life-support ventilator. power with car 12V battery?

[nzrick]

I use a ventilator for breathing life -support as I have ALS. The machine uses 12v electrics via a mains 100-240 V- 50/60 Hz, 2.1A adapter stepping down to 12 V  5.0 A
Could I connect the machine to a 12v car battery to enable me to get out and about and also prevent problems during power cuts at home by having it connect to some 12v batteries connected to the home electrics via a trickle charge battery charger?
Could someone advise please, including all safety measures and precautions or possible alternatives. Home electrics are properly earthed.

[Crossy]

Since it's got a Made in China power supply which looks pretty ordinary (not really life safety critical) I reckon you could DIY something pretty simply.

 

Do you know how much power (A or W) the unit actually uses, it may be marked on the ventilator itself.

 

How much autonomy do you think you need (hours off mains)?

 

A 12V battery would certainly power it although I would not go for a vehicle battery, particularly if you are going portable. LiFePO4 would be smaller and lighter as well as being more robust in a relatively high-discharge / high cycle environment. You should be able to find something suitable along with a charger on Lazada for not crazy money.

 

EDIT Not a recommendation but something like this would seem ideal. Just add a suitable 12V lead to your unit. Even has a nice carry box.

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/lifepo4-80ah-12v-bms-solarcell-usb21a2-i1945008675-s6165456459.html

 

 

 

[nzrick]

Many thanks Crossy. The underside of the machine only has a repetition of the power info as seen on the adapter ie 12V   5.0 A. The machine itself is made in China too, but designed in Germany or USA like many things!

Maximum hours of autonomy I need is 6hrs

Thanks for the interesting link, and great advice.

[nzrick]

Aaaaah, no. Machine is made in USA!

[Led Lolly Yellow Lolly]

Without seeing the specs for the ventilator (detailed manufacturer specs) I wouldn't advise this, you risk damaging the ventilator catastrophically through an overvoltage (a car battery or any SLA will easily exceed 14 volts for example). If the ventilator is rated for, say, 9 ~ 19 Volts DC, then you'd be fine, but you need to verify that first, second, and then verify for a third time. Also, sometimes those barrel connectors have the polarity reversed. Getting that wrong even for an instant and the magic smoke will come out of the electronics.

 

Also, 5 Amps for six hours. . . that's gonna be a BIG battery and it'll have to be on wheels.

 

 

 

 

[Rayfish]

DeWalt makes a nice power supply that would be suitable for this but probably Overkill. As one poster said Lozada should have a simple set up for you. If you are not handy with the technical part you can go to Pantip Plaza and there are many vendors who would help you with a lightweight portable solution and can make you aware of the limitations and advantages. What you are looking for is very reasonable thing to do. Good luck.

[Crossy]

It's worth contacting the manufacturer to verify that nothing is going to get damaged (I doubt it, but it can't hurt to check), they may even do a specific battery pack (bet it's $$$).

 

If it's really 5A then you are going to need (6x5) 30Ah (360Wh @ 12V) of usable capacity which shouldn't actually be too massive if done as LFePO4 (the packs I linked to earlier should do the trick).

 

EDIT The manual indicates that  

"The Philips Respironics Shielded DC Cord can be used to operate this device in a stationary recreational vehicle, boat, or motor home. The Philips Respironics DC Battery Adapter Cable, when used with the Shielded DC Cord, enables the device to be operated from a 12 VDC free-standing battery. Refer to the instructions supplied with the Shielded DC Cord and adapter cable for information on how to operate the device using DC power."

 

Power cord instructions, says very little really.

dreamstation-cpap-dc-power-cord.pdf

 

The beast in question (image from Amazon), looks pretty much like a straight-through connection with a couple of RF suppressors.  So you should be good to go with a 12V battery. Definitely verify the polarity of the connector. I also note from the manual that the respirator does have under/over voltage protection so the chances of killing it are low.

 

EDIT 2 Updated the image to include the Philips Respironics DC Battery Adapter Cable pretty basic too.

 

 

 

 

[nzrick]

Thanks to all for the great advice, and the really helpful links from Crossy.