Soft silicone edged cushion for face and oxygen masks with ultraviolet light source

Abstract

A soft medical silicone edged cushion may significantly reduce air leakage and provide comfort to a wearer of a face mask, for example, when the face mask is continually worn by a healthcare worker for a twelve-hour shift of medical duty. The cushion may preferably be U-shaped and comprise a cross-section for holding an extra soft silicone gel or air, yet be sufficiently hard and elastic and of predetermined circumference to be adaptable to self-installation to the lateral edges of a face mask and coatable to protect from the escape of air and fit comfortably on a face despite the use of elastic straps with the face mask or the presence of solid plastic lateral edges of an oxygen mask or a ventilator mask. The cushion may be used to cushion a solid plastic laterally edged oxygen or ventilator mask against the use of elastic ties to tie the face mask around a patient's head. The face mask may comprise a UVC source of ultraviolet light controlled by buttons/displays/battery/USB charging port on the cushion or on a UVC cartridge replacing a filter of an N95 mask.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An ultraviolet-C light source cartridge for use in personal protective equipment comprising an augmented ultraviolet-C chamber coated with polytetrafluorethylene inside the chamber with at least one far end ultraviolet-C light emitting diode having a wavelength between 200 and 230 nm,
 bacteria being killed and viral pathogens being directly inactivated by the far ultraviolet-C light emitting diode,   the far-end light emitting diode producing minimum cytotoxic or mutagenic damage to human cells.   
     
     
         2 . The augmented ultraviolet-C chamber of the ultraviolet-C light source cartridge for use in personal protective equipment as recited in  claim 1  allowing  2 -way breathing through the cartridge and adapted to replace a particle filter of an N95 mask. 
     
     
         3 . The augmented ultraviolet-C chamber of the ultraviolet-C light source cartridge for use in personal protective equipment as recited in  claim 1  being re-usable and detachable from a face mask and adapted for re-insertion and re-use of the ultraviolet-C light source cartridge. 
     
     
         4 . The augmented ultraviolet-C chamber of the ultraviolet-C light source cartridge for use in personal protective equipment as recited in  claim 1 ,
 the augmented ultraviolet-C chamber comprising isolation material of one of polytetrafluorethylene and TEFLON material.   
     
     
         5 . The augmented ultraviolet-C chamber of the ultraviolet-C light source cartridge for use in personal protective equipment as recited in  claim 1 , the augmented ultraviolet-C chamber comprising a plurality of reflective surfaces, the reflective surfaces comprising one of polytetrafluorethylene, TEFLON material, aluminum, steel and bora silica that reflect ultraviolet light. 
     
     
         6 . The ultraviolet-C light source cartridge as recited in  claim 1 , the at least one ultraviolet-C light emitting diode far ultraviolet-C light having a wavelength between 207 and 222 nm. 
     
     
         7 . The ultraviolet-C light source cartridge as recited in  claim 6 , the at least one ultraviolet-C light emitting diode far ultraviolet-C light comprising one of an excimer lamp and an other lamp having a peak wavelength of 222 nm. 
     
     
         8 . The ultraviolet-C light source cartridge as recited in  claim 6 , the at least one ultraviolet-C light emitting diode emitting a predetermined dose level to a user of the personal protective equipment less than 2.5 mW/cm 2 . 
     
     
         9 . The ultraviolet-C light source cartridge as recited in  claim 8 , the personal protective equipment comprising an N95 face mask. 
     
     
         10 . The ultraviolet-C light source cartridge as recited in  claim 1  having six sides, four sides comprising a lightweight plastic external material and two sides comprising back and front sides being semi-opened at a thirty degree to seventy-five degree angle. 
     
     
         11 . The ultraviolet-C light source cartridge as recited in  claim 1  comprising an on/off control, a battery and a battery charger port. 
     
     
         12 . The ultraviolet-C light source cartridge as recited in  claim 10 , the bottom inner side having a six-sided box for a circuit board for one of a filtered Krypton-Chloride 222 nanometer wavelength and a UV-C excimer lamp module. 
     
     
         13 . An ultraviolet-C light source cartridge of personal protective equipment having six sides, four sides comprising a lightweight plastic external material and two sides comprising back and front sides comprising back and front sides being semi-opened at a thirty degree to seventy-five degree angle for inhalation and exhalation; and
 the ultraviolet-C light source cartridge comprising at least one ultraviolet-C light emitting diode having a wavelength between 200 and 230 nm and emitting a predetermined dose level to a user of the personal protective equipment less than 2.5 mW/cm 2  to deactivate a viral pathogen and producing minimum cytotoxic or mutagenic damage to human cells.   
     
     
         14 . A method of manufacture of personal protective equipment comprising a face mask for protecting a user from a viral pathogen comprising the steps of:
 manufacturing a face mask having a predetermined inner volume for containing inhaled and exhaled air of a user of the face mask,   fixing a socket to the face mask at an outer extremity of the face mask, and   using the socket for securing an ultraviolet-C light source cartridge partially within and without the face mask having at least one ultraviolet-C light emitting diode for directly inactivating a viral pathogen from the inhaled and exhaled air of the user within the predetermined inner volume.