Breathing tube
A breathing tube for conducting a gas mixture in a ventilation system is provided, the tube including a tube portion; a coupler connectable to the tube portion; a connecting piece connectable to the coupler and which is attachable to a tube or a machine; wherein a filter element for filtering the gas mixture is arranged between the coupler and the connecting piece. The coupler includes a first integral electrical heating device which surrounds the filter element and which is adapted to heat the filter element effectively.
1. A breathing tube apparatus for conducting a heated gas mixture in a ventilator system, the apparatus including inhalation and exhalation tubes and further comprising:
a tube portion having a tube-portion electrical heating device therealong;
a coupler member connectable at one end thereof to the tube portion and having an integrated coupler-member electrical heating device electrically connected to the tube-portion electrical heating device, an electrical connecting element being permanently attached at one end thereof to the coupler member and at the other end thereof to a first connecting piece attached to the inhalation tube;
a second connecting piece detachably attachable to the other end of the coupler member, the second connecting piece and coupler member together forming a hollow space therewithin extending from within the second connecting piece to within the coupler member; and
a filter element within the hollow space and extending from within the second connecting piece into the coupler member for filtering the gas mixture the coupler-member electrical heating device being along the hollow space, surrounding the filter element, and adapted to heat the filter element.
2. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 1 wherein the tube portion, the coupler member, and the second connecting piece are each of circular cross-section.
3. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 1 wherein the coupler member and the second connecting piece are detachably attachable to each other by a bayonet-mount connection.
4. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 1 configured as a medical single-use/disposable article.
5. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 1 wherein at least portions of the coupler-member electrical heating device and the tube-portion electrical heating device are formed as heating coils.
6. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 5 wherein the tube-portion electrical heating device is integrated into the wall of the tube portion.
7. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 1 wherein the tube portion is permanently attached to the coupler member.
8. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 1 wherein the filter element is cylindrical and the distance between the outer lateral surface of the filter element and the inner lateral surface of the coupler member is about 0.1-0.8 mm.
9. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 1 further including a sensor for confirming proper interconnection of the coupler member and the second connecting piece.
10. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 1 wherein the second connecting piece includes another electrical heating device electrically connectable to the coupler-member electrical heating device.
11. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 1 wherein the tube portion, the coupler member and the second connecting piece an exhalation path and the ventilator system further includes inhalation tubes.
12. The breathing tube apparatus of claim 1 wherein the filter element is secured to the second connecting piece.