A nurse-led feasibility study to facilitate efficient post-respiratory illness recovery and improve discharge pathways.
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WEAN-O₂ is a hybrid respiratory support platform designed to enhance post-respiratory illness recovery through intelligent, closed-loop oxygen and ventilation regulation. It functions as a closed-loop respiratory governor: predicting instability using a patient-specific digital twin, optimising oxygen delivery via breath-synchronised micro-dosing, and applying state-dependent neuromodulation to assist hypoventilation or entrain hyperventilation.
Five modular components connected in series, each independently replaceable and upgradeable.
Continuous sensing of SpO₂, respiratory rate, effort, heart rate and optional CO₂ detects early pre-decompensation patterns. A patient-specific digital twin forecasts risk of hypoventilation, hyperventilation, and deterioration before clinical thresholds are breached.
Controlled oxygen enrichment and inspiratory micro-dosing improve oxygen efficiency per breath. FiO₂ rate limits protect CO₂ retainers and reduce oxygen waste while improving time-in-target SpO₂.
Phrenic stimulation assists hypoventilation by augmenting diaphragmatic contraction, and entrains hyperventilation by stabilising rhythm and reducing chaotic breathing patterns.
HEPA and antimicrobial filtration reduce inhaled pathogen load and support resilience during respiratory outbreaks. Filter integrity is monitored through pressure-drop and remaining-life prediction.
Hard safety limits, signal integrity checks, and safe fallback modes ensure that automation cannot exceed clinician-defined boundaries. The system degrades safely under faults and prompts escalation when required.
From Pure Mathematics to Life Support
Stokes Flow — Bubble Terminal Velocity
When a small gas bubble (radius r) forms at the anode surface, it experiences buoyant force and viscous drag. Using the simplified Stokes formula with a 20% potassium carbonate electrolyte (ρl = 1162 kg/m³, ρg = 1.42 kg/m³, μl = 0.0013 Pa·s) and r = 0.3–0.5 mm, the resulting terminal velocity is approximately 0.175–0.486 m/s.
This implies that for an anode depth of h = 0.05 m, the time required for a bubble to reach the fluid surface is on the order of 0.10–0.28 seconds — enabling rapid, gravity-assisted product self-separation without membranes or external circulation.
12-Month Research Programme — Private Sector Development