DEVICE FOR HEATING LIQUIDS THAT ARE TO BE DELIVERED TO THE HUMAN BODY

Abstract

A device for heating liquids to be supplied to the human body includes an electric heating, a conduit for passing liquid there through, which conduit includes a conduit body on which the electric heating acts for supplying heat, and a heating which acts by electromagnet radiation on the liquid in order to heat it, characterized in that the heating is a microwave heating which includes a microwave generator and a housing which is shielded against microwaves and which includes a cavity in which the microwave generator generate a microwave field, and that a section of the conduit is disposed to extend in the cavity.

Claims

1. Device for heating liquids to be supplied to the human body, said device comprising a first electric heating, a conduit for passing liquid there through, which conduit includes a conduit body on which the first electric heating acts to supply heat, and a second heating which acts by electromagnetic radiation on the liquid to heat it, wherein the second heating is a microwave heating which comprises a microwave generator and a housing shielded against microwaves and including a cavity in which the microwave generator generates a microwave field, and in that a section of the conduit is disposed to extend in the cavity.

2. Device according to claim 1, wherein the section of the conduit extending in the cavity is disposed, in flow direction of the liquid, downstream of the conduit body which is in heat conducting contact with the first electric heating.

3. Device according to claim 2, wherein upstream of the section of the conduit extending in the cavity a temperature sensor is disposed on the conduit for measuring the temperature of the liquid therein, and in that a control unit is provided which is arranged to adjust the power of the microwave generator in dependence on the temperature determined by the temperature sensor in such a manner that such an amount of energy is supplied to the liquid while passing the conduit section through the cavity so that a predetermined target temperature is reached.

4. Device according to claim 2, wherein downstream of the section of the conduit extending in the cavity a temperature sensor is disposed on the conduit for measuring the temperature of the liquid therein, and in that a control unit is provided which is arranged to regulate the power of the microwave generator in dependence on the temperature determined by the temperature sensor in such a manner that the liquid after passing the conduit section through the cavity reaches a predetermined target temperature.

5. Device according to claim 4, wherein downstream of the first electric heating and upstream of the section of the conduit extending in the cavity a further temperature sensor is disposed on the conduit for measuring the temperature of the liquid therein, and in that the control unit is further arranged, to regulate the power of the electric heating in dependence on the temperature determined by the further temperature sensor in such a manner that the liquid after passing the conduit body in contact with the electric heating is as close as possible below the predetermined target temperature.

6. Device according to claim 1, wherein the section of the conduit extending through the cavity has a meandering course or is provided with at least one winding.

7. Device according to claim 1, wherein the microwave generator comprises a magnetron.

8. Device according to claim 2, wherein the section of the conduit extending through the cavity has a meandering course or is provided with at least one winding.

9. Device according to claim 3, wherein the section of the conduit extending through the cavity has a meandering course or is provided with at least one winding.

10. Device according to claim 4, wherein the section of the conduit extending through the cavity has a meandering course or is provided with at least one winding.

11. Device according to claim 5, wherein the section of the conduit extending through the cavity has a meandering course or is provided with at least one winding.

12. Device according to claim 2, wherein the microwave generator comprises a magnetron.

13. Device according to claim 3, wherein the microwave generator comprises a magnetron.

14. Device according to claim 4, wherein the microwave generator comprises a magnetron.

15. Device according to claim 5, wherein the microwave generator comprises a magnetron.

16. Device according to claim 6, wherein the microwave generator comprises a magnetron.

17. Device according to claim 8, wherein the microwave generator comprises a magnetron.

18. Device according to claim 9, wherein the microwave generator comprises a magnetron.

19. Device according to claim 10, wherein the microwave generator comprises a magnetron.

20. Device according to claim 11, wherein the microwave generator comprises a magnetron.

Description

[0020] The invention will be described below with reference to an embodiment with reference to the drawings in which:

[0021] FIG. 1 shows a schematic representation of a device for heating liquids to be supplied to the human body, and

[0022] FIG. 2 shows a schematic representation of a device for delivering heated liquids to be supplied to the human body.

[0023] The device shown in FIG. 1 comprises a conduit 2 for supplying a liquid to an area of application in a human body, for example for supplying an irrigation liquid to a surgical site. The conduit 2 includes a conduit body 3 which is shown schematically only and which is in heat conducting contact with a first electric heating in the form of an electric heating plate 8. As first electric heating also an electric heating coil can be used with surrounds a section of the conduit. The course of the flow path through the conduit body 3 is not shown in detail. The flow path may be designed for example by meandering flow line paths which creates a substantially increased flow path length in heat conducting contact with the electric heating plate 8.

[0024] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 the conduit body 3 has an input port. That is not necessarily the case because the conduit body 3 could in principle also be formed by a liquid reservoir, for example by a plastic bag, in which the irrigation liquid is provided.

[0025] After leaving the conduit body 3 conduit 2 extends further to a housing shielded against microwaves, which housing encloses a cavity in which a microwave generator 10 generates a microwave field. The conduit 2 includes a section 4 running through the cavity of housing 12 in the microwave field. The section 4 may have, as schematically indicated, a meandering course to increase the effective length of the flow path of the liquid in the microwave field.

[0026] On the conduit 2 a temperature sensor 22 is disposed downstream of the conduit body 3, which temperature sensor serves to sense the temperature of the liquid flowing through the conduit and which is connected to a control unit 30. In addition, a temperature sensor 20 is disposed on the conduit 2 downstream of the housing 12 of the microwave heating, which temperature sensor 20 serves to sense the temperature of the liquid in the conduit after passing the microwave heating. The temperature sensor 20 is likewise connected to the control unit 30.

[0027] The control unit 30 is arranged to adjust the heating power 8 in dependence on the temperature determined by the temperature sensor 22 in such a manner that the temperature is as close as possible to a predetermined target temperature, but is below this target temperature. The control unit 30 is further arranged, to adjust the heating power of the microwave generator 10 in dependence on the temperature determined by the temperature sensor 22 in such a manner that the heating power applied by the microwave heating brings the liquid to the predetermined target temperature. Alternatively or in addition the control unit 30 may be arranged to regulate the heating power of the microwave generator 10 in addition in dependence on the temperature determined by temperature sensor 20 in such a manner that the target temperature is set as accurately as possible.

[0028] FIG. 2 shows a schematical view of a device for supplying irrigation liquid for rinsing a surgical site. There is a reservoir container 40 for irrigation liquid to which a conduit 2 is connected for conveying irrigation liquid. In the conduit 2 at least one valve 26 is present. Furthermore, a controllable pump 14 is provided which conveys the irrigation liquid through the conduit 2 to the surgical site. The output level of the pump 14 is adjusted by a control unit 30 such that a desired pressure of the irrigation liquid is generated. Downstream of the pump 14 a device 1 for heating the irrigation liquid to be supplied to a human body is generally shown. This device includes a microwave heating as described in the present specification and may have the construction as shown in FIG. 1. The heating power of the microwave heating is controlled by the control unit 30.