Devices and methods for passive patient monitoring
First Claim
1. A method of passively monitoring at least one patient, the method comprising:
- providing a sensor device on a surface, the sensor device having at least two piezoelectric sensors;
coupling a patient with at least a portion of the sensor device by allowing the patient to lie, sit, lean, stand on or wear the surface;
sensing a first mechanical signal with a first piezoelectric sensor of the sensor device;
sensing a second mechanical signal with a second piezoelectric sensor of the sensor device;
converting the first and second mechanical signals into first and second digital signals;
comparing the first and second digital signals; and
providing patient data to a user based on the comparison of the digital signals.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Devices, systems and methods provide passive patient monitoring of such parameters as body motion, body position, respiratory rate and/or heart rate. Passive monitoring generally involves a sensor device having at least two piezoelectric sensors, provided on a surface, such as a bed, chair, operating table or the like, so that a patient may be coupled with the device by simply allowing the patient to lie, sit, lean, stand on or wear the surface. In one embodiment, multiple patients in a general care area of a hospital may be continuously monitored via multiple passive monitoring devices. If a patient fails to meet one or more predefined threshold criteria or has a negative physiological trend, the system may activate an alarm.
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Citations
87 Claims
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1. A method of passively monitoring at least one patient, the method comprising:
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providing a sensor device on a surface, the sensor device having at least two piezoelectric sensors;
coupling a patient with at least a portion of the sensor device by allowing the patient to lie, sit, lean, stand on or wear the surface;
sensing a first mechanical signal with a first piezoelectric sensor of the sensor device;
sensing a second mechanical signal with a second piezoelectric sensor of the sensor device;
converting the first and second mechanical signals into first and second digital signals;
comparing the first and second digital signals; and
providing patient data to a user based on the comparison of the digital signals. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. A method of passively monitoring physiology of multiple patients, the method comprising:
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providing multiple sensor devices on multiple surfaces, each sensor device having at least two piezoelectric sensors;
coupling each of the patients with at least a portion of one of the sensor devices by allowing each patient to lie, sit, lean, stand on or wear one of the surfaces;
sensing at least one mechanical signal with at least two of the piezoelectric sensors on each sensor device;
converting sensed mechanical signals into digital signals;
comparing digital signals corresponding to at least two of the piezoelectric sensors for each patient; and
providing patient data corresponding to the multiple patients to a user at a central location, based on the comparison of the digital signals.
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34. Apparatus for passively monitoring a patient, the apparatus comprising:
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a surface for coupling with the patient;
at least two piezoelectric sensors coupled with the surface for sensing at least one mechanical signal from the patient;
a processor coupled with the piezoelectric sensors for converting the at least one mechanical signal into at least one digital signal and for comparing digital signals corresponding to the at least two piezoelectric sensors to provide data pertaining to the patient;
at least a first connector for coupling the piezoelectric sensors with the processor; and
at least a second connector for coupling the processor with apparatus for providing the patient data to a user. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59)
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60. A disposable sheath for containing at least a portion of a sensor device for passively monitoring a patient, the sheath comprising:
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a flat surface for coupling with the patient; and
at least one housing for containing at least a portion of the sensor device. - View Dependent Claims (61, 62)
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63. A system for passively monitoring multiple patients, the system comprising:
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a plurality of sensor devices, each sensor device comprising;
a surface for coupling with the patient; and
at least two piezoelectric sensors coupled with the surface for sensing at least one mechanical signal from a patient;
a plurality of processors, each processor coupled with one sensor device for converting the at least one mechanical signal into at least one digital signal and for comparing digital signals corresponding to each of the at least two piezoelectric sensors to provide data pertaining to the patient; and
at least one connector coupled with each processor for connecting each processor with a common apparatus for providing the patient data for the multiple patients to a user. - View Dependent Claims (64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87)
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Specification