Steffen Kirchner

Title: Steffen Kirchner and His Patent for Detecting Air in Flowing Liquids.

Introduction

Steffen Kirchner is an inventor associated with Schweinfurt, Germany, and Fresenius Medical Care Deutschland GmbH. His work includes a patented method and device for monitoring flowing liquids for air, with particular relevance to extracorporeal blood circulation.

Latest Patents

Kirchner is credited with 1 patent: “Method and Device for Monitoring a Flowing Liquid for the Presence of Air.” The invention introduces signal pulses or a continuous signal into a flowing medium and analyzes the signal received after it passes through the medium. It identifies a characteristic pattern in the received signal over a defined period and compares that pattern with reference patterns. A sufficiently large deviation indicates the presence of air bubbles, including micro-bubbles. The method can also compare statistical characteristics, such as variance, to help detect bubbles.

Career Highlights

Kirchner’s patent addresses a monitoring challenge in medical technology: detecting air in flowing blood during extracorporeal circulation. The invention uses signal analysis to distinguish patterns associated with air bubbles from reference patterns, supporting the development of systems designed to monitor fluid flow.

Collaborations

Kirchner is associated with Fresenius Medical Care Deutschland GmbH. His listed coworkers include Tobias Fritsche and Olaf Nicholas.

Conclusion

Steffen Kirchner’s patent applies signal-pattern analysis to the detection of air in flowing liquids, with a particular focus on monitoring blood in extracorporeal circulation.