Portable remote presence robot

• US 10,404,939 B2
• Filed: 03/20/2017
• Issued: 09/03/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/26/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Teladoc Health, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Touch Technologies Incorporated
• Inventors: Wang, Yulun, Jordan, Charles S., Pinter, Marco, Sanchez, Daniel Steven, Hanrahan, Kevin
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Tuan D
• Application Number:
  US15/464,152
• Publication Number:
  US 20170195630A1
• Time in Patent Office: 897 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/14 Systems for two-way working H04N7/12, H04N7/173 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/142 Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/147 Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals selecting H04Q

Abstract

A tele-presence system that includes a portable robot face coupled to a remote station. The robot face includes a robot monitor, a robot camera, a robot speaker and a robot microphone. The remote station includes a station monitor, a station camera, a station speaker and a station microphone. The portable robot face can be attached to a platform mounted to the ceiling of an ambulance. The portable robot face can be used by a physician at the remote station to provide remote medical consultation. When the patient is moved from the ambulance the portable robot face can be detached from the platform and moved with the patient.

Claims

1. A portable telepresence device that is adapted to be coupled to a remote station that has a station monitor, a station camera, a station speaker and a station microphone, comprising:

a housing;

a camera coupled to said housing;

a monitor that is coupled to said housing and is adapted to display images captured by the station camera;

a speaker that is coupled to said housing and is adapted to generate a sound provided through the station microphone;

a microphone coupled to said housing;

a battery coupled to said housing;

a wireless transceiver coupled to said housing; and

,

a clamp adapted to attach and detach said housing to and from a platform, wherein the wireless transceiver of the portable telepresence device is communicatively coupled to the remote station via a second wireless transceiver on the platform and said telepresence device is operable when said housing is detached from said platform.

2. The portable telepresence device of claim 1, wherein the portable telepresence device is attached to the platform with two degrees of freedom relative to the platform.

3. The portable telepresence device of claim 1, further comprising an electrical connector adapted to be attached to said platform.

4. The portable telepresence device of claim 3, wherein the portable telepresence device is communicatively coupled to the remote station via the electrical connector and a second wireless transceiver on the platform.