Instrument for measuring total respiratory and nasal air resistance

Claim 1

IN A INSTRUMENT FOR MEASURING ALTERNATIVELY, NASAL AIR AND TOTAL RESPIRATORY AIR RESISTANCES, A MASK INCLUDING AN INLET IN THE FORM OF A FIRST PNEUMATACHOGRAPH; A MOUTHPIECE, MEANS TO GENERATE AND DELIVER TO SAID MOUTHPIECE, PRESSURE OSCILLATIONS AT THE APPROXIMATE RESONANT FREQUENCY OF THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM, AND A SECOND PNEUMOTACHOGRAPH BETWEEN SAID MEANS AND SAID MOUTHPIECE; FIRST AND SECOND DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE TRANSDUCERS EACH HAVING FIRST AND SECOND CONDUITS AND OPERABLE TO CONVERT VARIATIONS IN THE AIR PRESSURE IN SAID CONDUITS INTO ELECTRICAL SIGNALS, A RECORDER, FIRST AND SECOND CIRCUITS, EACH CIRCUIT INCLUDING AN AMPLIFIER, THE FIRST CIRCUIT BEING CONNECTED TO THE FIRST TRANSDUCER AND TO SAID RECORDER TO DELIVER SIGNALS TO ONE CHANNEL OF SAID RECORDER TO SECOND CIRCUIT BEING CONNECTED TO THE SECOND TRANSDUCER AND TO THE RECORDER TO DELIVER SIGNALS TO THE OTHER CHANNEL OF THE RECORDER, A PUMP, THE INTAKE OF SAID PUMP INCLUDING FIRST AND SECOND BRANCHES AND VALVE MEANS IN CONTROL THEREOF, EACH TRANSDUCER CONDUIT INCLUDING FIRST AND SECOND BRANCHES AND VALVE MEANS IN CONTROL THEREOF, THE FIRST AND SECOND BRANCHES OF THE FIRST CONDUIT OF THE FIRST TRANSDUCER BEING IN COMMUNICATION RESPECTIVELY, WITH THE INTERIOR OF THE MASK AND THE SIDE OF THE SECOND PNEUMOTACHOGRAPH ADJACENT SAID GENERATING MEANS, THE FIRST AND SECOND BRANCHES OF THE SECOND CONDUIT OF THE FIRST TRANSDUCER BEING, RESPECTIVELY, OPEN TO ATOMSPHERE AND IN COMMUNICATION WITH THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SECOND PNEUMOTACHOGRAPH, THE FIRST AND SECOND BRANCHES OF THE FIRST CONDUIT OF THE SECOND TRANSDUCER BEING IN COMMUNICATION, RESPECTIVELY, WITH THE INTERIOR OF THE MASK AND THE MOUTHPIECE, THE FIRST BRANCH OF THE SECOND CONDUIT OF THE SECOND TRANSDUCER INCLUDING AN ORAL PROBE AND THE SECOND BRANCH THEREOF BEING OPEN TO ATMOSPHERE, AND THE FIRST AND SECOND BRANCHES OF THE PUMP INLET BEING IN COMMUNICATION, RESPECTIVELY, WITH THE INTERIOR OF THE MASK AND THE MOUTHPIECE SIDE OF THE SECOND PNEUMOTACHOGRAPH, THE VALVE MEANS INCLUDING POSITIONS PLACING EITHER ALL THE FIRST BRANCHES OR ALL THE SECOND BRANCHES IN COMMUNICATION WITH SAID TRANSDUCERS AND SAID PUMP, SAID PUMP MAINTAINING A POSITIVE FLOW THROUGH WHICHEVER BRANCH OF ITS INLET IS PLACED IN COMMUNICATION THEREWITH BY ITS VALVE MEANS IN CONTROL THEREOF.