Systems and methods for communicating data

• US 10,105,055 B2
• Filed: 11/07/2017
• Issued: 10/23/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/07/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zoll Medical Corporation (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Zoll Medical Corporation (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Inventors: Kaib, Thomas E., Volpe, Shane, Linder, Marshal, Hresko, Patrick
• Primary Examiner(s): Dsouza, Adolf
• Application Number:
  US15/805,703
• Publication Number:
  US 20180125363A1
• Time in Patent Office: 350 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0022 Monitoring a patient using a global network, e.g. telephone networks, internet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/021 Measuring pressure in heart or blood vessels A61B5/0205 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/024 Detecting, measuring or recording pulse rate or heart rate A61B5/0205, A61B5/021 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1118 Determining activity level
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/318 Heart-related electrical modalities, e.g. electrocardiography [ECG]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/332 Portable devices specially adapted therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6804 Garments; Clothes
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/046 Specially adapted for shock therapy, e.g. defibrillation
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/0484 Garment electrodes worn by the patient
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3625 External stimulators
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37 Monitoring; Protecting
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/39 Heart defibrillators
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3904 External heart defibrillators [EHD]
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3968 Constructional arrangements, e.g. casings A61N1/375 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass

Abstract

An external medical device including monitoring circuitry and communication circuitry. The monitoring circuitry monitors a cardiac condition of a patient using the external medical device. For example, the communication circuitry initiates a communication link with a remote location. The remote location can be selected based on data associated with at least one of the external medical device and the patient using the external medical device. In some examples, supporting data can be transmitted to the remote location.

Claims

1. A wearable medical device configured to communicate with a remote location, the wearable medical device comprising:

monitoring circuitry configured to monitor a cardiac condition of a patient using the wearable medical device; and

communication circuitry configured to;

provide a prompt to the patient that requests the patient indicate a nature of a communication,

determine a category of data associated with a communication link from a set of data categories based on the patient indicated nature of the communication,

select the remote location from a plurality of remote locations based on the determined category of the data, and

initiate the communication link to the remote location based on the determined category of the data.

2. The wearable medical device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of remote locations comprise an emergency response location, a technician location, a physician location, and a relative or caregiver location.

3. The wearable medical device of claim 2, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to determine the category of the data as one of monitored physiological data, patient symptom data, location/position data, patient profile and preferences data, treatment data, and device parameter data.

4. The wearable medical device of claim 3, wherein if the determined category is patient symptom data, the communication circuitry is configured to provide the data to the technician location for reviewing or editing the data before providing the data to the physician location.

5. The wearable medical device of claim 3, wherein if the determined category is device data, the communication circuitry is configured to provide the data to the technician location.

6. The wearable medical device of claim 5, wherein the data is associated with an error code, wherein the error code is associated with a device error of the device, and wherein the communication circuitry is configured to determine the data based on the patient indicated nature of the communication.

7. The wearable medical device of claim 3, wherein if the determined category is treatment data, the communication circuitry is configured to provide the data to the relative or caregiver location.

8. The wearable medical device of claim 1, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to at least one of provide the data to the remote location via the communication link and initiate an audio and/or video communication link with the remote location.

9. The wearable medical device of claim 1, wherein the data is associated with the cardiac condition of the patient using the wearable medical device monitored by the monitoring circuitry, and wherein the communication circuitry is configured to

provide options to a user for selecting a current symptom of the patient,

receive a selection of the current symptom of the patient, and

transmit the data in association with the current symptom of the patient to the remote location via the communication link.

10. The wearable medical device of claim 9, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to provide options to the user for selecting a level of physical activity of the patient associated with the current symptom, receive a selection of the level of physical activity, and transmit the data in association with the level of physical activity to the remote location via the communication link.

11. The wearable medical device of claim 1, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to provide the prompt to the patient based on the patient receiving a treatment from the device.

12. The wearable medical device of claim 1, wherein the prompt comprises a message to be transmitted including the request that the patient indicate the nature of the communication, and wherein the communication circuitry is configured to determine the category of the data based on the nature of the communication indicated in the message to be transmitted and transmit the message via the communication link.

13. A wearable medical device comprising:

monitoring circuitry configured to monitor a cardiac condition of a patient using the wearable medical device; and

communication circuitry configured to initiate an audio and/or video communication link with a remote location,

wherein the communication circuitry is configured to provide a user with an option to control the communication circuitry to initiate the audio and/or video communication link with the remote location based on an operation associated with the wearable medical device, and

wherein the device is configured to detect a pattern of the user performing an incorrect device operation and provide the user with the option to control the communication circuitry to initiate the audio and/or video communication link with a technician location based on the detected pattern of incorrect device operation.

14. The wearable medical device of claim 13, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to control a user interface of the wearable medical device to provide the user with the option to control the communication circuitry to initiate the audio and/or video communication link via user input to the user interface.

15. The wearable medical device of claim 14, wherein the communication circuitry is configured to control the user interface to display the option on a display screen as an icon selectable by the user via the user interface.

16. The wearable medical device of claim 13, wherein the operation associated with the wearable medical device includes at least one of:

a system activity of the device, an error encountered by the device, a battery status of the device, a communications status or availability of the device, a user operation of the device, a performance of the device, or any combination thereof.

17. The wearable medical device of claim 13, wherein the incorrect device operation includes incorrect user input to a user interface of the device.

18. The wearable medical device of claim 13, wherein the wearable medical device comprises a wearable defibrillator.

19. A wearable medical device comprising:

monitoring circuitry configured to monitor a cardiac condition of a patient using the wearable medical device; and

communication circuitry configured to initiate an audio and/or video communication link with a remote location,

wherein the communication circuitry is configured to provide a user with an option to control the communication circuitry to initiate the audio and/or video communication link with the remote location based on an operation associated with the wearable medical device, and

wherein the communication circuitry is configured to detect a pattern of device restarts or reboots and provide the user with the option to control the communication circuitry to initiate the audio and/or video communication link with a technician location based on the detected pattern of device restarts or reboots.

20. The wearable medical device of claim 19, wherein the wearable medical device comprises a wearable defibrillator.