FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[001] The present subject matter described herein, in general, relates to the field of air purification devices, and more particularly to a wearable air purification device for entrapping suspended particulate matter (SPM), gases and other toxic pollutants from air and protecting individuals integrated with personal air quality data feedback mechanism

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[002] The problem of air pollution doesn’t need an introduction. According to WHO, 92% of world population is breathing bad air. Polluted air is adversely affecting health of people worldwide by causing various respiratory as well as non-respiratory diseases such as cardiac ailments.

[003] As air quality dips in various parts of world it is becoming increasingly important to invent user-friendly air filters to be used by individuals for providing clean air. The present invention provides a wearable nasal filter for individuals integrated with personal air quality data feedback mechanism.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

[004] The main object of the present invention is to eliminate the shortcomings of existing prior art.

[005] An object of the present invention is to provide a wearable air purification device integrated with a feedback mechanism for protecting individuals by filtering different types of pollutants including particulate matter (PM), gases, pathogens etc.

[006] Another object of the present invention is to provide a wearable nasal air purification device that solves the problem of sweat accumulation, thereby making it suitable for long term usage under humid environment.
[007] Another object of the present invention is to provide air quality data (concentration of PM, gases) to the user of the wearable air purification device in accordance to certain parameters including user’s location, indoor-outdoor situation etc.

[008] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a feedback mechanism for informing the user using the wearable air purification device about the amount of protection achieved by using said device.

[009] Yet another object of the invention is to provide a wearable air purification device that is simple in design, easy to use and economical.

[010] Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the illustrations to disclose the aspects of the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[011] The present invention is directed to a wearable air purification device for entrapping suspended particulate matter (SPM), gases and other toxic pollutants from air and integrated with a feedback mechanism (method) for protecting individuals by filtering different types of pollutants including particulate matter (PM), gases, pathogens etc. and providing feedback about the amount of protection achieved by using said device.

[012] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the device comprises of a sticking patch having at least one hole for accommodating membrane air filter, at least one membrane air filter (composed of highly porous fibers, containing variable number of pores or granules with pores attached on to it, supplemented with molecular groups for entrapment of pollutant,) coupled to the sticking patch covering the plurality of holes; a breathable adhesive layer having at least one membrane air filter; a backing layer with a S-shaped cut for removal of said layer and a bend line for correcting the alignment of the device; and a release layer associated with the breathable adhesive layer.

[013] According to another embodiment of the present invention, the device involves a feedback mechanism that informs the user using the wearable air purification device about the amount of protection achieved by using said device and determination of heath effect due to the device, wherein the amount of protection is achieved through calculation of amount of pollutant by using the device based on the performance of the device under at least one defined condition.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[014] The present invention will be more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 illustrates a perspective view of the elements device including pores, molecular groups for entrapment of pollutant in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 illustrates a view of the major layers of the device, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and

Figure 3 illustrates a diagrammatic representation of the sticking patch of the device.

[015] Persons skilled in the art will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and may have not been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figure may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. Throughout the drawings, it should be noted that like reference numbers are used to depict the same or similar elements, features, and structures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[016] The following presents a simplified description of the invention in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the invention. This description is not an extensive overview of the present invention. It is not intended to identify the key/critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to present some concept of the invention in a simplified form.

[017] In order to provide basic understanding of some aspects of the invention, a simplified description of the invention is presented here. It is not an extensive overview of this invention. Also, it is neither intended to identify the key/critical elements of the invention or to define the scope of the invention.

[018] The following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of exemplary embodiments of the invention. It includes various specific details to assist in that understanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary.

[019] Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the embodiments described here is possible without departing from the scope of the invention.

[020] The terms and words used in the following description and claims are merely used to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the invention but is not limited in its scope.

[021] The present invention is directed to a wearable air purification device for entrapping suspended particulate matter (SPM), gases and other toxic pollutants from air and integrated with a feedback mechanism (method) for protecting individuals by filtering different types of pollutants including particulate matter (PM), gases, pathogens etc. The air purification device is to be directly stuck over nose.

[022] Referring to Figure 1 that depicts various components/ elements used for filtration of air in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention are illustrated. The numerous unstructured pores1 in porous material, the adsorption layer of the said pores 2 supplemented by molecular groups/substances 3 for enhanced capture of pollutants as air passes through these pores are depicted.
[023] Figure 2 refers to the air purification device 11 comprising of a sticking patch having at least one hole 10 for accommodating air filter, at least one membrane air filter (composed of highly porous fibers or granules with pores attached on to it, supplemented with molecular groups for entrapment of pollutants) 5 coupled to the sticking patch covering the said hole that can be aligned with the nasal opening; a breathable adhesive layer 4 made up of soft plastic material such as polyurethans, polyethylens etc., having at least one membrane air filter; a backing layer 6, made up of paper or cellulose based materials, with a S-shaped cut 9 for removal of said layer and a bend line 8 for correcting the alignment of the device; and a release layer 7 associated with the breathable adhesive layer. The release layer 7 is made up of silicon coated paper which helps in reversible bonding of the said adhesive layer without causing any damage to the glue of the said sticking layer.

[024] The air filter 5 of the air purification device 11 comprises of a membrane made up of a highly porous material which in turn has very high amount of surface area. The porous material used in the present invention is selected from the group consisting of woven or non- woven fibers, activated carbon fibers, carbon powder, granular carbon or any combination thereof.

[025] The air filter 5 of the air purification device 11 has one or more adsorption layers 2 supplemented with molecular groups for entrapment of pollutants3 to trap the air pollutants during inhalation by human or mammals. Such entrapment of pollutant is facilitated by different types of interactions between pollutant and the material such as electrostatic, Vander Waal’s, hydrogen bonding, etc. The adsorption layer 2 used in the present invention is selected from the group consisting of modified fibers, Activated carbon fibers, Activated carbon granules or any combinations thereof.

[026] Air purification can be achieved by the said porous materials supplemented with molecular groups, if the porous material is in fibrous form, such as using activated carbon fibers. The said porous materials supplemented with molecular groups for entrapment of pollutant, can be projected over another fibrous material such as woven or non-woven fabrics. In this way, air purification can be achieved by physical as well as molecular interaction method, to achieve high efficiency of purification for different types of pollutants.

[027] The molecular groups 3 embedded in the adsorption surface 2 are of different shapes and sizes, including nanopore, micropore, are supplemented with molecular groups/substances which can interact with pollutant at molecular scale. Such interaction includes, but is not limited to, charged based electrical interaction, van der Waals forces, hydrogen bonding etc. which allow pollutant to get adsorbed on the surface of the said pores. This allows air to get purified by molecular interaction and thus, can be useful for separation of particles with different shapes, sizes and characteristics. Therefore, using the device all types of pollutants can be separated.

[028] The adsorption layers of the said pores 2 and molecular groups 3 are created by controlled carbonization under high temperature and chemical treatment thereby activating the carbon-containing compounds to produce activated carbon fibers. The pollutant trapping entities/pores with granular carbon are created by controlled carbonization under high temperature and chemical treatment of granules of carbon-containing compounds. The said granules are glued to the fibers of membrane of porous material of air filter.

[029] The adsorption layers 2 are supplemented with molecular groups 3 for enhanced adsorption of pollutants.

[030] The adhesive layer 4 contains a thin breathable and nearly transparent film, to stick over nose. A part of adhesive layer 4 contains air purification/filtration material. The said filtration material is kept black, but not limited to one color, to camouflage with nostril opening. Overall, the transparent film and black filtration component (aligning with the nostrils) make the device barely visible.

[031] The nasal stick-on wearable device avoids sweat accumulation in the sticker part of the device (the part which sticks over skin) through holes (perforation) 10 are cut in the said sticker to reduce amount of sweat accumulation as illustrated in Figure-3. It is further disclosed that the said sticker is made up of thin breathable material composed of, but not limited to, polyurethane. To support the said thin film, a backing layer 6, composed of paper or cellulose based material is provided.

[032] The personal air quality data which may include concentration of PM, gases, toxins and pathogens to the users of wearable air purification device 11 according to certain parameters, including but not limited to, user’s location, indoor-outdoor position, state of indoor or outdoor location, user’s movement etc. The data to predict the said air quality can also be made available to user. The data access to users can be achieved through different means, including but not limited to, website, mobile application, phone, display at certain location, mobile messaging or email etc.

[033] The feedback mechanism to users mentions about how much has user been protected by using the said wearable air purification device. The air pollutants are trapped inside the device of the present invention and thus, weight of the device is altered. The altered weight can be measured to estimate the amount of pollutant captured. The amount of pollutant captured can be estimated with the accuracy of about 60% which can further be optimized to improve it.

[034] The feedback mechanism is based on collection of different types of user data, including but not limited to, user’s location, time of usage of the device, environment around the user such as indoor or outdoor, rate of change in purification efficiency of the device with time, amount of purified air reaching to the user, image processing and analysis of the device post-use etc. The said air quality data, as mentioned above, is correlated with all other factors pertaining to amount of purified air consumed by user is used to calculate the amount of pollutants that user was able to avoid due to usage of the said wearable air purification device. The data is validated regularly based on analysis of the device to trapped pollutants from the device.

[035] The invention disclosed here provides an integrated way of providing protection from air pollution to individuals. It is unique and novel in terms of air purification technology, data access and feedback to users.

[036] Apart the technical benefit as discussed above, the present invention may also include some of the additional advantages as mentioned below:
1. The present invention provides an adsorbent based air purification technique.
2. The device includes porous material containing angstrom/nano/micro/macro pores supplemented with molecular groups that can trap pollutants.
3. The present invention provides a wearable device that is convenient to use and has separation of different types of air pollutants.
4. The present invention facilitates particle entrapping and gas adsorbing (adsorbs ozone, carbon monoxide, sulfur and nitrogen oxides.)
5. The present invention provides a method to provide the air quality information and predictions for users and suggests/alert them accordingly.
6. The present invention also provides feedback to user with easy interpretation in terms of health effects.
7. The device of present invention includes fibers/structures with varying pores.
8. The present invention uses molecular groups such as acidic, basic, ionic and large organic groups to entrap air particles as well as adsorb gases.

[037] Although the embodiments herein are described with various specific embodiments, it will be obvious for a person skilled in the art to practice the invention with modifications.

WE CLAIM:
1) An air purification device 11 for protecting individuals from air pollution with a feedback mechanism, wherein said device comprising;

at least one sticking patch, wherein said patch comprises of at least one hole 10 for accommodating at least one air filter 5;

said membrane air filter 5 coupled to said sticking patch, wherein said filter is composed of plurality of fibers containing plurality of pores having adsorption layers 2 supplemented with plurality of molecular groups 3 to trap air pollutants during inhalation by a subject;
an adhesive layer 4;
a backing layer 6, wherein said backing layer includes a cut 9 for removal of said backing layer and a bend line 8 for correcting the alignment of said device; and
a release layer 7 associated with said adhesive layer 4.
2) The device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said air filter 5 is made of porous material selected from the group consisting of woven or non- woven fibers, activated carbon fibers, carbon powder, granular carbon or any combination thereof.

3) The device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said adsorption layer(s) 2 is selected from the group consisting of modified fibres, activated carbon fibers, activated carbon granules or any combination thereof, said adsorption layer (2) is made up of activated carbon fibers.

4) The device as claimed in Claim 1 wherein said molecular groups 3 are ionic groups, acidic groups, basic groups or large organic groups.

5) The device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said device is to be directly stuck over nose.

6) The device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein sweat accumulation in the sticker part of the device (the part which sticks over skin) is avoided through holes (perforation) 10 cut in the said sticker.

7) The device as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said device provides air quality data through feedback mechanism to measure or estimate the concentration of pollutant(s) in air using sensing tools or through simulation technique under definite conditions.
8) The device as claimed in Claim 7, wherein said device collects different data including but not limited to, location, time of usage of the said nasal filter, environment around the individual such as indoor or outdoor, rate of change in filtration efficiency of the said nasal filter with time, amount of purified air reaching to the individual, image processing and analysis of the filter post-use etc.