PERSONNEL LOCATION AND MONITORING SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR ENCLOSED FACILITIES
First Claim
1. A system for locating personnel in an enclosed facility having a plurality of spaced-apart stations, said system comprising(a) a separate indicator badge for each of said personnel;
- (b) at least one detector for detecting when one of said badges is located within a predetermined distance from one of said stations, and for reading information from the detected badge at said station;
(c) each of said detectors including first and second wireless transmitters for transmitting first and second wireless signals, the signals having transmission velocities different from one another; and
(d) a device for detecting the difference in transmission times between said first and second signals and indicating when said difference is below a predetermined value
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A wireless time-of-flight distance measurement device and/or a motion detector is used at each of a plurality of stations in a wireless network in an enclosed facility to accurately locate a badge-wearing person near the station. The location, badge number and time of detection are transmitted through the network and stored in a computer memory. In a health care facility, hand-washing detectors are located at some of the stations and caused to energize a hand-wash status indicator light on the badge when the wearer has washed his or her hands. The light remains “on” for only a certain length of time, but will be extinguished sooner by a monitor device near each patient when the health care worker leaves the vicinity of the patient. These events also are transmitted and stored so that a timed record of each worker'"'"'s hand-washing and visits to patients is created.
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Citations
36 Claims
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1. A system for locating personnel in an enclosed facility having a plurality of spaced-apart stations, said system comprising
(a) a separate indicator badge for each of said personnel; -
(b) at least one detector for detecting when one of said badges is located within a predetermined distance from one of said stations, and for reading information from the detected badge at said station; (c) each of said detectors including first and second wireless transmitters for transmitting first and second wireless signals, the signals having transmission velocities different from one another; and (d) a device for detecting the difference in transmission times between said first and second signals and indicating when said difference is below a predetermined value - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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10. A system for monitoring hand cleanliness in an enclosed patient care facility having a plurality of spaced-apart stations, said system comprising
(a) an indicator tag worn by each of said personnel; -
(b) a detector at each of said stations for detecting each of said tags when it is located within a predetermined distance from said detector, and for reading information from said tag; (c) each of said detectors including first and second wireless transmitters for transmitting first and second wireless signals having different transmission velocities; (d) a device for detecting the difference in transmission times between said first and second signals and indicating when said difference is within a predetermined range; (e) a hand cleanliness detector at each of said stations for detecting airborne taggant material in hand cleaning material at said station and sending wireless signals responsive to said taggant detection,; and (f) each of said tags having indicator means for indicating the hand cleanliness of the wearer of said tag, and including a wireless receiver for receiving said wireless signals from said hand cleanliness detector to enable said indicator means - View Dependent Claims (9, 11)
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12. A method of locating personnel in an enclosed facility having a plurality of stations therein, the steps of
(a) locating a detector at each of said stations for detecting the presence of a person when said person is within a predetermined distance from said detector by directing two signals of different velocities towards said person and measuring the time difference between the receipts of said signals by said person and comparing said difference with a predetermined value; - and
(b) developing and transmitting to said detector information identifying said person - View Dependent Claims (13, 14)
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15. An identity and hand-wash status badge to be displayed on healthcare personnel, said badge comprising
(a) a display member; -
(b) a remotely actuatable visual hand-wash status indicator on said display member; (c) a timing device for holding said indicator “
on”
for a first predetermined time period after being turned “
on” and
then turning said indicator “
off”
when said time period expires; and(d) said timing device being remotely actuatable to enable it to selectively hold said indicator “
on”
for a shorter length of time than said first time period - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A healthcare facility personnel locator and monitor system comprising;
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(a) a plurality of monitor units, each mounted on or near one of a plurality of patient support structures in said facility; (b) a plurality of tags for carrying by personnel present in said facility, each of said tags being responsive to wireless signals from one of said monitor units to transmit identification signals identifying one of said personnel associated with said tag, (c) each of said monitor units having equipment for sending ranging signals to said tags, (d) a further device responsive to said ranging signals for determining whether the distance of each tag from said monitor unit is within a pre-determined distance; (e) said monitor equipment being adapted to receive said identification signals from one of said tags which is determined to be within said predetermined distance from said monitor unit, and for transmitting a corresponding identification signal to another device for storage together with the time of detection. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33)
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32. A method of controlling an indicator on a tag worn by a healthcare worker in a health care facility,
activating said indicator for a given time period after the completing of a hand washing procedure by the wearer of said tag, and de-activating said indicator whenever said wearer of said tag leaves the near vicinity of a patient in said facility.
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34. A healthcare facility personnel locator and monitor system comprising;
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(a) a plurality of monitor units, each mounted on or near one of a plurality of stations in said facility; (b) a plurality of tags each carried by one of the personnel present in said facility, each of said tags being responsive to wireless signals from one of said monitor units to transmit identification signals identifying one of said personnel associated with said tag, (c) each of said monitor units having equipment for sending interrogation signals to said tags, (d) a motion detector responsive to the detection of the motion of a person adjacent said station; (e) said monitor equipment being adapted to receive said identification signals from one of said tags which is determined to be within the range of said motion detector, and for transmitting a corresponding identification signal to another device for storage together with the time of detection. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36)
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Specification