초록 ▼

A recirculating high velocity hot air sterilization device includes a housing having a chamber therein. A corrugated, perforated jet curtain plate is disposed within the chamber and partially defines an air supply plenum positioned outwardly of the chamber, the plenum having an electric heating elem

A recirculating high velocity hot air sterilization device includes a housing having a chamber therein. A corrugated, perforated jet curtain plate is disposed within the chamber and partially defines an air supply plenum positioned outwardly of the chamber, the plenum having an electric heating element operatively positioned therein. Spaced apart from the jet curtain plate within the chamber is a nonperforated deflector plate which extends parallel to the jet curtain plate and may be of a flat or corrugated configuration. A blower is connected to the housing and creates therein a recirculating flow of heated air which sequentially flows into the air supply plenum across the heating element, outwardly in a forward direction through the perforations in the jet curtain plate and into the housing chamber, back into the blower, and then into the air supply plenum. Metal surgical or dental instruments to be sterilized are positioned in one or more wire mesh trays which are removably supported within the housing chamber between and spaced apart from the deflector plate and the jet curtain plate. The flow of heated air through the perforations in the jet curtain plate creates within the chamber a spaced apart series of forwardly travelling, high velocity, heated air impingement jets directed toward the deflector plate. Some of the forwardly travelling jets impinge upon surface portions of the instruments, while the remainder of the jets bypass the instruments and strike the deflector plate. The forwardly travelling jets striking the deflector plate are laterally offset and rearwardly deflected so that they impinge upon generally opposite surface portions of the supported instruments. The deflected, rearwardly travelling jets which impinge upon the instruments create with the forwardly traveling jets a high degree of heated air turbulence in the vicinity of the instruments. The combination of simultaneous heated air impingement on opposite sides of the instruments, and the resulting turbulence of the heated air adjacent such instruments, very rapidly and completely sterilizes and depyrogenates the instruments.

대표청구항 ▼

A recirculation hot air impingement device for sterilizing medical and dental instruments or the like, comprising: a housing having a sterilizing chamber therein; nonplanar air supply wall means, extending continuously across said sterilizing chamber and having formed therethrough a mutually spaced

A recirculation hot air impingement device for sterilizing medical and dental instruments or the like, comprising: a housing having a sterilizing chamber therein; nonplanar air supply wall means, extending continuously across said sterilizing chamber and having formed therethrough a mutually spaced series of jet-forming supply openings, for utilizing pressurized air from a source thereof to create in said chamber a spaced series of impingement air jets having a predetermined velocity; air deflector wall means, extending across said chamber in a spaced, generally parallel, opposing relationship with said air supply wall means, for intercepting and rearwardly deflecting said impingement air jets; heated air recirculating means, including blower means and air heating means, for creating within said sterilizing chamber a recirculating flow of air which is heated to a predetermined sterilizing temperature and is sequentially flowed through said supply openings toward said air deflector wall means, deflected therefrom toward said air supply wall means, and then flowed again through said supply openings toward said air deflector wall means, and support means for supporting an object to be sterilized in a stationary position within said chamber generally centrally between and spaced apart from each of said air supply wall means and said air deflection wall means in a manner such that the stationary object is positioned to be impinged by both heated air discharged from said supply openings and heated air deflected from said air deflector wall means to thereby be continuously enveloped by a turbulent layer of heated air, said heated air recirculating means including return means for drawing air from said turbulent layer across the object in a direction generally transverse to said impingement jets, and then flowing the air outwardly from said chamber.