Importance

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Abstract

A humidifier heats a gas to be supplied to a patient, for example, for anaesthesia in surgical operation or artificial respiration to cure difficulty of breathing, at an appropriate temperature and humidifies the same at an appropriate humidity. The humidifier calculates the absolute humidity on the basis of a set temperature and a set relative humidity by first calculating means, calculates the temperature of the gas corresponding to a saturation humidity equivalent to the calculated absolute humidity by second calculating means, controls a first heater for heating a humidifying chamber so that the temperature of the humidified gas at the outlet of the humidifying chamber coincide with the calculated temperature, and controls a second heater for heating the interior of a patient circuit connected to the outlet of the humidifier so that the temperature of the humidified gas at the outlet of the patient circuit conicides with the set temperature to prevent condensation within the patient circuit and the flow of water condensed in the patient circuit into the trachea of the patient who receives the humidified gas through the patient circuit. The humidifier is provided with display means for displaying the calculated absolute humidity to enable selection of an appropriate set temperature and an appropriate set relative humidity with reference to the absolute humidity displayed by the display means in order that the medical gas of an appropriate humidity is supplied to the patient.

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First Claim