APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MONITORING OF A BODY FUNCTION AND/OR A BODY PROPERTY

• US 20150257646A1
• Filed: 11/01/2013
• Published: 09/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sanofi-Aventis Deutschland GmbH (Sanofi )
• Original Assignee: Sanofi-Aventis Deutschland GmbH (Sanofi )
• Inventors: Groeschke, Jasmin, Spengler, Jan-Peter, Bender, Marc, Riederer, Heinz
• Granted Patent: US 9,642,530 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0002 Remote monitoring of patients using telemetry, e.g. transmission of vital signals via a communication network A61B5/07 takes precedence; transmission systems for measured values G08C; transmission H04B; transmission of digital information H04L; wireless communication networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0022 Monitoring a patient using a global network, e.g. telephone networks, internet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/024 Detecting, measuring or recording pulse rate or heart rate A61B5/0205, A61B5/021 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1112 Global tracking of patients, e.g. by using GPS
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1113 Local tracking of patients, e.g. in a hospital or private home
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1117 Fall detection
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14532 for measuring glucose, e.g. by tissue impedance measurement
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/18 for vehicle drivers or machine operators
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/746 Alarms related to a physiological condition, e.g. details of setting alarm thresholds or avoiding false alarms alarms per se G08B
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/747 in case of emergency, i.e. alerting emergency services
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/749 Voice-controlled interfaces

Abstract

The invention relates to an apparatus for monitoring of a body function and/or a body property of a patient having a sensor which determines measurement values with regard to the body function and/or the body property, a unit for detecting a critical condition of the respective body function and/or body property based on the measurement values, a unit for providing alert information to the patient in case a critical condition is detected, preferably optically and/or acoustically, an acknowledgement unit for acknowledging the critical condition and a transmitter for transmitting information with regard to the corresponding body function and/or body property, for example an emergency signal and/or a position information, wherein the transmitter is only activatable in the case, in which after a predefined time period from the detection of the critical condition the acknowledgement unit has not been operated.

Claims

1-15. -15. (canceled)

16. An apparatus for monitoring of a body function and/or a body property of a patient comprising a sensor which determines measurement values with regard to the body function and/or the body property, a unit for detecting a critical condition of the respective body function and/or body property based on the measurement values, a unit for providing alert information to the patient in case a critical condition is detected, preferably optically and/or acoustically, an acknowledgement unit for acknowledging the critical condition and a transmitter for transmitting information with regard to the corresponding body function and/or body property, for example an emergency signal and/or a position information, wherein the transmitter is only activatable in the case, in which after a predefined time period from the detection of the critical condition the acknowledgement unit has not been operated.

17. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the unit for detecting a critical condition is operable in such a way that a measurement value recorded by the sensor is compared with at least one threshold value and/or is analyzed whether the measurement value lies within an allowed or forbidden measurement range, for example a predefined geographical position or area, and for the measurement value it is then decided whether there is a critical condition or not dependent on the result of the comparison or analysis.

18. The apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the at least one threshold value, the allowed measurement range or the forbidden measurement range is presettable by the patient or the HCP.

19. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the transmitter comprises a transmitter for the public mobile phone network, if necessary for the satellite network, and/or a transmitter for the conventional telephone network.

20. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the transmitter is operable to communicate with a vehicle, preferably the vehicle in which the patient is currently located, and/or mobile phone and/or telephone network, particularly via the conventional telephone network and/or the public mobile phone network.

21. The apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the information transmitted to the vehicle comprises a stop-instruction for the control apparatus of the vehicle or an indication and/or request for the driver to make the driver stop the vehicle.

22. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the time period is presettable by the patient and/or the HCP.

23. The apparatus according to claim 16, wherein the acknowledgement unit comprises a push-button and/or a plurality of keys and/or a microphone, preferably additionally a speech analysis unit and/or a voice recognition unit, each arranged such that the speech analysis unit and/or voice recognition unit analyzes the sound signal received by the microphone.

24. A system comprising an apparatus for monitoring of a body function and/or a body property of a patient according to claim 16 and a control apparatus for a vehicle with a driver, wherein in case the control apparatus receives a stop-instruction or an indication or request to make the driver stop the vehicle from the transmitter of the apparatus for monitoring, which is preferably located within the vehicle, the control apparatus is operable to initiate the stop of the vehicle or to initiate displaying of the corresponding indication or request to the driver of the vehicle and/or to initiate another secure mode of the vehicle like starting the operation of hazard flashes.

25. A method for monitoring of a body function and/or a body property of a patient comprising the following steps:

determining measurement values with regard to the body function and/or the body property,

detecting a critical condition of the respective body function and/or body property based on the measurement values,

providing an alert information to the patient in case a critical condition is detected, preferably optically and/or acoustically,

transmitting information with regard to the corresponding body function and/or body property, for example an emergency signal and/or a position information, only in the case, in which after a predefined time period from the detection of the critical condition of the body function and/or body property an acknowledgement of the critical condition has not been detected, wherein the information preferably comprises a stop-instruction for a control apparatus of a vehicle or an indication and/or request for a driver of the vehicle to make the driver stop the vehicle.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein a determined measurement value is compared with at least one threshold value and/or it is analyzed whether the measurement value lies within an allowed or forbidden measurement range, for example a predefined geographical position or area, and for the measurement value it is then decided whether there is a critical condition or not dependent on the result of the comparison or analysis.

27. The method according to claim 25, wherein the information is transmitted via the public mobile phone network, if necessary via the satellite network, and/or a via the conventional telephone network.

28. The method according to claim 25, wherein the information is transmitted to a vehicle, preferably the vehicle in which the patient is currently located, and/or to a mobile phone and/or to a telephone network, particularly via the conventional telephone network and/or public mobile phone network.

29. The method according to claim 25, wherein the patient or the HCP presets the time period, the threshold value and/or the allowed or forbidden measurement range in advance.

30. The method according to claim 25, wherein for the detection of acknowledgement sound signals are recorded, preferably by a microphone, wherein preferably additionally a speech analysis of the received sound and/or a voice recognition of the received sound signal is conducted.