasonic signal and then maybe detected and analyzed.