Measurement of a fluid parameter in a pressure support system

1. A method of operating a pressure support system having a motor coupled to a blower and a controller operatively coupled to the motor, which is coupled in fluid communication with a patient via a patient circuit, the method comprising the steps of: (a) producing a first signal that causes the motor to drive the blower at a set rotational speed to produce a selected pressure for the fluid in the patient circuit; (b) adjusting a duty cycle of the first signal as the flow of fluid in the patient circuit varies so that the motor drives the blower at the set rotational speed to maintain the selected pressure in the patient circuit; and (c) calculating a quantitative flow of fluid in the patient circuit based on the adjustments made to the duty cycle of the first signal, wherein the producing, adjusting, and calculating steps are performed by the controller.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein adjusting the duty cycle of the first signal comprises:

(1) determining an actual rotational speed of the blower;

(2) determining a rotational speed error signal as a difference between a set rotational speed corresponding to the selected pressure for a flow of fluid in the patient circuit and the actual rotational speed of the blower; and

(3) adjusting the characteristic of the first signal based on the rotational speed error signal.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein producing a first signal comprises:

(1) receiving, from an input device, the selected pressure for the flow of fluid in the patient circuit; and

(2) determining the set rotational speed for the blower necessary to produce the selected pressure.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein calculating a quantitative flow of fluid in the patient circuit comprises:(1) determining a first characteristic of a zero-flow control signal needed to drive the motor at the set rotational speed where there is no flow in the patient circuit; (2) comparing the first characteristic of the zero-flow control signal with the characteristic of the first signal to produce a difference value, and (3) calculating the quantitative flow of fluid in the patient circuit based on a stored relation between the quantitative flow of fluid and the difference value.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein calculating a quantitative flow of fluid in the patient circuit comprises: (1) determining a first characteristic of a constant-flow control signal needed to drive the motor at the set rotational speed where there is a constant flow in the patient circuit; (2) comparing the first characteristic of the constant-flow control signal with the characteristic of the first signal to produce a difference value, and (3) calculating the quantitative flow of fluid in the patient circuit based on a stored relation between the quantitative flow of fluid and the difference value.

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

(1) determining a direction of flow of fluid in the patient circuit,

(2) detecting variations in magnitude or direction of flow of fluid in the patient circuit,

(3) calculating a volume of fluid flowing through the patient circuit, or

(4) any combination if items (1)-(3).

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein producing the first signal includes:

(1) generating a control signal having a duty cycle that is selected so as to maintain a rotational speed of the motor at the set rotational speed corresponding to the selected pressure for the fluid in the patient circuit;

(2) generating a drive signal that establishes a commutation sequence for actuation of the motor; and

(3) combining the control signal and the drive signal to produce a switching signal that controls actuation of a switching element that selectively provides power to phase windings of the motor, and wherein the control signal or the switching signal corresponds to the first signal that is used in the monitoring step to monitor a parameter associated with a flow of fluid in the patient circuit.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

differentiating between an inspiratory phase and an expiratory phase of a patient's breathing cycle based on the quantitative flow of fluid in the patient circuit;

providing a first selected pressure for the fluid in the patient circuit during the inspiratory phase by maintaining the rotational speed of the motor at a first set rotational speed corresponding to the first selected pressure; and

providing a second selected pressure for the fluid in the patient circuit during the expiratory phase by maintaining the rotational speed of the motor at a second set rotational speed corresponding to the second selected pressure.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

determining whether such a patient is experiencing, or is about to experience, disordered breathing based on the quantitative flow of fluid in the patient circuit; and

altering the selected pressure for the flow of fluid delivered to such a patient by altering the set rotational speed of the motor responsive to a determination that such a patient is experiencing, or is about to experience, disordered breathing.

10. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining, based on the quantitative flow of fluid in the patient circuit, whether a patient is using the pressure support system.

11. The method of claim 10 , further comprising determining an amount of time that a patient had used the pressure support system.