Anne Bruton 1 Faculty of Health Sciences, Building 45, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK e-mail: ab7@soton.ac.uk Ian Sinclair Faculty of Engineering and the Environment, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK e-mail: is1@soton.ac.uk Elizabeth Arnold Solent NHS Trust & Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ, UK e-mail: E.Arnold@soton.ac.uk Warren Hepples Luxfer Gas Cylinders Ltd., Colwick, Nottingham, NG4 2BH, UK e-mail: warren.hepples@luxfer.net Francis Kay FXK Developments Ltd., The Old School House, Church Hill, Akeley, Buckingham MK18 5HB, UK e-mail: fxk@btconnect.com Graeme Maisey Graeme Maisey Ltd., 15 Chantry Road, Chessington, Surrey KT9 1JR, UK e-mail: Graeme@graememaisey.com Andy Norwood Luxfer Gas Cylinders Ltd., Colwick, Nottingham, NG4 2BH, UK e-mail: Andy.Norwood@luxker.net Mike Clinch Luxfer Gas Cylinders Ltd., 3016 Kansas Avenue, Riverside, California 91250 e-mail: Mike.Clinch@luxfer.net The Design and Development of a New Light-Weight Portable Oxygen System Background: Patients with respiratory disorders such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are prescribed oxygen therapy, but frequently fail to use it as intended and therefore do not receive the associated health benefits. Many of the reasons for this non adherence to therapy relate to the design of the equipment currently provided. We have designed and developed a novel system for portable oxygen delivery to overcome this problem. Method of Approach: There were five complementary workpackages (user involvement and exploratory work; ultra lightweight cylinder technology; embedded valve regulator technology; patient-driven system design; regulatory design & manufac- turing review). Each had specific deliverables supporting the end point of the program, i.e., to have a fully functioning prototype oxygen delivery system that had been designed and evaluated with maximum input from end users. Results: Patients primarily wanted a lightweight, long lasting, reliable, unobtrusive and ergonomically designed system with simple controls. To provide this, we have developed a new full wrap composite cylinder that has achieved weight savings of 12% over a comparative composite cylinder, or a doubling in cylinder design life. We have developed a totally new concept in valve regu- lator technology, conferring significant reductions in weight and space envelope. We have addressed form factor, flow dial design and flow setting indicator design to improve the ergonomics and esthetics of the system. The developed prototype system weighs 1.7 kg when full, is 34.2 cm in height and 8.5–8.7 cm in diameter, and is capable of 8 h opera- tion at a flow rate of 2 liters per minute, using a standard conserver. Conclusions: Throughout this project, a significant amount of time was invested in establishing the views and perceptions of potential end-users of the new system. This has ensured that their views informed the design and development process. By combining novel cylinder technology with revolutionary valve technology (SmartFlow) we have been able to design an ultra-light cylinder oxygen system (IOS V R ) with accurate, reliable and stable flow. The weight reduction combined with the new easy-to-read gauge and user-friendly controls should improve patient confidence in the system and result in increased adherence to therapy. [DOI: 10.1115/1.4007180] Keywords: oxygen, COPD, cylinder technology 1 Introduction This paper describes the development of an innovative portable oxygen system, designed to overcome the limitations of previ- ously available systems. Long term oxygen therapy (LTOT) is the only element of the management of severe respiratory disorders such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) that is known to improve survival [1]. In the UK, the Dept. of Health has estimated that approximately 77,000 people currently receive LTOT, but adherence levels to therapy are generally low, with fig- ures cited as less than 40% [2] and 53% [3], which means that a significant proportion of users receive suboptimal therapy. Ambu- latory or portable oxygen is an important adjunct to LTOT, as it increases both functional capacity and duration of therapy, but the usage of portable oxygen outside the home has been reported to be very low [4]. This is due in part to limitations with existing ox- ygen therapy systems, as earlier research has showed that incon- venience, weight, noise and embarrassment are all reasons given by patients for not using ambulatory oxygen equipment as much as they should [5,6]. At the time that we embarked on this research (2006), National Health Service (NHS) oxygen systems had evolved from industrial gas applications rather than patient needs. They were typically built around a large cylinder, valve, regulator, and conserving device and were heavy and 1 Corresponding author. Manuscript received March 24, 2011; final manuscript received May 10, 2012; published online August 20, 2012. Assoc. Editor: Paul A. Iaizzo. Journal of Medical Devices SEPTEMBER 2012, Vol. 6 / 031007-1 Copyright V C 2012 by ASME Downloaded From: http://medicaldevices.asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/ on 10/17/2013 Terms of Use: http://asme.org/terms