Breath-synchronized concentrated-oxygen supplier

Claim 1

A breath-synchronized concentrated-oxygen supplier, comprising an oxygen concentrator producing and storing oxygen-enriched gas; a buffer tank temporarily storing the oxygen-enriched gas from the oxygen concentrator; a valve mounted on an outlet of said buffer tank so as to control flow of the oxygen-enriched gas from the buffer tank to a respiratory system of a living body through a path that is open to the atmosphere; a sensor exposed to respiration of the living body and adapted to generate an output signal indicative of inhalation phase and exhalation phase of the respiration; an input means on which a ratio between entire length of the inhalation phase and a specific end portion thereof is set; and a regulator adapted to detect duration of each inhalation phase in succession based on the output signal from said sensor and to open said valve at the beginning of each inhalation phase, as well as to determine the open time based on a period equivalent to a combination of averaging of the preceding inhalation durations and said ratio set on the input means; whereby oxygen-enriched gas is supplied to said living body during each inhalation phase except said specific end portion thereof, and said buffer tank acts to make initial flow rate of the oxygen-enriched gas higher than steady flow rate thereof in each inhalation phase.