MEMS Pressure Sensor Used in Asthma Training Device

While many people suffer from asthma attacks and use inhalers as the solution, poor inhaler technique prevents patients from receiving their full therapeutic benefit. To correct this situation, Cambridge Consultants used its sensing and wireless technology capabilities to create an asthma inhaler training device. Called the T-Haler, the healthcare tool has doubled proper usage rates. It uses a low pressure microelectromechanical (MEMS) pressure sensor to sense flow.

Unlike Dry Powder Inhalers (DPI’s) that require a pressure drop of 4 kPa to draw an airflow rate of 60 L/min, the Metered Dose Inhaler (MDI) technique used in the T-Haler produces a much lower value for the same airflow. “The MDI as a low resistance inhaler required a pressure drop of approximately 0.15 kPa to draw an airflow rate of 60L/min in our study,” says Cambridge Consultants’ Kate Farrell, Senior Design Engineer, Medical Technology.

For more information about Cambridge Consultants’ T-Haler, click here.