Claims
- 1. An apparatus for determining the viscosity of the circulating blood of a living being over plural shear rates using a decreasing pressure differential, said apparatus comprising:
a lumen being positioned at an angle to a horizontal reference greater than zero degrees, said lumen comprising a first end and a second end, said first end being exposed to atmospheric pressure, said lumen comprising a first known dimension; a flow restrictor having an inlet and an outlet, said outlet being arranged to deliver any blood that passes therethrough to a collector, said flow restrictor including some known dimensions; a valve coupled to the vascular system of the living being at a first port, said valve comprising a second port coupled to said second end and a third port coupled to said inlet; a sensor for detecting the movement of the blood over time through said apparatus, said sensor generating data relating to the movement of the blood over time; a processor, coupled to said valve and said sensor, said processor arranged to operate said valve to create a column of blood in said first lumen and said flow restrictor and to establish a pressure differential between said first end and said outlet, said column of blood moving through said lumen and said flow restrictor at a first shear rate caused by said pressure differential, said movement of said column of blood causing said pressure differential to decrease from said first shear rate for generating said plural shear rates; and wherein said processor calculates the viscosity of the blood based on said data relating to the movement of the column of blood over time, said first known dimension of said lumen and said some known dimensions of said flow restrictor.
- 2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said outlet remains submerged in the blood that is being collected in said collector when said column of blood is moving.
- 3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said sensor detects the changing weight of said collector over time as the blood passes from said outlet into said collector.
- 4. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said column of blood comprises a level that changes with time, said sensor detecting said changing level of fluid over time.
- 5. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said flow restrictor is a capillary tube and wherein the pressure drop across said capillary tube, ΔPc, is given by:
- 6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the viscosity, η, is given by:
- 7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the quantity
- 8. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said sensor is a precision balance or load cell.
- 9. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said collector comprises:
a container having an inner compartment in which said outlet is disposed; and an annular compartment surrounding said inner compartment for forming an overflow chamber.
- 10. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said flow restrictor is a capillary tube and wherein the pressure drop across said capillary tube, ΔPc, is given by:
- 11. The apparatus of claim 10 wherein the viscosity of the blood, η, is given by:
- 12. The apparatus of claim 11 wherein the quantity
- 13. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said sensor is a column level detector.
- 14. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said collector comprises:
a container having an inner compartment in which said outlet is disposed; and an annular compartment surrounding said inner compartment for forming an overflow chamber.
- 15. A method for determining the viscosity of the circulating blood of a living being over plural shear rates caused by a decreasing pressure differential, said method comprising the steps of:
(a) providing a lumen having a first end and a second end and positioned at an angle to a horizontal reference greater than zero degrees, said lumen having a first known dimension, said first end being exposed to atmospheric pressure; (b) diverting a portion of the circulating blood into said lumen through said second end to form a column of blood therein; (c) coupling an inlet of a flow restrictor to said second end of said lumen to establish a pressure differential between said first end and said outlet, said flow restrictor having an outlet that is arranged to deliver any blood that passes therethrough to a collector, said flow restrictor having some known dimensions; (d) controlling said column of blood to form a continuous column of blood in said lumen and said flow restrictor, said column of blood moving through said lumen and said flow restrictor at a first shear rate caused by said pressure differential, said movement of said column of blood causing said pressure differential to decrease from said first shear rate for generating said plural shear rates; (e) providing a sensor for detecting the movement of the column of blood over time as the column of blood moves and passes from said outlet into said collector while maintaining said outlet submerged in blood that has collected in said collector, said sensor generating data regarding said movement; and (f) calculating the viscosity of the blood based on the generated data, said first known dimension and said some known dimensions.
- 16. The method of claim 15 wherein said step of providing a sensor comprises disposing said collector on a mass detector and obtaining an initial weight of said collector before said column of blood begins moving.
- 17. The method of claim 16 wherein said mass detector comprises a precision balance or a load cell.
- 18. The method of claim 15 wherein said step of providing a sensor comprises disposing a column level detector adjacent said lumen for detecting the changing position of a level of said column of blood.
- 19. The method of claim 16 wherein said flow restrictor is a capillary tube and wherein said step of calculating the viscosity comprises determining the pressure drop across said capillary tube, ΔPc, according to:
- 20. The method of claim 19 wherein said step of calculating the viscosity of the blood comprises determining the viscosity, η, of the blood according to:
- 21. The method of claim 20 wherein the quantity
- 22. The method of claim 18 wherein said flow restrictor is a capillary tube and wherein said step of calculating the viscosity comprises determining the pressure drop across said capillary tube, ΔPc, according to:
- 23. The method of claim 22 wherein said step of calculating the viscosity of the blood comprises determining the viscosity, η, of the blood according to:
- 24. The method of claim 23 wherein the quantity
- 25. An apparatus for determining the viscosity of the circulating blood of a living being over plural shear rates using a decreasing pressure differential, said apparatus comprising:
a lumen being positioned at an angle to a horizontal reference greater than zero degrees, said lumen comprising a first end and a second end, said lumen comprising a first known dimension; a flow restrictor having an inlet and an outlet, said outlet being arranged to deliver any blood that passes therethrough to a collector, said inlet being coupled to said second end, said flow restrictor including some known dimensions; a valve coupled to the vascular system of the living being at a first port, said valve comprising a second port coupled to said first end; a sensor for detecting the movement of the blood over time through said apparatus; a processor, coupled to said valve and said sensor, said processor arranged to operate said valve to create a column of blood in said first lumen and said flow restrictor and to establish a pressure differential between said first end and said outlet, said column of blood moving through said lumen and said flow restrictor at a first shear rate caused by said pressure differential, said movement of said column of blood causing said pressure differential to decrease from said first shear rate for generating said plural shear rates; wherein said outlet remains submerged in the blood that is being collected in said collector when said column of blood is moving; wherein said column of blood comprises a level that changes with time and wherein said sensor detects said changing level of fluid over time and generates data relating to said changing level of fluid over time; and wherein said processor calculates the viscosity of the blood based on said data, said first known dimension of said lumen and said some known dimensions of said flow restrictor.
- 26. The apparatus of claim 25 wherein said flow restrictor is a capillary tube and wherein the pressure drop across said capillary tube, ΔPc, is given by:
- 27. The apparatus of claim 26 wherein the viscosity of the blood, η, is given by:
- 28. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein the quantity
- 29. The apparatus of claim 25 wherein said sensor is a column level detector.
- 30. The apparatus of claim 25 wherein said collector comprises:
a container having an inner compartment in which said outlet is disposed; and an annular compartment surrounding said inner compartment for forming an overflow chamber.
- 31. A method for determining the viscosity of the circulating blood of a living being over plural shear rates caused by a decreasing pressure differential, said method comprising the steps of:
(a) providing a lumen having a first end and a second end and positioned at an angle to a horizontal reference greater than zero degrees, said lumen having a first known dimension; (b) coupling an inlet of a flow restrictor to said second end and arranging an outlet of said flow restrictor to deliver any blood that passes therethrough to a collector, said flow restrictor having some known dimensions; (c) diverting a portion of the circulating blood into said lumen through said first end to form a column of blood in said lumen and said flow restrictor and to establish a pressure differential between said first end and said outlet; (d) exposing said first end to atmospheric pressure to cause said column of blood to move through said lumen and said flow restrictor, said movement of said column of blood causing said pressure differential to decrease from said first shear rate for generating said plural shear rates; (e) disposing a column level detector adjacent said lumen for detecting the changing position of a level of said column of blood over time as the column of blood moves and passes from said outlet into said collector while maintaining said outlet submerged in blood that has collected in said collector, said column level detector generating data regarding said changing positions of said level; and (f) calculating the viscosity of the blood based on said generated data, said first known dimension and said some known dimensions.
- 32. The method of claim 31 wherein said flow restrictor is a capillary tube and wherein said step of calculating the viscosity comprises determining the pressure drop across said capillary tube, ΔPc, according to:
- 33. The method of claim 32 wherein said step of calculating the viscosity of the blood comprises determining the viscosity, η, of the blood according to:
- 34. The method of claim 33 wherein the quantity
- 35. An apparatus for determining the viscosity of the circulating blood of a living being over plural shear rates using a decreasing pressure differential, said apparatus comprising:
a first lumen being positioned at an angle to a horizontal reference greater than zero degrees, said lumen comprising a first end and a second end, said first end being exposed to atmospheric pressure, said lumen comprising a first known dimension; a flow restrictor having an inlet and an outlet, said inlet coupled to said second end, said flow restrictor including some known dimensions; a valve coupled to the vascular system of the living being at a first port, said valve comprising a second port coupled to said outlet and a third port coupled to an input of a second lumen arranged to deliver any blood that passes therethrough to a collector through an output of said second lumen; and wherein said inlet of said flow restrictor is positioned at an elevation that is lower than the elevation of said output of said second lumen; a sensor for detecting the movement of the blood over time through said apparatus; a processor, coupled to said valve and said sensor, said processor arranged to operate said valve to create a column of blood in said first lumen and said flow restrictor and to establish a pressure differential between said first end and said output, said column of blood moving through said lumen and said flow restrictor at a first shear rate caused by said pressure differential, said movement of said column of blood causing said pressure differential to decrease from said first shear rate for generating said plural shear rates; wherein said outlet remains submerged in the blood that is being collected in said collector when said column of blood is moving; wherein said column of blood comprises a level that changes with time, and wherein said sensor detects said changing level of fluid over time and generates data relating to said changing level of fluid over time; and wherein said processor calculates the viscosity of the blood based on said data, said first known dimension of said first lumen and said some known dimensions of said flow restrictor.
- 36. The apparatus of claim 35 wherein said flow restrictor is a capillary tube and wherein the pressure drop across said capillary tube, ΔPc, is given by:
- 37. The apparatus of claim 36 wherein the viscosity of the blood, η, is given by:
- 38. The apparatus of claim 37 wherein the quantity
- 39. The apparatus of claim 35 wherein said sensor is a column level detector.
- 40. The apparatus of claim 35 wherein said collector comprises:
a container having an inner compartment in which said outlet is disposed; and an annular compartment surrounding said inner compartment for forming an overflow chamber.
SPECIFICATION
[0001] This application is a Divisional application of A.S.N. 09/897,176, filed Jul. 2, 2001, entitled SINGLE RISER/SINGLE CAPILLARY BLOOD VISCOMETER USING MASS DETECTION OR COLUMN HEIGHT DETECTION, which in turn is a Continuation-In-Part of A.S.N. 09/789,350, filed Feb. 21, 2001, entitled Mass Detection Capillary Viscometer, now abandoned, which in turn is based on Provisional Application Serial No. 601228,612 filed August 29,2000 entitled MASS DETECTION CAPILLARY VISCOMETER. This application is also a Continuation-in-Part of application Ser. No. 09/573,267 filed May 18, 2000, entitled DUAL RISER/SINGLE CAPILLARY VISCOMETER. The entire disclosures of all the above applications are incorporated by reference herein.
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60228612 |
Aug 2000 |
US |
Divisions (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09897176 |
Jul 2001 |
US |
Child |
10127091 |
Apr 2002 |
US |
Continuation in Parts (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09789350 |
Feb 2001 |
US |
Child |
09897176 |
Jul 2001 |
US |
Parent |
09573267 |
May 2000 |
US |
Child |
10127091 |
Apr 2002 |
US |