In-residence monitoring system incorporating voice output

• US 7,511,623 B2
• Filed: 09/14/2005
• Issued: 03/31/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Original Assignee: Honeywell International Inc.
• Inventors: Tice, Lee D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Trieu; Van T.
• Application Number:
  US11/226,550
• Publication Number:
  US 20070083089A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,294 Days
• Field of Search: 340/573.1, 340/539.1, 340/539.11, 340/539.12, 340/539.16, 340/539.17, 340/286.07, 600/300, 600/485, 128/903, 128/904, 128/897, 128/905, 715/740, 715/744, 607/3
• US Class Current: 340/573.1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0205 Simultaneously evaluating both cardiovascular conditions and different types of body conditions, e.g. heart and respiratory condition
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02055 Simultaneously evaluating both cardiovascular condition and temperature
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 80/00 ICT specially adapted for facilitating communication between medical practitioners or patients, e.g. for collaborative diagnosis, therapy or health monitoring

Abstract

A system for monitoring health related parameters of an individual can determine the existence of one or more health related conditions that may need attention. Verbal messages, responsive to the determined condition, can be automatically transmitted via one or more communications networks to displaced recipients.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

at least one physiological sensor;

control circuitry connected to the sensor, the control circuitry including condition determining software; and

at least two communication links between the control circuitry and at least two displaced locations, one of the at least two communication links is coupled to a remote monitoring station, the other couplable to a message receiving and transmitting device;

wherein, responsive to information from the sensor, the control circuitry forwards at least an automatically generated verbal, condition identifying, message to the device via one link and a separate non-verbal, condition identifying, message to the monitoring station via the other communication link, and

responsive to feedback from the device, the control circuitry automatically generates at least an additional treatment specifying verbal message and forwards the treatment specifying verbal message to the device.

2. An apparatus as in claim 1 where the software forwards a plurality of verbal messages sequentially to the device.

3. An apparatus as in claim 1 which includes software that generates local condition identifying indicia.

4. An apparatus as in claim 1 where the software communicates with the at least two displaced locations, at least in part, via a computer network of the at least two communication links.

5. An apparatus as in claim 1 where the at least two communications links are bi-directional.

6. An apparatus as in claim 5 which includes circuitry for establishing the links via one of an internet, or, an intranet.

7. An apparatus as in claim 1 which includes additional software to establish the identity of a potential recipient prior to forwarding one of the messages.

8. An apparatus as in claim 1 which includes verbal message generation circuitry.

9. A monitoring system comprising:

at least one sensor for monitoring a physical parameter of a person and a circuit for transferring this sensor data to an interface device;

the interface device includes a processor with software that analyzes the sensor data to, at least in part, determine the health condition of the person, the processor includes software to automatically form at least a verbal message from pre-programmed message information, where the processor forms the message in response to the determined health condition of the person; and

at least two communication links between the device and at least two remote locations, where the interface device transmits the formed verbal message via one of the communication links, the message being transmitted to one of the at least two remote locations via one of the at least two communication links and responsive to feedback therefrom, automatically forms and transmits at least an additional verbal message and sends at least a non-verbal message to the other location.

10. A system as in claim 9 where the messages convey information verbally.

11. A system as in claim 10 where the communications links comprise at least one of an intranet or an internet.

12. A system as in claim 10 which includes software to transmit the verbal messages via the links.

13. A system as in claim 10 which includes software to transmit verbal messages bi-directionally via the links.

14. A monitoring system comprising:

at least one sensor for monitoring a physical parameter of a person and a circuit for transferring this sensor data to an interface device, the interface device includes software to analyze the sensor data to, at least in part, determine a health condition of the person, where the software, at least in part, forms messages in response to the determined health condition of the person, at least one of the formed messages being a verbal message, and

where the interface device transmits the formed messages to at least two displaced locations via at least two communication links, the verbal message is transmitted to at least one displaced location and responsive to feedback therefrom, the interface device transmits at least an additional verbal message to the one displaced location.

15. A system as in claim 14 where a language of messages can be selected from a group of different languages.

16. A system as in claim 14 where multiple messages can be formed and transmitted to differenta plurality of locations.

17. A system as in claim 14 where some of the messages incorporate instructions to be executed or carried out by another person receiving the respective message.

18. A system as in claim 14 where the messages comprise verbal messages.

19. A system as in claim 18 where the verbal messages incorporate a synthesized voice.

20. A system as in claim 19 where the synthesized verbal messages may be verbalized in one or more different languages.

21. A system as in claim 14 where the message is a text message.

22. A system as in claim 14 where the message is, at least in part, in digital format.

23. A system as in claim 14 where the message is, at least in part, a data message containing graphical information.

24. An apparatus comprising:

at least one sensor;

control circuitry connected to the sensor;

at least two communication links; and

at least two displaced locations wherein the control circuitry sends at least one verbal message to one of the displaced locations via one of the communication links, the control circuitry sends at least one non-verbal message to a second of the at least two displaced locations via a second of the at least two communication links, and responsive to feedback from the one displaced location, the control circuitry sends at least one patient treatment verbal message to the one displaced location.

25. A method of monitoring the health of an individual, comprising:

sensing physiological data from the individual;

creating a verbal message and a non-verbal message from the sensed data;

sending the verbal message to one displaced location via one communication link;

sending the non-verbal message to a second displaced location via a second communication link, and

responsive to feedback from the one displaced location, sending at least a patient treatment verbal message to the one displaced location.