CONTINUOUS, NON-INVASIVE, OPTICAL BLOOD PRESSURE MONITORING SYSTEM

• US 20110178415A1
• Filed: 01/18/2011
• Published: 07/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Donna Baldwin, Matthew James Baldwin
• Original Assignee: Donna Baldwin, Matthew James Baldwin
• Inventors: Baldwin, Donna, Baldwin, Matthew James
• Granted Patent: US 9,357,933 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/485
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0059 using light, e.g. diagnosis by transillumination, diascopy, fluorescence A61B5/0093, A61B5/1455, A61B5/02416 and A61B5/0261 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/021 Measuring pressure in heart or blood vessels A61B5/0205 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/024 Detecting, measuring or recording pulse rate or heart rate A61B5/0205, A61B5/021 take precedence

Abstract

The invention comprises a system of wearable devices that collectively allow for the continuous, non-invasive, measurement and monitoring of blood pressure, without the use of an inflatable cuff. The system incorporates: 1) An optical module, which is comprised of a coherent source of light, a semi-transparent hologram, microscope optics for viewing the interference pattern developed between the illuminated hologram and arterial blood, a spatial light modulator (SLM), and processing electronics with Bluetooth capability that facilitates digitization and wireless transmission of the fringe pattern to, 2) a personal digital assistant (PDA) that is worn on a waist belt. The PDA and associated software allow for continuous calculation and monitoring of real-time arterial blood pressure from the digitized fringe patterns received. The system further comprises 3) a personal computer (PC) with wireless capacity and connection to the internet. Continuous BP function, alerts, condition and medical assessment is conducted through PDA-PC communications with internet based medical facility.

Claims

1. A device for the non-invasive measurement and monitoring of a patient'"'"'s blood pressure parameters comprising:

a wearable system of components configured to be worn on a patient;

a first optical module comprising an optical source of coherent light and comprised by the wearable system that provides visible light to a second optical module;

a bidirectional optical connection, comprised by the wearable system, and used to couple light between the first optical module and the second optical module;

a second optical module operating to view arterial blood and comprised by the wearable system, the second optical module comprising microscope optics configured to be worn proximal to the patients skin and produce time dependent optical information from blood pressure variation when illuminated with coherent light from the first optical module;

a CCD module, comprised by the wearable system, and used to transform the time dependent interferometric optical information from the first optical module into a digital format;

a processing module, comprised by the wearable system and configured to receive the set of time dependent interferometric optical information in a digital format and compare it to a mathematical theory to calculate blood pressure parameters.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the Reference Calibration Hologram is configured to produced a visible time dependent holographic interference field due to time dependent variation in a patient'"'"'s blood plasma, where the Blood density and refractive index variation produce a resultant fringe pattern from the variation in optical amplitude and phase.