Category Archives: 1890s

Spirometer, Spalding, 1891

From the Spalding Gymnasium Equipment Catalog, 1891, page 94.  A description of its use:

Position – Face spirometer, head up, shoulders well back.

Motion – Take deep breath, place tube in mouth and blow steadily, but neither quick nor slow.

The deep inspiration exercise the inspiratory muscles and especially the diaphragm, while the expiration cause a strong contraction of the muscles of expiration. A truly fine respiratory exercise, and more valuable than is generally supposed.

Made of brass throughout, handsomely nickel-plated.  Easily repaired, as the stringing is done on the outside.

Price . . . $30.00

Spirometer, Dupont’s, 1895

From ‘Physical and Natural TherapeuticsThe Remedial Uses of Atmospheric Pressure, Climate, Heat and Cold, Hydrotherapeutic Measures, Mineral Waters, and Electricity’ by Georges Hayem, Lea, 1895, page 20.

“The open bottle is filled with water and then elevated so that the water flows into the second bottle up to the line marked zero. The stopcock is now closed, and the two bottles are placed on the same plane.  The patient takes an inspiration and applies his mouth to the funnel, opens the stopcock, and expires into the bottle.  At the end of the expiration the stopcock is again closed.  When the two bottle are placed so that the water in them is at the same level, the amount that is thereby made to flow into the graduated bottle indicates the volume of expired air at the pressure of the atmosphere.”

Spirometer, Lowne, 1880-1890

Found on the Science Museum UK website.

“This portable spirometer is made of brass, rubber and glass in a mahogany case. It was made by Arnold and Sons of London. The patient’s breath bubbled up a water-filled collecting glass and pushed up a sliding weight. A scale on the attached spirometer indicated the capacity of the lungs. Scientific instrument maker, Robert Mann Lowne (1844-1929) patented this portable spirometer in 1865.”