The Physical Lung Model – the Sensor Network

Recently, physical modelling of human and animal organs has become very popular. The objective of this invention was to construct a physical lung model – an apparatus comprising an artificial lung and an automatic self-controlled system working on a principle of a negative feedback loop. This contribution is focused mainly on the function of the control system with a special attention paid to the sensor network. The control system is equipped with sensors measuring various physical variables (e.g. air flow, pressure difference) necessary for a proper system operation. Sampling frequency, sensorstype and their accuracy play an important part in the quality of measurement and directly affect the accuracy of the control response. The physical lung model and the sensor system have been successfully built and fully completed from the hardware and software's point of view. In the future, this lung model is expected to be used in different testing applications, e.g. in studies comparing physiological and pathological breathing patterns or observing effects of different aerosols on the lung tissue.