listening to this thing it sounds like there’s a big ass ratcheting gear mechanism counting down and triggering a relay on a stepper motor or something.its loud as hell, non continuous and I can’t tune it out. why such a design? why not a digital 555 timer circuit with the stepper motor and it’d be basically silent and last forever without mechanical wear component.
the model that’s ticking in front of me is a Hospira Plum 360 but I’ve seen others with same loudness mechanism
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It’s a question of reliability. The 555 is an analog device, susceptible to stray charge and many other effects. It is not nearly safe enough to be used in a medical device. The ratchet sounds are probably some sort of fail safe mechanism that keeps the device from running back should the power go off.
It is possible they are older models and still work. Hospital equipment is very expensive so only replaced if it is broken or can’t be properly sterilized anymore.
The drive mech on that pump is intricate to allow precise flow and to make sure it doesn’t become occluded. Better to have a noisy mechanism that works when it’s supposed to and stops when it doesn’t
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