Systems, methods, and apparatus for medical device interface connectivity

• US 8,225,015 B2
• Filed: 06/15/2009
• Issued: 07/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/2009
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Gao-Saari, Lan, Raatikainen, Marko, Vanhanen, Ilkka, Lindroos, Jyrki, Pärnänen, Juha
• Primary Examiner(s): TSENG, CHENG YUAN
• Application Number:
  US12/484,868
• Publication Number:
  US 20100318699A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,128 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 710/64
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/102 where the programme performs an interfacing function, e.g. device driver G06F13/105 takes precedence; scheduling within device drivers G06F9/52; contention policies within device drivers G06F9/4881
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/385 for adaptation of a particular data processing system to different peripheral devices
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/40 for the management of medical equipment or devices, e.g. scheduling maintenance or upgrades

Abstract

Certain examples provide systems, apparatus, and methods for adaptive, dynamic medical device connectivity. In an example, a medical device interface system includes a device interface connecting a medical device to a client system and enabling exchange of data between the medical device and the client system, the device interface includes a plug and play detector detecting a connection of the medical device to the device interface and a serial agent gathering information from the medical device via a connection between the medical device and the device interface and selecting an appropriate device driver to operate and interact with the medical device connected to the device interface regardless of a presence or absence of an existing plug and play capability of the medical device.

Claims

1. A medical device interface system comprising:

a device interface to connect a medical device to a client system and to enable exchange of data between the medical device and the client system, the device interface comprising;

a plug and play detector to detect a connection of the medical device to the device interface; and

a serial agent, including;

a processor, to gather information from the medical device via a connection between the medical device and the device interface and to select an appropriate device driver to operate and interact with the medical device connected to the device interface regardless of a presence or absence of an existing plug and play capability of the medical device, the serial agent to operate with the plug and play detector to execute a plug and play program sequence with the medical device when the medical device is a plug and play medical device, and to transform the medical device into a plug and play medical device via a non-plug and play program sequence when the medical device is a non-plug and play medical device using a common device driver configured to be used for both plug and play and non plug and play medical devices, the client system including a message and data exchange service to communicate with the medical device via the device interface;

a core, said core comprising;

a common service layer;

a network server to communicate with the client system over a data communication interface;

an interface eXtensible Markup Language (iXML) engine to parse inbound iXML messages and to build outbound iXML messages; and

a driver engine to manage a plurality of medical device drivers and to form a pool of threads for device driver execution;

one or more device driver threads; and

one or more adapters.

2. The interface system of claim 1, further comprising the medical device having a unique identifier facilitating identification and communication with the client system via the device interface.

3. The interface system of claim 1, wherein the iXML engine comprises a session manager and an XML generator and wherein the driver engine comprises:

a driver manager to transmit a device update to a USB detector;

a driver storage; and

a connection detector.

4. The interface system of claim 3, wherein the connector detector comprises a universal serial bus (USB) detector to generate a class holding at least one USB information object in response to receiving the device update from the driver manager.

5. The interface system of claim 1, where the device interface is to transform a USB connecting device into a plug and play connectivity device communicating with the client system via the serial agent.

6. The interface system of claim 1, wherein the device interface is to convert between a universal serial bus (USB) data communication protocol and an RS-232 data communication protocol.

7. A machine-implemented method for interfacing between a medical device and a clinical information system, said method comprising:

detecting, using a device interface having a serial agent, a presence of a medical device on a network including a clinical information system, the serial agent including;

a core, said core comprising;

a common service layer;

a network server to communicate with the clinical information system over a data communication interface;

an interface eXtensible Markup Language (iXML) engine to parse inbound iXML messages and to build outbound iXML messages; and

a driver engine to manage a plurality of medical device drivers and to form a pool of threads for device driver execution;

one or more device driver threads; and

one or more adapters;

gathering information from the medical device connected to the device interface;

searching a device driver repository at the device interface for an object and one or more associated device drivers to represent the medical device;

registering the medical device with the clinical information system using the object; and

interacting with the medical device using the one or more associated device drivers to communicate between the medical device and the clinical information system, wherein interacting comprises executing a plug and play program sequence with the medical device when the medical device is a plug and play medical device and transforming the medical device into a plug and play medical device via a non-plug and play program sequence when the medical device is a non-plug and play medical device using a common device driver configured to be used for both plug and play and non plug and play medical devices, the clinical information system including a message and data exchange service to communicate with the medical device via the device interface.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising retrieving a medical device identifier stored at the medical device and creating a unique identifier for the medical device to facilitate communication between the medical device and the clinical information system via the device interface.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the iXML engine comprises a session manager and an XML generator and wherein the driver engine comprises a driver manager, a driver storage, and a connection detector.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the connector detector comprises a universal serial bus (USB) detector.

11. The method of claim 7, where the device interface transforms a USB connecting device associated with the medical device into a plug and play connectivity device communicating with the clinical information system via the serial agent.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the device interface converts between a universal serial bus (USB) data communication protocol and an RS-232 data communication protocol.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein the device interface exchanges messages with the clinical information system via interface eXtensible Markup Language (iXML).

14. An article of manufacture comprising:

a computer readable storage medium; and

executable program instructions embodied in the computer readable storage medium that when executed by a programmable system cause the programmable system to implement a medical device interface system comprising;

a device interface routine connecting a medical device to a client system and enabling exchange of data between the medical device and the client system, the client system including a message and data exchange service to communicate with the medical device via the device interface, the device interface routine comprising;

a plug and play detector detecting a connection of the medical device to the device interface; and

a serial agent gathering information from the medical device via a connection between the medical device and the device interface and selecting an appropriate device driver to operate and interact with the medical device connected to the device interface regardless of a presence or absence of an existing plug and play capability of the medical device, the serial agent operating with the plug and play detector to execute a plug and play program sequence with the medical device when the medical device is a plug and play medical device, and to transform the medical device into a plug and play medical device via a non-plug and play program sequence when the medical device is a non-plug and play medical device using a common device driver configured to be used for both plug and play and non plug and play medical devices, the serial agent including;

a core, said core comprising;

a common service layer;

a network server to communicate with the clinical information system over a data communication interface;

an interface eXtensible Markup Language (iXML) engine to parse inbound iXML messages and to build outbound iXML messages; and

a driver engine to manage a plurality of medical device drivers and to form a pool of threads for device driver execution;

one or more device driver threads; and

one or more adapters.