The present disclosure relates generally to oxygen generating devices and, more particularly, to a damping member for a scroll compressor in a portable oxygen concentrator.
A portable oxygen concentrating or generating system presents unique problems. It is intended to be easily movable so that it can be easily carried about by a user, since the portability aspect of the invention improves the lifestyle of a person who requires oxygen. This is significantly different than typical non-portable oxygen concentrating systems, such as those used to fill oxygen tanks—where the only portable aspect is the tank itself. As such, a portable oxygen generating device must be capable of function in diverse environments and be relatively lightweight. A portable oxygen generating device must also be in a small package suitable for portability and it should control noise, since it will be contiguous with the patient or user of the device.
In many such oxygen generating devices, as well as in other devices, scroll compressors are used since the packaging is small, and they are relatively lightweight. In certain instances, components of the scroll compressors may, due to their continuous functioning, become undesirably noisy, begin to vibrate or become unstable.