Heart and breathing alarm monitor
First Claim
1. An alarm device for detecting abnormal heartbeat and respiration of a person resting on a mattress in a bed, comprisingmeans for detecting vertical movements of the upper surface of the mattress at a location on said mattress remote from said person, said mattress movements occurring at sub-sonic frequencies and being caused by movements of the person'"'"'s body which result from the heartbeat and respiration of the person, said detecting means comprising mechanical/electrical transducer means adapted to rest under the influence of gravity on and in contact with said upper surface for converting said movements of said upper surface to an electrical signal having a frequency dependent upon the heart rate of the person and an envelope dependent upon said respiration;
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Accused Products
Abstract
A device for sensing heart and breathing rates in a single transducer and having electronic and filtering circuits to process the electrical signal generated by the transducer. The transducer is an electromagnetic sensor constructed to enhance sensitivity in the vertical direction of vibration produced on a conventional bed by the action of patient'"'"'s heart beat and breathing functions and achieves sufficient sensitivity with no physical coupling between the patient resting in bed and the sensor placed on the bed away from the patient. The electronic circuits integrates the electrical energy generated by the sensor that pertains to cardiac and breathing information and sets off an alarm when pre-set circuits of these functions have been surpassed. The device has applications in monitoring SID Syndrome and non-ambulatory patients.
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Citations
5 Claims
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1. An alarm device for detecting abnormal heartbeat and respiration of a person resting on a mattress in a bed, comprising
means for detecting vertical movements of the upper surface of the mattress at a location on said mattress remote from said person, said mattress movements occurring at sub-sonic frequencies and being caused by movements of the person'"'"'s body which result from the heartbeat and respiration of the person, said detecting means comprising mechanical/electrical transducer means adapted to rest under the influence of gravity on and in contact with said upper surface for converting said movements of said upper surface to an electrical signal having a frequency dependent upon the heart rate of the person and an envelope dependent upon said respiration; - and
means responsive to said electrical signal for indicating when said heart rate and/or said respiration is outside of a preselected "normal" range whereby the alarm can be placed on top of a mattress supporting a person to pick up vertical vibrations of the mattress due to the person'"'"'s heart and respiratory motions and issue an alarm if the person'"'"'s heart and/or respiration rate is outside of a preselected range. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
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5. The method of detecting abnormal heart rate and respiration of a patient resting on a mattress in a bed, comprising the steps of placing a transducer on and in contact with the upper surface of the mattress at a location spaced away from the patient,
detecting vertical movements of the upper surface of the mattress at said location, said mattress movements occurring at sub-sonic frequencies and being caused by movements of the patient'"'"'s body resulting from the heart rate and respiration of the patient, by using the transducer to generate an electrical signal having a frequency dependent upon the heart rate and an envelope dependent upon respiration, and providing an alarm when said electrical signal indicates that the heart rate and/or respiration is outside of a preselected normal range.
Specification