Infant cardiac and apnea home monitoring system

• US 6,764,451 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2001
• Issued: 07/20/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Teresa C. Holland
• Original Assignee: Mick C. Suskovich, Teresa C. Holland
• Inventors: Suskovich, Mick C., Holland, Teresa C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Getzow, Scott M.
• Application Number:
  US09/951,119
• Publication Number:
  US 20030055350A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,040 Days
• Field of Search: 600/483, 600/513
• US Class Current: 600/483
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0002 Remote monitoring of patients using telemetry, e.g. transmission of vital signals via a communication network A61B5/07 takes precedence; transmission systems for measured values G08C; transmission H04B; transmission of digital information H04L; wireless communication networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/024 Detecting, measuring or recording pulse rate or heart rate A61B5/0205, A61B5/021 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/113 occurring during breathing

Abstract

An infant cardiac and apnea home monitoring system, which provides audible, visual, and other auxiliary sensory alarms and also includes the ability to transmit an encrypted signal to an Emergency Message Retrieval Unit (EMRU), which in itself contains audible, visual, and touch sensory alarms.

The ability of the Personal Home Baby Monitor (PHBM) to identify when an infant'"'"'s heart or respiratory rate is not within the pre-set parameters will result in the activation of an alarm state Once the PHBM has entered an alarm state, the base unit will trigger all available alerts, including the simultaneous transmission of a low frequency enable and a high frequency modulated signal, from the base unit to the EMRU. The EMRU upon successfully decoding and validation of the signal will trigger its sensory alarms.

Claims

1. An alarm state manager system of the human body'"'"'s pulmonary and cardiac systems having cardiac and apnea detection means for carrying electrical impulses from a pair of monitoring sensors operatively connected to the human body, and having a base receiving means operatively connected to the monitoring sensors;

and having base analyzing means which analyzes variations of electrical impulse signals from the respective monitoring sensors and having an alarm state manager means for switching an alarm action means in response to the signals received by the base receiving means and analyzed by the base analyzing means;

Base audio warning means for sounding an audio alarm;

Base visual warning means for illuminating visual alarm;

Alarm action means being comprised of signal warning transmit means, base audio warning means, and base visual warning means;

EMRU enable receiving means for receiving an enable signal transmitted by signal warning transmit means;

EMRU modulated receiving means for receiving a modulated carrier signal containing a binary code;

EMRU signal register means for holding short-term data in memory;

EMRU signal demodulator means which demodulates the carrier signal and stores short-term memory data in signal register means;

EMRU signal comparator means performing Boolean comparisons of demodulated data against binary code within EMRU;

EMRU audio warning means for sounding an audio alarm;

EMRU visual warning means for illuminating a visual alarm;

EMRU motion warning means for creating vibratory movement alarm;

EMRU alarm action means comprised of EMRU audio, visual, and motion warning means;

EMRU alarm state manager means for switching EMRU alarm action means in response to said EMRU signal comparator means when a matching binary code is detected.

2. The invention as set forth in claim 1 in a combination in which said cardiac and apnea detection means actuates the said base receiving means by receiving electrical impulses via conducting wires connected to the body.

3. The invention as set forth in claim 1 in a combination in which said base receiving means receives electrical impulses from the said cardiac and apnea detection means and actuates signals to said base analyzing means which detects if the received signals are within system parameters of the alarm state manager system.

4. The invention as set forth in claim 1 in a combination in which said base analyzing means has detected actuated signals exceeding preset parameters, this impulse actuated the enabling function of the EMRU.

5. The invention as set forth in claim 4 in a combination in which said alarm action means, which controls actuation of the EMRU and signal warning transmit means.

6. The invention as set forth in claim 5 in a combination in which, when said alarm state manager means actuates the modulation of a unique binary code into a carrier signal and transmits signal to the EMRU and actuates the invention as set forth in claim 1.

7. The invention as set forth in claim 6 in which said Emergency Message Retrieval Unit (EMRU) is comprised of said enable receiving means receiving enable signal from the said signal warning transmit means;

and said EMRU modulated receiving means to initiate receiving of carrier signal from said signal warning transmit means and EMRU signal register means for storing short-term memory data from EMRU signal demodulator means;

also including said EMRU signal comparator means for comparing data from EMRU signal demodulator means and binary code unique to the alarm state manager system;

said EMRU alarm state manager system means initiates switching when said comparator detects match, further actuating binary code match to said EMRU alarm action means, which will actuate and/or EMRU audio, visual, or vibratory warning means.