NETWORK COMMUNICATION FOR PATIENT SUPPORT APPARATUSES

• US 20180154162A1
• Filed: 12/05/2017
• Published: 06/07/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/06/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Stryker Corporation
• Original Assignee: Stryker Corporation
• Inventors: Hayes, Michael Joseph
• Granted Patent: US 10,500,401 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37282 characterised by communication with experts in remote locations using a network
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0453 worn on the body to detect health condition by physiological monitoring, e.g. electrocardiogram, temperature, breathing detecting, measuring or recording for diagnostic purposes A61B5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0461 integrated or attached to an item closely associated with the person but not worn by the person, e.g. chair, walking stick, bed sensor
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/016 Personal emergency signalling and security systems emergency non-personal manually actuated alarm activators G08B25/12
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/08 using communication transmission lines G08B13/19658, G08B21/0286, G08B25/016 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72418 for supporting emergency services
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/10 Small scale networks; Flat hierarchical networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

Patient support apparatuses, such as beds, cots, stretchers, chairs, or the like, include wireless communication systems that are adapted to communicate with a non-local wireless receiver positioned outside of the healthcare facility and not associated with the healthcare facility. A computer positioned within the healthcare facility and coupled a local area network of the healthcare facility receives messages from the patient support apparatuses that have been forwarded by the non-local wireless receiver to the local area network. In some embodiments, the wireless receiver is local and positioned within the healthcare facility. In such instances, a second computer, such as a server, forwards a first subset of the patient support apparatus messages to a first computer via the local area network and a second subset of the patient support apparatus messages to a device remote from the healthcare facility. Patient support apparatuses that communicate using visible light are also disclosed.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a patient support apparatus positioned within a healthcare facility, the patient support apparatus including a wireless transmitter adapted to communicate with a wireless receiver positioned outside of the healthcare facility and not associated with the healthcare facility; and

a computer positioned within the healthcare facility and coupled to a local area network of the healthcare facility, the computer adapted to receive information from the patient support apparatus that has been transmitted to the wireless receiver and forwarded by the wireless receiver to the local area network.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the wireless receiver is coupled to a cell phone tower and in communication with the Internet.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the information is transmitted from the wireless receiver to the computer without passing through the local area network.

4. The system of claim 3 wherein the computer transmits at least a portion of the information over the local area network to a second computer.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the patient support apparatus is configured to send data to the wireless receiver via the wireless transmitter that is not forwarded to the computer, but instead is forwarded to another computer positioned outside of the healthcare facility.

6. The system of claim 5 wherein the another computer is an Internet-accessible server.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the data includes diagnostic information relating to a motor on the patient support apparatus.

8. The system of claim 1 wherein the wireless transmitter is an RF transmitter adapted to transmit in at least one of the following frequency bands:

28 Gigahertz, 37 Gigahertz, and 39 Gigahertz.

9. The system of claim 1 wherein the information includes at least one of the following:

a status of a brake of the patient support apparatus, a status of a siderail of the patient support apparatus, a weight of an occupant of the patient support apparatus, a height of a support surface of the patient support apparatus, and a state of an exit detection system of the patient support apparatus.

12. The communication system of claim 9 wherein the first subset of patient support apparatus data includes at least one of the following:

(a) a status of a brake of the patient support apparatus;

(b) a status of a siderail of the patient support apparatus;

(c) a weight of an occupant of the patient support apparatus;

(d) a height of a support surface of the patient support apparatus; and

(e) a state of an exit detection system of the patient support apparatus.

13. The communication system of claim 12 wherein the second subset of patient support apparatus data includes at least one of the following:

(a) a number of times a motor on the patient support apparatus has been operated;

(b) a current draw of a motor on the patient support apparatus;

(c) a temperature of a component on the patient support apparatus;

(d) an error signal from a component of the patient support apparatus;

(e) a position of an actuator of the patient support apparatus; and

(f) a software and/or hardware version of a component of the patient support apparatus.

10. In a healthcare facility comprising a local area network, a first computer coupled to the local area network, and at least one patient support apparatus having a wireless transmitter, a communication system comprising:

a wireless receiver located within the healthcare facility and adapted to receive a set of patient support apparatus data directly from the wireless transmitter of the patient support apparatus without the set of patient support apparatus data traveling through the local area network; and

a second computer communicatively coupled to the local area network, the wireless receiver, and a device remote from the healthcare facility, the second computer adapted to forward a first subset of the set of patient support apparatus data to the first computer via the local area network and to forward a second subset of the set of patient support apparatus data to the device remote from the healthcare facility.

11. The communication system of claim 10 further wherein the second computer is adapted to forward the second subset of patient support apparatus data to the device remote from the healthcare facility without forwarding the second subset of patient support apparatus data through the local area network.

14. The communication system of claim 10 wherein the device remote from the healthcare facility is a receiver coupled to a cell phone tower.

15. The communication system of claim 10 wherein the device remote from the healthcare facility is an Internet-accessible server.

16. The communication system of claim 15 wherein the second computer is adapted to send the second subset of patient support apparatus data to a receiver of a cell phone tower that forwards the second subset of patient support apparatus data to the Internet-accessible server.

17. The communication system of claim 10 wherein the first subset and the second subset of patient support apparatus data include some data common to both subsets.

18. The communication system of claim 10 wherein the wireless transmitter is an RF transmitter adapted to transmit in at least one of the following frequency bands:

28 Gigahertz, 37 Gigahertz, and 39 Gigahertz.

19. A patient support apparatus for use in a healthcare facility having a local area network with a wireless access point, a computer coupled to the local area network, and at least one network appliance adapted to communicate with both the local area network and a device remote from the healthcare facility, the patient support apparatus comprising:

a support surface adapted to support a patient thereon;

a wireless transmitter adapted to transmit data to the device remote from the healthcare facility or to the wireless access point, the data being forwarded to the computer; and

a controller adapted to control when the wireless transmitter transmits data to the device remote from the healthcare facility and when the wireless transmitter transmits data to the wireless access point.

20. The patient support apparatus of claim 19 further including a receiver in communication with the controller wherein the controller is adapted to transmit data to the wireless access point when the receiver detects a wireless signal from the wireless access point.

21. The patient support apparatus of claim 19 wherein the wireless transmitter is an RF transmitter adapted to transmit in at least one of the following frequency bands:

28 Gigahertz, 37 Gigahertz, and 39 Gigahertz.

22. The patient support apparatus of claim 19 wherein the device remote from the healthcare facility is a receiver coupled to a cell phone tower.

23. The patient support apparatus of claim 19 wherein the device remote from the healthcare facility is an Internet-accessible server.

24. The patient support apparatus of claim 19 further comprising a visible light emitter wherein the controller is further adapted to send the data to the remote device using visible light.