SYSTEM AND METHOD EMPLOYING VIDEO EQUIPMENT FOR REMOTE MONITORING OF BODY FUNCTION ACTIVITIES

• US 3,613,669 A
• Filed: 02/05/1969
• Issued: 10/19/1971
• Est. Priority Date: 02/05/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Martin E. Kienitz, Thomas H. Corbin
• Original Assignee: Martin E. Kienitz, Thomas H. Corbin
• Inventors: Corbin, Thomas H., Kienitz, Martin E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kamm, William E.
• Application Number:
  US04/796,732
• Time in Patent Office: 986 Days
• Field of Search: 128/2.05,2.06,2.15,2.1
• US Class Current: 600/525
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0006 ECG or EEG signals
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/339 Displays specially adapted therefor

Abstract

A plurality of body function activities such as cardiac conditions are monitored from a single remote station and electric signal representations of each activity so monitored are stored temporarily in an associated storage register such as a given related trace appearing in avisual display of several such traces. Scanning means, such as a television or vidicon camera scans the visual display of such signals and transmits them all to each of a number of additional viewing stations assigned to various locations remote from the scanning apparatus. At each scanning location, a portion of the visual display can be eliminated whereby only a given pertinent portion is displayed at that station.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring cardiac activity in patients confined at individual stations comprising means adapted to be associated with each patient for transducing manifestations of cardiac activity and to provide electric signal information representative of said activity for each patient, transient storage means for receiving and storing said signal information separately for each patient, means for reading out of said transient storage means said signal information for each of said patients while it is being received whereby to derive signals which include the stored information and the real time information, an output display for receiving and displaying said signals at each patient'"'"''"'"'s station and at a common monitoring station, and means serving to couple the readout means to transmit said signals to each of said stations whereby to display the stored and real time information simultaneously.

2. A system for monitoring cardiac activity of patients according to claim 1 wherein said storage means includes a visual display of said signals.

3. A system for monitoring body function activity of patients confined at individual stations comprising means adapted to be operably coupled to a patient for transducing manifestations of said activity and to provide electric signals representative of said activity for each patient, transient storage means, including a visual display of said signals, for receiving and displaying signal traces separately for each of said patients, display monitors disposed at said stations, and means for scanning the first named said visual display and for transmitting at least portions thereof to each of said display monitors.

4. A system for monitoring body function activity of patients according to claim 3 wherein said visual display includes means forming a single Visual display area common to a plurality of said signals.

5. A system for monitoring body function activities comprising means for transducing manifestations of said activities to provide electric signals representative of each said activity individually, transient storage means for simultaneously receiving and storing said signals respectively in individual active registers for a predetermined period of time sufficient to permit said body function activity to be monitored, means for reading out said registers while said electric signals are being received and stored to provide output signals which include stored and real time signals representative of said activity, display means for receiving said output signals and separately presenting said signals for said predetermined period of time and means serving to erase said storage registers.

6. A system for monitoring body function activities according to claim 5 wherein said means for erasing said storage registers serves conjointly to interrupt the output from said readout means.

7. A system for monitoring body function activities according to claim 5 wherein said storage means includes a storage oscilloscope screen of a type for retaining thereon in a visible state for the duration of said period those signals displayed during said period, said registers comprising separate signal traces derived from each said activity monitored, and wherein said erasing means serves to provide an erasing signal to said oscilloscope for a period sufficient to erase same while conjointly interrupting the output of said read-out means whereby transmission to said display means during the erasing interval will be discontinued.

8. A system for monitoring body function activities according to claim 5 further including means at each said display means coupled to operate an associated one of said display means for each patient and serving to restrict the display of said signals to those of a single one of said registers.

9. The method of monitoring a plurality of body function activities comprising the steps of detecting and converting manifestations of said activities into electric signal traces representative of each said activity, visibly displaying said signals for a predetermined period adapted to permit said body function activity to be monitored by visual inspection, maintaining in a visible state for the duration of said period those signals displayed during said period, scanning the displayed signals and transmitting same to a remote station, converting said transmitted signals to a visual representation thereof, and then erasing said signals displayed during said period and recommencing further display of said body function activity manifestations.

10. A system for monitoring one or more body function activities of one or more patients confined at individual locations comprising means for transducing manifestations of said activity for each patient to provide electrical signals representative of said activity;

transient storage means for receiving and separately storing the signals corresponding to said one or more activities for said one or more patients, means for reading out of said transient storage means said electrical signals as they are being received and stored whereby to derive output signals which include stored and real time information, and display means for receiving said output signals and forming a visual display of said output signals whereby said display includes a simultaneous display of stored and real time information.

11. A system as in claim 10 including means for selectively applying said signals to said display means whereby signals corresponding to one or more of said manifestations of activity are displayed.

12. The method of monitoring a plurality of body function activities comprising the steps of detecting and converting manifestations of said activities into electrical signals representative of each of said activities, temporarily storing said signals in a signal storage meanS for a predetermined period of time, reading said signals from said storage means while they are being stored to form an output signal including stored signals and real time signals and converting said output signal to a visual representation which presents a simultaneous display of stored information and real time information of the body function activity.