Contactless communication system

• US 5,917,429 A
• Filed: 03/11/1996
• Issued: 06/29/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/1992
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Aprex Corporation
• Original Assignee: Aprex Corporation
• Inventors: Papanek, Tom, Ingram, Darrell, Otis, Alton B. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Horabik, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): Edwards, Jr., Timothy
• Application Number:
  US08/613,279
• Time in Patent Office: 1,205 Days
• Field of Search: 340/309.15, 340/573, 340/870.31, 340/309.3, 340/309.4, 340/825.19, 340/540, 340/568.1, 340/870.32, 221/2-15, 368/10
• US Class Current: 340/870.31
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/0418 with electronic history memory
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/0436 resulting from removing a drug from, or opening, a container
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/0481 working on a schedule basis
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/6054 Magnetic identification systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/142 Pressure infusion, e.g. using pumps

Abstract

Digital data are communicated between a portable data-gathering unit and a data-receiving unit without direct electrical connection by transmitting the data over a contactless connection system. In a preferred embodiment, data flow is bidirectional.

Claims

1. A contactless digital data communication system for use with a patient operated medication package comprising:

a portable data-gathering unit for collecting, storing and transmitting digital data related to the occurrence of medication-taking events, wherein said portable data-gathering unit is physically integrated within the patient operated medication package; and

a data-receiving unit comprising

means for effecting contactless digital data communication between said data-gathering unit and said data-receiving unit;

the data-gathering unit comprising

a first housing having a first surface, said first surface having a first contour,

means for collecting digital data related to the occurrence of medication-taking events and the times of said events,

a memory for storing the collected digital data,

means for retrieving the collected digital data from the memory and generating from the retrieved data a first electrical signal,

a first inductor, located within said first housing adjacent to said first surface and connected to the means for retrieving, said first inductor converting the first electrical signal into a first electromagnetic signal; and

the data-retrieving unit comprising

a second housing having a second surface,

said second surface having a second contour, the first and second contours being matched to permit the first and second surfaces to substantially couple when the data-gathering unit is positioned upon the data-receiving unit with the first surface in contact with the second surface,

a second inductor located within said second housing adjacent to said second surface and positioned for sensing the first electromagnetic signal when the data-gathering unit is positioned in operative proximity upon the data-receiving unit, said second inductor converting the sensed first electromagnetic signal into a second electrical signal,

means for converting the second electrical signal into first received digital data, and

means for using the first received digital data so received to apprise said occurrence of medication-taking events.

2. The contactless digital data communication system of claim 1 wherein the first and second surfaces are substantially flat.

3. The contactless digital data communication system of claim 1 wherein at least one of the inductors is selected from a ferrite core inductor, a printed circuit inductor, a printed flex-circuit inductor and a core-less wire coil.

4. The contactless digital data communication system of claim 1 configured for bidirectional communication between the data-gathering unit and the data-receiving unit, the data-receiving unit further comprising

means for feeding a third electrical signal to the second inductor for generating a second electromagnetic signal in the second inductor, said second electromagnetic signal being sensible by said first inductor when the data-gathering unit and data-receiving units are in operative proximity to one another, so that the first inductor converts said second electromagnetic signal into a fourth electrical signal;

the data-gathering unit further comprising means for using the fourth electrical signal.

5. The bidirectional contactless digital data communication system of claim 4 wherein the data-gathering unit includes a clock for providing time information concerning the times of occurrence of medication events and wherein said collected digital data comprises this time information.

6. The bidirectional contactless digital data communication system of claim 4 wherein the data-receiving unit uses the received digital data as a record of the occurrence of medication-taking events.

7. The contactless digital data communication system of claim 4

the data-receiving unit further comprising

a source of digital information and

means for generating from said digital information the third electrical signal, and

in the data-gathering unit the means for using the fourth electrical signal further comprising

means for converting the fourth electrical signal into received digital information and means for using the received digital information.

8. The contactless digital data communication system of claim 7 wherein the means for using the received digital information comprises means for storing the received digital information.

9. The contactless digital data communication system of claim 7 wherein the data-gathering unit further comprises means for processing the collected digital data and means for controlling the means for processing with said received digital information.

10. A bidirectional contactless medication event monitoring system comprising:

a portable medication event data-gathering unit physically integrated into a lid portion of a patient operated medicine container, said medicine container being constructed to hold medication consisting of pills, capsules or tablets, and

a data-receiving unit, wherein data relating to medication taking events is communicated between said portable medication event data-gathering unit in the lid portion of the medication container and said data-receiving unit,

the portable medication event data-gathering unit comprising

means for collecting digital data concerning the occurrence of medication-taking events,

a memory for storing the collected digital data,

means for retrieving the collected digital data from the memory,

means for generating from the retrieved data a first electrical signal, and

means for converting said first electrical signal into a first contactlessly-communicatable signal;

the data-receiving unit comprising

means for receiving said first contactlessly-communicatable signal,

means for converting the received first contactlessly-communicatable signal into a second electrical signal,

means for converting the second electrical signal into first received digital data, and

means for using the first received digital data to apprise the occurrence of said mediation-taking events;

the data-receiving unit further comprising

a source of digital information,

means for generating from said digital information a third electrical signal, and

means for converting said third electrical signal into a second contactlessly-communicatable signal; and

the data-receiving unit further comprising

means for receiving said second contactlessly-communicatable signal,

means for converting the received second contactlessly-communicatable signal into a fourth electrical signal,

means for converting the fourth electrical signal into received digital information, and

means for using the received digital information.

11. The bidirectional contactless medication event monitoring system of claim 10,

wherein the data-receiving unit additionally comprises

a power transmitting coil, and

means for generating a data-gathering unit-powering amount of power in said power transmitting coil;

and

wherein the data-gathering unit additionally comprises

a first power supply for powering the means for collecting digital data, and

a second power supply for powering the means for generating the first electrical signal, said second power supply itself comprising

a power receiving coil for receiving the data-gathering unit-powering amount of power from the power transmission coil when the data-gathering unit is in operative proximity to the data-receiving unit.

12. The bidirectional contactless medication event monitoring system of claim 10, wherein the data-gathering unit comprises means for operating in a power conservation, data gathering mode and an active communications mode.

13. The bidirectional contactless medication event monitoring system of claim 12, wherein the data-gathering unit further includes means for monitoring the fourth electric signal, means for noting the occurrence of a stream of signals therein, and means for switching the data-gathering unit from its power conservation, data gathering mode of operation to its active communications mode of operation when said stream of signals is noted.

14. The bidirectional contactless medication event monitoring system of claim 12, wherein the data-gathering unit includes timing means for switching the data-gathering unit from its power conservation, data-gathering mode of operation to its active communications mode of operation.

15. A method for contactless data communications between a medication event monitoring unit, housed within a patient operated medicine container, and a data-receiving unit, said medication event monitoring unit capable of generating and storing digital data related to the times at which medication events take place, and said data-receiving unit capable of recording the digital data collected by the medication event monitoring unit,

the medication event monitoring unit comprising:

a first housing having a first surface, said first surface having a first contour,

means for collecting digital data related to the occurrence of medication-taking events and the times of said events,

a memory for storing the collected digital data,

means for retrieving the collected digital data from the memory and generating from the retrieved data a first electrical signal,

a first inductor, located within said first housing adjacent to said first surface and connected to the means for retrieving, said first inductor converting the first electrical signal into a first electromagnetic signal, and

the data-receiving unit comprising

a second housing having a second surface,

said second surface having a second contour, the first and second contours being matched to permit the first and second surfaces to substantially couple when the data-gathering unit is positioned upon the data-receiving unit with the first surface in contact with the second surface,

a second inductor located within said second housing adjacent to said second surface and positioned for sensing the first electromagnetic signal when the data-gathering unit is positioned in operative proximity upon the data receiving unit, said second inductor converting the sensed first electromagnetic signal into a second electrical signal,

means for converting the second electrical signal into first received digital data, and

means for using the first received digital data so received to apprise said occurrence of medication-taking events,

said method including the steps of;

generating the digital data concerning the medication events and the time at which they occur,

storing said digital data in the memory in said medication event monitoring unit,

positioning a portion of said patient operated medicine container housing the medication event monitoring unit in operative proximity to the data-receiving unit,

retrieving the digital data from the memory and converting it into a first electromagnetic signal with the first inductor present in the medication event monitoring unit,

receiving this first electromagnetic signal with the second inductor located in the data-receiving unit, said first and second inductors positioned within their respective units are placed adjacent to one another the two inductors are in operative proximity to each other and the second inductor senses the first electromagnetic signal from the first inductor,

after the second inductor senses the first electromagnetic signal, converting the first electromagnetic signal into received digital data,

recording the received digital data in the data-receiving unit,

generating, in the data-receiving unit, digital information to be communicated to the medication event monitoring unit located in said patient operated medicine container,

converting the digital information to be communicated to the medication event monitoring unit into a second electromagnetic signal with the second inductor, sensing the second electromagnetic signal in the first inductor and converting it into received digital information, and

using the received digital information in the medication event monitoring unit.