Obstruction identification in branching compliant tubes with application to airway passages.

Abstract

A feasibility study for occlusion identification in a branched tube-like structure using the frequency spectrum of the acoustic input impedance determined at the main entrance to the network is presented. The frequency spectra for one- and two-generation models are generated to study the effect of an occlusion in one of the branches on the spectra with an application to the trachea and the first two generations of the airways. The result demonstrates that the input impedance resonant frequencies can map the location, severity and degree of an obstruction in any of the considered branches.