Imaging and Locating Systems and Methods for a Swallowable Sensor Device
First Claim
1. A method for locating a swallowable sensor device disposed within a patient, comprising:
- (a) transmitting an acoustic signal from the swallowable sensor device;
(b) receiving the acoustic signal at a plurality of sensing elements, the plurality of sensing elements receiving the acoustic signal at respective times;
(c) establishing a reference time as the time when a first sensing element receives the acoustic signal, the first sensing element receiving the acoustic signal before at least a subset of the other sensing elements; and
(d) determining a location of the swallowable sensor device based on the reference time and the respective times.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention is directed to locating and imaging with a swallowable sensor device disposed in a patient. The swallowable sensor device transmits an acoustic signal from inside a patient'"'"'s body. A plurality of sensing elements receive the acoustic signal. A computation module determines a location of the swallowable sensor device with respect to the plurality of sensing elements based on the acoustic signal received by at least a subset of the plurality of sensing elements. A three-dimensional image of an interior portion of the patient can also be formed based on the received acoustic signal. The three-dimensional image may be formed by stereoscopically displaying two two-dimensional images of the interior portion, wherein the two two-dimensional images correspond to the swallowable sensor device being located at two different locations. Alternatively, the three-dimensional image may be formed by computing three-dimensional pixels of the interior portion.
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Citations
28 Claims
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1. A method for locating a swallowable sensor device disposed within a patient, comprising:
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(a) transmitting an acoustic signal from the swallowable sensor device;
(b) receiving the acoustic signal at a plurality of sensing elements, the plurality of sensing elements receiving the acoustic signal at respective times;
(c) establishing a reference time as the time when a first sensing element receives the acoustic signal, the first sensing element receiving the acoustic signal before at least a subset of the other sensing elements; and
(d) determining a location of the swallowable sensor device based on the reference time and the respective times. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A system, comprising:
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a swallowable sensor device adapted to be ingested by a patient, wherein the swallowable sensor device transmits an acoustic signal;
a plurality of sensing elements adapted to be positioned on the patient, wherein the plurality of sensing elements receive the acoustic signal at respective times; and
a computation module that computes a location of the swallowable sensor device based on the respective times and a reference time, wherein the reference time is the time when a first sensing element receives the acoustic signal, the first sensing element receiving the acoustic signal before at least a subset of the other sensing elements. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A method for imaging an interior portion of a patient, comprising:
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(a) transmitting first and second acoustic signals from a swallowable sensor device, the first and second acoustic signals corresponding to the swallowable sensor device being located at first and second locations, respectively; and
(b) forming an image of the interior portion of the patient based on the first and second received acoustic signals. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A system for imaging an interior portion of a patient, comprising:
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a plurality of sensing elements that receive first and second acoustic signals transmitted by a swallowable sensor device, the first and second acoustic signals corresponding to the swallowable sensor device being located at first and second locations, respectively; and
means for forming an image of the interior portion of the patient based on the first and second received acoustic signals. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A system for imaging an interior portion of a patient, comprising:
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a plurality of acoustic elements adapted to be positioned on the patient, wherein a first acoustic element transmits a first acoustic signal, which propagates through the interior portion of the patient and is received by the other acoustic elements, and wherein a second acoustic element transmits a second acoustic signal, which propagates through the interior portion of the patient and is received by the other acoustic elements; and
means for forming an image of the interior portion of the patient based on the first and second received acoustic signals. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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Specification