Intelligent stethoscope

• US 5,218,969 A
• Filed: 12/17/1990
• Issued: 06/15/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 02/04/1988
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Bloodline Technology
• Original Assignee: Bloodline Technology
• Inventors: Bredesen, Mark S., Schmerler, Elliott D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kamm, William E.
• Assistant Examiner(s): LACYK, JOHN P
• Application Number:
  US07/628,482
• Time in Patent Office: 911 Days
• Field of Search: 128/773, 128/695, 128/696, 128/700, 128/710, 128/715, 181/126, 181/130, 181/131, 381/67
• US Class Current: 600/523
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 7/003 Detecting lung or respiration noise
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 7/04 Electric stethoscopes microphones, acoustic transducers therefor H04R

Abstract

An intelligenet stethoscope for performing auscultation and for automatically diagnosing abnormalities based on body sounds is described in which the body sounds are received, digitized and stored in memory. The body sounds are recorded from a plurality of locations on the body, and all of the sounds are categorized according to specific characteristics to form a matrix of information. The generated matrix is then compared against a plurality of stored matrices using a technique similar to signature analysis. Each of the stored matrices contain information indicative of known abnormalities such as specific heart murmurs, lung abnormalities, etc. When a matrix match is found, the diagnosis is displayed on an LCD display formed in the body of the stethoscope. The LCD display is also capable of displaying a visual representation of the recorded body sounds. The present invention is applicable to heart sounds, lung sounds, and bruits. A wide variety of heart and lung abnormalities along with their signatures are described and the specific steps required for the signature analysis is described.

Claims

1. A stethoscope adapted to receive and display body sounds from a plurality of body locations, comprising:

a microphone adapted to receive said body sounds from said plurality of body locations, said microphone converting each of said body sounds into an electrical signal;

a memory operatively coupled to said microphone, said memory adapted to store at least one said electrical signal for each of said plurality of body locations;

location means operatively coupled to said memory for associating each said electrical signal with a corresponding one of said plurality of body locations;

a display operatively coupled to said memory and to said location means, said display receiving at least one said electrical signal for a selected one of said plurality of body locations and displaying a diagram representative of said selected one of said body locations and a visual representation of said body sounds for said selected one of said body locations; and

wherein said location means further includes a cursor on said diagram associating at least one said electrical signal with said selected one of said body locations on said diagram.

2. The stethoscope according to claim 1 wherein said diagram indicates a sternum and a plurality of increment positions near the sternum associated with each of said body locations and from which said selected one of said plurality of body locations can be identified.

3. A stethoscope adapted to receive and display body sounds from a plurality of body locations, comprising:

a microphone adapted to receive said body sounds from said plurality of body locations, said microphone converting each of said body sounds into an analog electrical signal;

an analog-to-digital convertor operatively coupled to said microphone, said analog-to-digital converter converting said analog electrical signal into a digital electrical signal;

a memory operatively coupled to said converter, said memory adapted to capture a time interval of said digital electrical signal and adapted to store at least one said digital electrical signal corresponding to said time interval representative of said body sounds for each of said plurality of body locations;

location means operatively coupled to said memory for associating each said digital electrical signal with a corresponding one of said plurality of body locations;

a display operatively coupled to said memory and to said location means, said display receiving said digital electrical signal for a selected one of said plurality of body locations and displaying a diagram representative of said selected one of said body locations and a visual representation of said digital electrical signal for said selected one of said body locations;

display control means connected to said memory and to said display for controlling and manipulating said visual representation of at least one said digital electrical signal on said display; and

wherein said location means further includes a cursor on said diagram associating at least one said digital electrical signal with said selected one of said body locations on said diagram.

4. The stethoscope according to claim 3 wherein said diagram indicates a sternum and a plurality of increment positions near the sternum associated with each of said body locations and from which said selected one of said plurality of body locations can be identified.

5. A stethoscope adapted to receive, store and display a body sound from each of a plurality of body locations, comprising:

a microphone;

input means attached to said microphone for receiving the body sound from each of the plurality of body locations and for converting each of the body sounds into an electrical signal;

memory means, operatively coupled to said input means, for storing said electrical signal for each of said plurality of body locations;

control means, operatively coupled to said memory means and to said input means, for associating each said electrical signal with a corresponding one of said plurality of body locations;

display means, operatively coupled to said memory means an d said control means, for displaying a visual representation of a selected one of said body sounds, and further including indicator means for indicating from which of said plurality of body locations said selected one of said body sounds was received.

6. The stethoscope according to claim 5 wherein said indicator means further includes:

a diagram means for displaying a graphical representation of at least a portion of a human body;

cursor means for indicating on said diagram means for which of said plurality of body locations said selected one of said body sounds was received.

7. The stethoscope according to claim 6 wherein said body sounds are heart sounds and said graphical representation of at least a portion of a human body is a sternum diagram.

8. The stethoscope according to claim 6 wherein said body sounds are lung sounds and said graphical representation of at least a portion of a human body is a lung diagram.

9. The stethoscope according to claim 5 further including display control means, operatively connected to said memory means and said display means, for controlling and manipulating said visual representation of said selected one of said body sounds being displayed on said display means.

10. The stethoscope according to claim 5 wherein a specific order of ausculation is followed, and wherein said indicator means is further for prompting a user from which of said plurality of body locations a next body sound in said specific order of ausculation should be received.

11. The stethoscope according to claim 6 wherein a specific order of ausculation is followed, and wherein said cursor means is further for pointing to one of said plurality of body locations on said diagram means, from which location a next body sound in said specific order of auscultation should be received.

12. The stethoscope according to claim 5 wherein said indicator means is further for being manipulated by a user to indicate from which of said plurality of body locations the user intends to next receive a body sound.

13. The stethoscope according to claim 6 wherein said cursor means is further for being manipulated by a user to point to one of said plurality of body locations on said diagram means to indicate from which of said plurality of body locations the user intends to next receive a body sound.

14. A stethoscope adapted to receive and display body sounds from a body locations, comprising:

a microphone adapted to receive said body sounds from said body location, said microphone converting each of said body sounds into an electrical signal;

a memory operatively coupled to said microphone, said memory adapted to store at least one said electrical signal for said body location; and

a display operatively coupled to said memory, said display receiving at least one said electrical signal for said body location and displaying a diagram representative of said body location and a visual representation of said body sounds for said body location; and

wherein said diagram further includes a cursor associating at least one said electrical signal with said body location on said diagram.