Electronic auscultation system for patient simulator

• US 6,220,866 B1
• Filed: 01/12/1999
• Issued: 04/24/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 01/15/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Medisim Limited
• Original Assignee: Eagle Simulation, Inc.
• Inventors: Tinker, Craig S., Amend, Greg J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cheng, Joe H.
• Application Number:
  US09/228,838
• Time in Patent Office: 833 Days
• Field of Search: 434/262, 434/265-267, 434/270, 434/307.R, 434/308, 434/318, 434/365, 434/396, 600/408, 600/440, 600/443, 600/528, 600/586, 381/67, 381/71.6, 381/71.7, 381/71.13, 381/72, 327/141, 327/297, 335/206, 341/20
• US Class Current: 434/266
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 23/28 for medicine

Abstract

An electronic auscultation system and method for simulating sounds arising from human organs for use in an anatomical simulation device including a patient simulating mannequin torso, a plurality of electro-magnetic transmitters having antenna coils positioned in predetermined locations relative to said torso beneath the torso surface and each transmitter being connected to one or more computer sound cards which, upon activation, generate signals from prerecorded sound data which generates the appropriate sounds of human organs based on the transmitter location. The system utilizes a simulated stethoscope that includes a receiver and/or sensing triggering devices so that the stethoscope can determine particular areas on the torso to define the appropriate sound generated such that the system knows where the stethoscope is.

Claims

1. A system for simulating sounds arising from human organs for use in an anatomical simulation device comprising:

a human patient mannequin torso;

a portable simulated stethoscope that includes a bell end piece;

a plurality of sensors forming a grid mounted in predetermined strategic locations within said human patient mannequin torso;

a computer including a sound board connected to said plurality of sensors;

a radio frequency transmitter including an antenna for transmitting RF signals connected to said computer;

said stethoscope including a RF receiver positioned in a location remote to said bell end piece for receiving RF signals sent by said radio frequency transmitter;

said sound board further having a sound card which generates RF signals from prerecorded sound files;

means mounted in said stethoscope attached to said receiver for generating audio sounds from the RF signals received by said receiver; and

each of said sensors connected to said computer representing a different location with respect to said human patient mannequin torso and said sound board including a plurality of different pre-recorded organ sounds which are correlated with the location of each of said sensors so that said sensor can detect the presence of said stethoscope bell end piece and said computer provides the appropriate RF signals representing the human organ sound from that location to be received by said stethoscope.

3. An electronic auscultation system as in claim 1 further including:

a plurality of RF transmitters having antenna coils positioned in a series of predetermined locations beneath the torso surface in areas where monitoring of anatomical sounds are desired, each of said RF transmitters being electrically connected to said computer sound card, each of said areas relative to the torso being capable of transmitting RF signals of different prerecorded sounds which represent a particular area in the human body where said RF transmitter is located based on the stethoscope bell antenna coil location.

2. An electronic auscultation system for simulating sounds arising from human organs for use in anatomical simulation comprising:

a patient simulating mannequin torso for simulating the upper torso of a human being;

at least one radio frequency (RF) transmitter having an antenna coil positioned in a predetermined location beneath said torso surface in an area of the torso where monitoring of anatomical sounds is desirable; and

a computer having a sound board and at least one computer sound card capable of generating audio signals from pre-recorded sound information connected to said RF transmitter;

a simulated stethoscope, said simulated stethoscope including a radio frequency receiver for receiving RF signals transmitted by said transmitter antenna coil, said stethoscope including a means for converting the RF signals into human audible sound waves within said stethoscope, said stethoscope including a bell end piece having a signal receiving antenna coil when the bell end piece is properly positioned with respect to the transmitter mounted in the torso.

4. A system for simulating human sounds that arise from specific human organs for use in anatomical simulation for teaching medical personnel medical procedures comprising:

a mannequin torso that simulates a human patient having at least the upper torso representation of a human being above the waist;

a regionally-located RF transmitter mounted within said mannequin torso;

means for providing location identifying devices disposed in predetermined positions near said regionally-located transmitter, said location identifying devices each including a switch;

a simulated stethoscope having an RF receiver and that includes a magnet for activating by proximity one of said location identifying switches; and

means for providing an appropriate sound file in the form of RF signals to be transmitted from said regionally-located transmitter to said stethoscope RF receiver with appropriate human organ sounds representing the particular body area where the stethoscope is located relative to said torso whereby several different locations in said torso can be utilized with said stethoscope with a different human organ sound being transmittable based on a particular area of the torso identified by a location identifying device to the stethoscope using a single transmitter.

5. A system for simulating sounds arising from human organs for use in anatomical simulation device using a simulated stethoscope and a human patient mannequin torso comprising:

a simulated stethoscope that includes a bell end piece;

a plurality of sensors forming a grid mounted in predetermined strategic locations within said human patient mannequin torso;

a computer including a sound board connected to said plurality of sensors;

a radio frequency transmitter including an antenna for transmitting RF signal s connected to said computer;

said stethoscope including a RF receiver for receiving RF signals sent by said transmitter;

means mounted in said stethoscope attached to said receiver for generating audio sounds from the RF signals received by said receiver; and

each of said sensors connected to said computer representing a different location with respect to said human patient mannequin torso and said sound board including a plurality of different pre-recorded organ sounds which are correlated with the location of each of said sensors so that said sensor can detect the presence of said stethoscope bell and said computer provides the appropriate RF signals representing the human organ sound from that location to be received by said stethoscope.