Design of an Embedded Controller and Optimal Algorithm of PSA for a Novel Medical Oxygen Concentrator

Abstract

Oxygen therapy activities that are given to patients with respiratory problems (hypoxemia) and low oxygen saturation (SpO2) depend on the level of oxygen purity (O2%) of the additional oxygen supply. Getting supplemental oxygen can be easily obtained by patients in the market. There are several options to choose from, namely stationary and portable oxygen concentrator (Oxycon), which has a standard liter per minute (Lpm) of medical O2 (purity > 82%). The challenge in making Oxycon is making the device capable of producing pure oxygen stably and supplying flow oxygen to patients at a higher range (such as 5 to 80 Lpm) for special medical needs. Therefore, based on the problems faced and the existing challenges, the purpose of this study is to propose an embedded controller and optimize pressure swing adsorption (PSA) algorithm for a novel medical oxygen concentrator (MOC) by developing sub-system physics and hardware. The PSA method is applied to achieve this goal by assessing the appropriate cycle time according to Oxycon production capacity to produce pure oxygen as expected. Based on the studies that have been carried out, it is found that the appropriate time cycle for Oxycon with a capacity of 5 Lpm is 4000 milliseconds for the duration of adsorption in the zeolite tube. Testing at the MOC has been going on for the past two weeks, 12 hours a day. The sub-system physics, hardware, and software were successfully designed and implemented for the best MOC performance. Therefore, based on the study results obtained, the proposed algorithm and system are feasible to be implemented into a MOC system.