APPAREIL SUDORIFIQUE

SUDORIFIC APPLIANCE

Abrégé anglais

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A sudorific appliance comprising a cabin adapted to
contain at least one person and equipped with a heating device,
one of the walls defining said cabin being provided with an
opening, so that in operation of the appliance the body of the
user is disposed within the cabin space with his head projecting
through said opening, the improvement comprising an oxygen supply
device for the user being attached to said defining wall for
improving the supply of breathing air to the user and for raising
the oxygen partial pressure in the user's blood.

Revendications

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive
property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:
1. A sudorific appliance comprising a cabin adapted
to contain at least one person and equipped with a heating
device, the upper wall of said cabin being provided with an
opening through which the user's head projects and one of
the walls being provided with an oxygen supply device
comprising a conduit for introducing oxygen or oxygen
enriched air into. the user's nose or mouth, wherein said
cabin is of cylindrical configuration with a vertical axis,
the peripheral surface being formed by a flexible wall
adapted to be formed in a roll for space-saving storage
during non-use and wherein the upper wall of said cabin is
formed by a hood having an opening such that the user's head
is able to project into the open air.
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2. A sudorific appliance according to claim 1,
characterized in that said oxygen supply device comprises a
connecting conduit for introducing the oxygen into the nose
or mouth of the user.
3. A sudorific appliance according to claim l,
characterized in that the oxygen supply device is releasably
attached to said cabin.

Description

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1 The invention rela-tes to a sudorific appliance com-
prising a cabin adapted to contain at le~st one person and
equipped with a heating device, one of the walls defining said
cabin being provided with an opening, so that in operation of
the appliance the body of the user is disposed within the cabin
space with his head projecting through said opening.
A sudorific appliance of the above-captioned type is
known for instance from German Patent 1,210,969. This appliance
has a cabin of cylindrical shape with the axis of the cylinder
vertical, i,e, the cylinder wall being vertically oriented and
formed of a flexible material, The lower end of the cabin space
is closed by a base surface supporting the cabin~ The upper
closure of the cabin space is usually formed by a hood consisting
of fabric, plastic or the like and overlapping the upper edge of
the cylinder wall. The hood is of substantially circular shape
in plan view and has a cent.ral opening for the head of the user
to extend therethrough,
Disposed within the cabin space is a heatin~ device
such as an electric heater. There may also be provided within
the cabin a chair for the user. Advantageously, the heating
device ~ay be com~ined with the chair.
The cylinder wall may be laterally opened for entry of
the user, They are adapted, however, to be sealingly closed for
achieving a sauna effect. The same applies to the connection
between the hood and the cylinder wall as well as to the connection
between the cylinder wall and the support sur~ace,
~ In use of the sudorific appliance, the temperature
;~ within the cabin space is raised by means of the heating device.
- This causes the body of the user to start perspiring, whereas the
~ser's head is outside of the cabin and remains relatively cool
with respect to the body.

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1 The beneEicial effects of a sauna are generally known.
In the known sudorific appliance, the fact that the
head remains cool while the body is beiIlg heated offers the
advantage that the circulation is stimulated while the user is
able to breathe a cooler air containing a greater proportion of
oxygen than the air within the cabin space itself or in a conven-
tional sauna, The known sudorific appliance thus com~ines the
beneficial effects of the sauna therapy with those of an adequa-te
air supply to the user,
1~ It is an o~ject oE the present invention to further
improve the alr supply to the user of the sudorific appliance,
In accordance with the invention this object is attained
by an oxygen supply device for the user is attached to the cabin
wall.
It has been shown that the oxygen partial pressure in
the blood of man is amongst other factors decisive for the per-
formance capacity of the individual.
It is also known that the oxygen partial pressure de-
creases with increasing age. In a young individual it amounts
to a~out 100 Torr, ~ith increasing age it may decrea~e to a
limit value of about 65 Torr~ A further decrease beyond this
limit value results in health hazards, particularly in the danger
of circulatory complaints and cardiac infarction.
The sudori~ic appliance according to the present inven-
tion provides a simple solution for increasing the oxygen partial
pressure in the blood, The exterior warming or heating of the
body stimulate~ the circulation~ This results in the patient
becoming increasingly capacious of absor~ing oxygen. Breathing
oxygen~enriched air during the sudorific treatment causes the
oxy~en partial pressure to be increased and the performance

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1 capaci-ty oE the individual to be improved. It has been found
that repeated use of the sudorific appliance according to the
innovation may result in the oxygen par-tial pressure being kept
at a raised level for an extended period.
An advantageous embodiment of the invention shall now
be described with reference to the accompanying drawing, the only
figure of which shows a vertical sectional view of a sudorific
appliance,
The dr~wing shows a sudorific appliance 1 comprising a
cabin 2 adapted to contain a single person, The cabin is of
cylindrical configuration with its axis vertical~ The peripheral
surface of the cylinder are formed by a flexible wall 3 adapted
to be opened in a manner not shown along a genera-trix for entry
of the user, The lower end wall of the cylinder is formed by a
support surface 4 carrying the cabin, Peripheral sealing ele~
ments 5 are provided for sealingly connecting the cabin to the
! support surEace,
~ he upper closure of the cabin space is :Eormed by a
hood 6 having a circular configuration in plan view in conformity
2~ with the.cylindrical shape of cabin 2~ and overlapping ~he :Eree
~ upper edge of peripheral wall 3 along its entire length with the
:~ aid for instance of sealing elements 7, Hood 6 is provided ~ith
a central opening 8 for the head of the user ~not shown~ to pro-
ject therethrough. Attached to hood 6 is an oxygen supply device
9, comprising a nose and mouth mask 19 directed to~ards opening
8~ and a control unit 11 connected to an oxygen supply flask 12
via tubing 13, Flask 12 is supported by peripheral wall 3,
Located within cabin 2 is a seat 14 combined with a
:~ conventional heating device (.not shown)~
In use of the sudorific appliance, the user enters the
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1 cabin space through an opening in peripheral wall 3, The user
is then seated on seat 14, so that his head projects through
opening 8. The heati.ng device is energized, and the oxygen
supply device 9 is started up at the same time, As his body is
heated, the user is supplied with oxygen or oxygen enriched
~reathing air through mask 10.
In the embodiment shown, the peripheral wall 3 is
designed to be formed into a roll for space-saving storage during
non-use of the sudorific appliance,
The invention is not restricted to the embodiment
shown, It is thus possible to locate the oxygen supply device at
a location farther removed from the opening 8, in which case a
connecting conduit is to be provided for connection with the
respiratory apparatus of the user, ~lhe free end of such connect-
ing conduit may be provided with nost:ril plugs oE soft plastic
or with a mouthpiece,
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the heating
; device is inte~rated into the peripheral wall by the latter being
lined ~ith a heating foil on its surface facing towards the cabin
space,
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