1. An apparatus for producing a hematoma, said apparatus comprising:
a pressure bell having a wall, said wall defining an interior space, said pressure bell having a lip extending around a lower periphery of said wall of said pressure bell such that said lip of said pressure bell is designed for providing a substantially airtight seal against a skin of a user;
a housing having a vacuum assembly within said housing, said vacuum housing being removably coupled to an insertion port of said pressure bell, said vacuum assembly being in fluid communication with said interior space of said pressure bell, said vacuum assembly for removing air within said interior space of said pressure bell such that said vacuum assembly creates a lower pressure area within said interior space of said pressure bell thereby drawing blood to a surface of the skin of the user;
said housing having main portion and a interface portion being removably coupleable to said main portion of said housing, said interface portion of said housing being removably coupleable to said insertion port of said pressure bell; and
said interface portion having a peripheral wall being for engaging said insertion port of said pressure bell, an annular ring extending outwardly from said peripheral wall of said interface portion such that said annular ring abuts an upper edge of said insertion port of said pressure bell.
2. The apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said vacuum assembly has a switch for actuating said vacuum assembly, said switch being coupled to an outer surface of said housing such that said housing is designed for being held in a hand of the user whereby said switch may be actuated by a finger of the hand of the user.
3. The apparatus as set forth in claim 2, wherein said vacuum assembly has a light coupled to an outer surface of said housing, said light being for indicating actuation of said switch.
4. The apparatus as set forth in claim 3, wherein said vacuum assembly has a vacuum motor being in fluid communication with said interior space of said pressure bell, said vacuum motor being for removing air from said pressure bell to create the low pressure area within said interior space of said pressure bell, said switch being operationally coupled to said vacuum motor such that said switch is for actuating said vacuum motor, said vacuum motor being positioned within said housing.
5. The apparatus as set forth in claim 3, wherein said vacuum assembly has a power supply being operationally coupled to said switch, said power supply being for providing electricity to said vacuum motor.
6. The apparatus as set forth in claim 5, wherein said vacuum assembly has a light coupled to said outer surface of said housing, said light being operationally coupled to said switch, said light being lit when said switch is actuated.
7. The apparatus as set forth in claim 5, wherein said vacuum assembly has a pressure gauge coupled to said outer surface of said housing such that said pressure gauge is designed for being viewed by the user, said pressure gauge being operationally coupled to said vacuum motor such that said pressure gauge is for measuring pressure created by said vacuum motor in said interior space of said pressure bell.
8. The apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said interface portion of said housing has a valve positioned within a bore of said interface portion, said valve being for preventing equalization of pressure within said interior space of said pressure bell when the lower pressure area has been created within said interior space of said pressure bell by said vacuum assembly.
9. The apparatus as set forth in claim 8, wherein said main portion of said housing has an aperture extending through a lower surface of said main portion of said housing, said aperture being in fluid communication with said vacuum motor, said aperture of said main portion being aligned with said bore of interface portion when said main portion is coupled to said interface portion.
10. The apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein said insertion port of said pressure bell has a seal for engaging said peripheral wall of said interface portion of said housing such that said seal provides an airtight seal between said insertion port of said pressure bell and said interface portion of said housing.
11. The apparatus as set forth in claim 1, further comprising:
a pressure equalization assembly being for equalizing pressure within said interior space of said pressure bell with the air pressure outside of said pressure bell, said pressure equalization assembly being couple to said housing proximate said insertion port of said pressure bell.
12. The apparatus as set forth in claim 11, further comprising:
a pressure switch being coupled to said housing, said pressure switch being operationally coupled to said pressure equalization assembly such that actuation of said pressure switch actuates said pressure equalization assembly.
13. An apparatus for producing a hematoma, said apparatus comprising:
a pressure bell having a wall, said wall defining an interior space, said pressure bell having a lip extending around a lower periphery of said wall of said pressure bell such that said lip of said pressure bell is designed for providing a substantially airtight seal against a skin of a user;
a housing having a vacuum assembly within said housing, said vacuum housing being removably coupled to an insertion port of said pressure bell, said vacuum assembly being in fluid communication with said interior space of said pressure bell, said vacuum assembly for removing air within said interior space of said pressure bell such that said vacuum assembly creates a lower pressure area within said interior space of said pressure bell thereby drawing blood to a surface of the skin of the user;
wherein said vacuum assembly has a switch for actuating said vacuum assembly, said switch being coupled to an outer surface of said housing such that said housing is designed for being held in a hand of the user whereby said switch may be actuated by a finger of the hand of the user;
wherein said vacuum assembly has a light coupled to an outer surface of said housing, said light being for indicating actuation of said switch;
wherein said vacuum assembly has a vacuum motor being in fluid communication with said interior space of said pressure bell, said vacuum motor being for removing air from said pressure bell to create the low pressure area within said interior space of said pressure bell, said switch being operationally coupled to said vacuum motor such that said switch is for actuating said vacuum motor, said vacuum motor being positioned within said housing;
wherein said vacuum assembly has a power supply being operationally coupled to said switch, said power supply being for providing electricity to said vacuum motor;
wherein said vacuum assembly has a light coupled to said outer surface of said housing, said light being operationally coupled to said switch, said light being lit when said switch is actuated;
wherein said vacuum assembly has a pressure gauge coupled to said outer surface of said housing such that said pressure gauge is designed for being viewed by the user, said pressure gauge being operationally coupled to said vacuum motor such that said pressure gauge is for measuring pressure created by said vacuum motor in said interior space of said pressure bell;
wherein said housing has main portion and a interface portion being removably coupleable to said main portion of said housing, said interface portion of said housing being removably coupleable to said insertion port of said pressure bell;
wherein said interface portion of said housing has a valve positioned within a bore of said interface portion, said valve being for preventing equalization of pressure within said interior space of said pressure bell when the lower pressure area has been created within said interior space of said pressure bell by said vacuum assembly;
wherein said main portion of said housing has an aperture extending through a lower surface of said main portion of said housing, said aperture being in fluid communication with said vacuum motor, said aperture of said main portion being aligned with said bore of interface portion when said main portion is coupled to said interface portion;
wherein said interface portion has a peripheral wall being for engaging said insertion port of said pressure bell, an annular ring extending outwardly from said peripheral wall of said interface portion such that said annular ring abuts an upper edge of said insertion port of said pressure bell,
wherein said insertion port of said pressure bell has a seal for engaging said peripheral wall of said interface portion of said housing such that said seal provides an airtight seal between said insertion port of said pressure bell and said interface portion of said housing;
a pressure equalization assembly being for equalizing pressure within said interior space of said pressure bell with the air pressure outside of said pressure bell, said pressure equalization assembly being couple to said housing proximate said insertion port of said pressure bell; and
a pressure switch being coupled to said housing, said pressure switch being operationally coupled to said pressure equalization assembly such that actuation of said pressure switch actuates said pressure equalization assembly.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A fuel cell including an electrolyte electrode assembly and a pair of separators sandwiching said electrolyte electrode assembly, said electrolyte electrode assembly including an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte interposed between said anode and said cathode, said fuel cell comprising:
first protrusions forming a fuel gas channel provided on one surface of said separator for supplying a fuel gas in one direction along an electrode surface of said anode;
second protrusions forming an oxygen-containing gas channel provided on the other surface of said separator for supplying an oxygen-containing gas in the other direction opposite to the one direction along an electrode surface of said cathode;
a channel member provided on the one surface or the other surface to form a fuel gas supply channel connected to a fuel gas supply unit and said fuel gas channel;
a fuel gas inlet provided at a position spaced from the center of said electrolyte electrode assembly toward said fuel gas supply unit, said fuel gas inlet being connected to said fuel gas supply channel for supplying the fuel gas into said fuel gas channel; and
an oxygen-containing gas supply unit for mixing an exhaust fuel gas consumed in reaction at said anode and discharged from said fuel gas channel, with the oxygen-containing gas before consumption, and supplying the mixed gas to said oxygen-containing gas channel.
2. A fuel cell according to claim 1, further comprising an exhaust gas channel for discharging the fuel gas and the oxygen-containing gas consumed in the reaction in said electrolyte electrode assembly as an exhaust gas in a stacking direction of said electrolyte electrode assembly and said separators, wherein
said fuel gas supply unit for supplying the fuel gas before consumption in the stacking direction is provided hermetically inside said exhaust gas channel; and
said fuel gas supply channel connects said fuel gas channel and said fuel gas supply unit, and is provided along the separator surface that intersects said exhaust gas channel extending in the stacking direction.
3. A fuel cell according to claim 2, wherein said exhaust gas channel is provided at the center of said separators.
4. A fuel cell according to claim 3, wherein said fuel gas supply unit is provided hermetically at the center of said exhaust gas channel.
5. A fuel cell according to claim 1, wherein said oxygen-containing gas supply unit supplies the mixed gas of the oxygen-containing gas before consumption and the exhaust fuel gas to said oxygen-containing gas supply channel from the outer circumferential surface of said electrolyte electrode assembly.
6. A fuel cell according to claim 1, wherein said first protrusion is a ring shaped protrusion, and said second protrusion is formed inside said ring shaped protrusion.
7. A fuel cell according to claim 1, wherein each of said first and second protrusions has an ellipse or oval shape with inclination along the flow direction of the fuel gas.
8. A fuel cell according to claim 1, wherein said fuel gas inlet is formed in said separator or said channel member.
9. A fuel cell according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of said electrolyte electrode assemblies are arranged along a circle concentric with the center of said separators.
10. A fuel cell stack formed by stacking a plurality of fuel cells each including a plurality of electrolyte electrode assemblies and a pair of separators sandwiching said electrolyte electrode assemblies, each of said electrolyte electrode assemblies including an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte interposed between said anode and said cathode, said fuel cell comprising:
first protrusions forming a fuel gas channel provided on one surface of said separator for supplying a fuel gas in one direction along an electrode surface of said anode;
second protrusions forming an oxygen-containing gas channel provided on the other surface of said separator for supplying an oxygen-containing gas in the other direction opposite to the one direction along an electrode surface of said cathode;
a channel member provided on the one surface or the other surface to form a fuel gas supply channel connected to a fuel gas supply unit and said fuel gas channel;
a fuel gas inlet provided at a position spaced from the center of said electrolyte electrode assembly toward said fuel gas supply unit, said fuel gas inlet being connected to said fuel gas supply channel for supplying the fuel gas into said fuel gas channel;
an oxygen-containing gas supply unit for mixing an exhaust fuel gas consumed in reaction at said anode and discharged from said fuel gas channel, with the oxygen-containing gas before consumption, and supplying the mixed gas to said oxygen-containing gas channel; and
an exhaust gas channel for discharging the fuel gas and the oxygen-containing gas consumed in the reaction in said electrolyte electrode assembly as an exhaust gas in a stacking direction of said electrolyte electrode assembly and said separators.