LOW COST SYSTEM FOR REMOTE PATIENT AUDIO/VIDEO CONTENT DELIVERY

• US 20100106519A1
• Filed: 02/15/2008
• Published: 04/29/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/08/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Inventors: Moberly, David, Rueter, James M., Lemke, Gilbert
• Application Number:
  US12/529,554
• Publication Number:
  US 20100106519A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/2
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/02 with visual presentation of the material to be studied, e.g. using film strip
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 80/00 ICT specially adapted for facilitating communication between medical practitioners or patients, e.g. for collaborative diagnosis, therapy or health monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/061 for key exchange, e.g. in peer-to-peer networks cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for key agreement H04L9/0838
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network

Abstract

When providing a cost-efficient remote patient monitoring and/or education system, a home-end device (HED) (12) is coupled to a central server (14) using a communication link over PSTN line or the like. Educational audio/video (AN) content is delivered to the patient on a storage medium (18) for playback via a media player (20, 38) in the HED (12). The server (14) provides keys to the HED (12) at predefined times to permit the HED (12) to display a scheduled video segment stored on the storage medium (18) to the patient at the scheduled time. The patient answers survey questions, and patient responses are transmitted over the PSTN line to the server for review by a clinician or doctor, who may be present at the server (14) or at a remote terminal (16) coupled to the server (14). Additionally, one or more patient monitoring devices (22) are coupled to the HED (12), and the HED (12) transmits monitored conditions of the patient to the central server (14) over the communication link for evaluation by the clinician or doctor.

Claims

1. A system (10, 30) for remotely monitoring a patient, including:

a home-end device HED (12) that periodically connects to a healthcare service provider server (14) over a communication link and receives at least one decryption key;

a media player (20, 38) that receives a storage medium (18) containing encrypted audio/video (A/V) content, a scheduled portion of which is unlocked by the at least one decryption key; and

a power cable connection.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the communication link is a public switching telephone network (PSTN) communication link

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the media player (20, 38) is at least one of a DVD player or media player with a USB port, and the storage medium 18 is at least one of a DVD ROM disk or a USB memory stick.

4. The system according to claim 1, further including a graphical user interface (GUI) (32) that presents the A/V content to the patient.

5. The system according to claim 1, further including an input device (32, 36, 40) that is employed by the patient to input information to the HED (12),wherein the input device is at least one of a touchscreen (32), a remote control (36), or a keypad (40).

6. The system according to claim 1, further including a monitoring device (22) that measures a health state of the patient and wirelessly transmits the health state information to a wireless component (42) in the HED (12).

7. The system according to claim 1, wherein the decryption key is provided to unlock the scheduled portion of the A/V content according to a schedule that is part of a healthcare plan for the patient.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein portions of the A/V content that are not unlocked by the received decryption key are not viewable by the patient until respective decryption keys there for are received.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the server (14) includes:

a routine or means (82) for periodically providing encrypted media content to the patient;

a routine or means (84) for detecting the HED (12) upon login over the communication link;

a routine or means (86) for providing decryption keys to the HED (12) for a scheduled portion of A/V content;

a routine or means (88) for prompting a patient to complete a survey by entering information into the HED (12); and

a routine or means (90) for updating a content-viewing schedule for the patient based on the survey.

10. A method for providing the system of claim 1, comprising:

receiving healthcare-related media content on a storage medium (18);

inserting the storage medium (18) into the media player (20, 38) of the HED (12);

establishing a communication link with the server;

receiving a decryption key for a scheduled portion of the media content;

displaying scheduled content to the patient and receiving patient-entered information; and

transmitting the patient-entered information to the server (14) for review by a clinician.

11. A home-end device (HED) (12) comprising, in a common housing:

a video display (32);

a media player (20, 38) that plays media (18) for display on the display (32); and

a telephone modem (34) for receiving communications via a public switching telephone system.

12. The HED (12) according to claim 11, further including:

a power cord (44) extending from the HED (12); and

a telephone cord (42) for connecting with a telephone jack.

13. The HED (12) according to claim 11, wherein the common housing has a form of a framed picture that can be held by a patient for easy viewing.

14. The HED (12) according to claim 11, wherein the media (18) is encoded or encrypted, and further including:

a means or routine (66) for connecting to a server (14) via the modem (34); and

a means or routine (68) for receiving a key to release one or more selected portions of video programming from the media (18), the released video programming being displayed on the display (32).

15. A method of providing a remote patient healthcare monitoring and education system, including:

instructing the patient to connect an HED (12) to a telephone line and a power source;

physically providing encrypted healthcare-related media content to a patient on a physical medium (18);

instructing the patient to insert the media content physical medium (18) into a media player (20, 38) associated with the HED (12);

generating a communication link between the HED (12) and a centralized server (14) over the telephone line;

providing one or more keys that unlock a scheduled portion of the media content to the HED (12); and

displaying the scheduled portion of the media content to the patient.

16. The method according to claim 15, further including:

delivering another encrypted healthcare-related media content physical medium (18) to the patient using at least one of mail, post, courier, or parcel service.

17. The method according to claim 15, further including:

prompting the patient to enter information responsive to survey questions into the HED (12); and

transmitting patient responses to the centralized server (14) for review by a clinician.

18. The method according to claim 17, further including employing a public switching telephone network to deliver at least one of keys to the HED (12) and patient responses to the server (14).

19. The method according to claim 18, further including adjusting a healthcare regimen for the patient as a function of the patient responses and adjusting a content-viewing schedule for the patient as a function of the patient responses.

20. A processor or computer-readable medium programmed to perform the method of claim 15.

21. A remote healthcare patient education system, including:

means for scheduling physical delivery of healthcare-related A/V media content to a remote patient;

means for providing a PSTN communication link between an HED (12) at the patient location and a centralized server (14);

means for providing at least one decryption key to the HED (12);

means for displaying decrypted media content to the patient according to a viewing schedule;

means for receiving feedback related to the displayed media content from the patient; and

means for adjusting the predefined viewing schedule as a function of the feedback.

22. The system according to claim 21, wherein received feedback from the patient is employed by the means for scheduling to update a delivery schedule for delivering A/V media content to the patient.