Mattress monitoring system

• US 20060271207A1
• Filed: 11/05/2004
• Published: 11/30/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Medical Depot Incorporated (Drive Medical Design & Manufacturing)
• Original Assignee: Mark D. Shaw
• Inventors: Shaw, Mark
• Granted Patent: US 7,346,944 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/17
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 2203/12 Remote controls
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 7/05776 with at least two groups of alternately inflated chambers
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation

Abstract

A system for monitoring bed or mattress operation including portable monitor having a memory, a wireless input in selective communication with the bed, a wireless output in selective communication with the bed, a processor programmed to maintain in the memory a data structure including an identification for the bed and a control data associated with the bed identification, and selectively link with the bed via the output and receive computer readable information from the bed via the wireless input to update control data stored in the data structure; and control a display to report the control data to the user.

Claims

1. A computer-readable medium in a portable monitor for a mattress monitoring system having stored thereon a data structure comprising:

a first field containing data representing a bed identification control function;

a second field containing data representing a selected control data of interest to a user, wherein said selected control data and said bed identification control data are associated with each other.

2. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the selected bed control data is a pressure value.

3. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the selected bed control data is a time stamp.

4. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the selected bed control data is a date stamp.

5. The computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the selected bed control data is a value representing a time of blower operation.

6. The computer readable medium of claim 1 further comprising a third field correlating said first field with said second field.

8. The computer readable medium of claim 6, wherein said control data includes a bed pressure setting.

9. The computer readable medium of claim 6, wherein the control data includes a value representing the time the mattress controller began operation.

10. The computer readable medium of claim 6, wherein the control data includes a value representing the time of blower operation.

11. The computer readable medium of claim 6 further comprising computer executable instructions for comparing the associated control data with the current control data to produce a second control data and controlling the display to report said second control data.

13. The system of claim 11 further comprising a user input connected to the processor;

wherein said processor is further programmed to;

receive a setting for a control data from the user, update the control function in the data structure, and selectively transmit the setting to the bed via the wireless output to change the control data stored in the controller.

7. A computer readable medium in a portable monitor for a mattress monitoring system that includes a mattress controller, the portable monitor having computer executable instructions for performing a method comprising:

(a) maintaining a data structure for a bed identification function with its associated one or more control data;

(b) selectively linking with the mattress controller to retrieve a current control data from the mattress controller, and updating the existing control data stored in the data structure of the monitor; and

(c) controlling a display to report the one or more current control functions for the identified bed control data to the user.

12. A portable monitor for monitoring a mattress system that includes a mattress controller, the portable monitor comprising:

a memory;

a wireless transceiver in selective communication with the mattress controller;

a wireless output in selective communication with the mattress controller;

a processor programmed to;

maintain in the memory a data structure including an identification control data for the bed and a control data associated with the identification control data;

selectively link with the mattress controller associated with the bed via the wireless transceiver;

prompting the controller for a current control data;

receiving computer readable information from the mattress controller via the wireless transceiver to update the control data stored in the data structure; and

controlling a display to report the bed identification and control data to the user.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the setting is a pressure value.

15. The set of application program interfaces of claim 15, wherein the control function is a pressure value.

16. A system for monitoring bed or mattress operation including a portable monitor having a memory, a wireless transceiver in selective communication with the bed controller, a processor programmed to maintain in the memory a data structure including an identification for the bed controller and a control data with the bed identification, and programmed to selectively connect with the bed controller via the wireless transceiver and receive computer readable information from the bed controller to update the control data stored in the data structure;

and

control a display to report the control data to the user.

17. In a portable monitor used in connection with a mattress controller, the portable monitor having a graphical user interface including a display and a selection device, a method of providing and selecting from a menu on the display, the method comprising:

retrieving a set of menu entries for the menu, each of the menu entries representing a bed identification;

displaying the set of menu entries on the display;

receiving a menu entry selection signal indicative of the selection device pointing at a selected menu entry from the set of menu entries; and

in response to the signal, performing a search of memory for a control data associated with the selected menu entry.

18. A method for monitoring a mattress comprising the steps of:

providing a mattress controller to maintain a data structure having control data therein, wherein one of said control data is a bed identification;

providing a monitor, having a memory, to selectively connect to the mattress controller;

transferring control data to the monitor;

displaying the transferred control data on a viewable screen connected to the monitor;

altering the transferred control data or the data structure using a monitor input device;

connecting the monitor to the mattress controller; and

transferring the altered control data or altered data structure to the mattress controller, whereby the mattress controller responsively adapts its outputs based on this altered data or altered data structure.