Medical machine for fluid treatment

• US 8,684,927 B2
• Filed: 04/27/2009
• Issued: 04/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/09/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gambro Lundia AB (Baxter International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Gambro Lundia AB (Baxter International Inc.)
• Inventors: Basaglia, Gianni
• Primary Examiner(s): Thomson, Bill
• Assistant Examiner(s): SORIANO, BOBBY GILES
• Application Number:
  US12/991,763
• Publication Number:
  US 20110066693A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,800 Days
• Field of Search: 600300-301, 705 2- 4, 34053912-53914
• US Class Current: 600/301
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/17 delivered via infusion or injection
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

A medical machine for fluid treatment comprises a module (400) for management and sending of signal messages containing information relating to means (3) for fluid treatment. The module (400) comprises means (401) for determining a form for sending a signal message which is selectable automatically or manually from among a plurality of predefined forms. The module further comprises means (403) for generating contents of the signal message which comprise information (404a, 404b, 404c, 404d) relating to means (3) for fluid treatment; the contents (412) are created by selecting, for example via touch buttons on a touch screen, from among a selectable plurality of types of predefined contents (404a, 404b, 404c, 404d) and associating the relative data (405a, 405b, 405c, 405d) to the selected type; the module further comprises means (406) for determining at least an addressee to whom to send the signal message.

Claims

1. A medical machine for extracorporeal blood treatment, comprising:

means for treatment of a fluid including;

a predetermined number of sensors for detecting functioning parameters of the medical machine, and

a predetermined number of actuators for intervening in order to modify the functioning parameters of the medical machine;

a control unit sending command signals to the actuators and receiving information from the sensors for setting and determining an operative configuration of the machine, the control unit being further configured to generate at least a local user interface;

a display for viewing the local user interface and for exhibiting at least a part of the information received from the control unit and relating to the means for fluid treatment;

a module for managing and sending signal messages containing information relating to the means for fluid treatment;

wherein the module comprises;

means for determining a sending format for sending a signal message;

means for generating contents of the signal message, the contents being determined by selection from among a plurality of types having predefined contents and comprising information relating to the means for fluid treatment;

means for determining at least an addressee to whom to send the signal message, and

wherein

the means for generating contents of the signal message are configured to complete the contents of the signal message with current data substantially at the moment when the signal message is sent.

2. The machine of claim 1, wherein the determination of the contents of the signal message is done by a manual selection between predefined types of contents.

3. The machine of claim 1, wherein at least a part of the predefined types of contents comprises one or more visual representations which can be viewed on the local user interface.

4. The machine of claim 1, wherein the means for generating contents of the signal message comprise a device for entering commands for enabling a selection of one or more of the predefined types of contents and wherein the device for entering commands comprises at least a touch screen associated to the display, the touch screen enabling a selection on the local user interface of the types of contents, by a user by touching or by proximity with one or more visual representations.

5. The machine of claim 1, wherein the plurality of types of contents comprises a type of content chosen in the group including at least a copy of the local user interface and a configuration file and diagnostic data of the medical machine.

6. The machine of claim 1, wherein the means for determining the sending format select the sending format either automatically or manually from among a plurality of predefined sending formats, the types of contents being different according to the sending format selected from among the plurality of predefined sending formats.

7. The machine of claim 1, wherein the local user interface comprises a graphic user interface comprising a visual representation for each type of predefined contents.

8. The machine of claim 1, further comprising means for configuring the module for sending the signal message, the means for configuring enabling a setting-up of a list of identifying addresses of addressees who can receive the signal message.

9. The machine of claim 8, wherein the list of identifying addresses is viewed on the local user interface.

10. The machine of claim 8, wherein the means for configuring the module enable one or more e-mail servers to be established for sending the signal message.

11. The machine of claim 8, wherein the means for configuring the module enable an editable common standard text to be set up to be included in a signal message.

12. The machine of claim 1, wherein the means for determining an addressee enable one or more addressees to be selected for the signal message, from a list of identifying addresses of addressees.

13. The machine of claim 1, wherein the plurality of sending formats for sending a signal message comprises at least an e-mail form and an SMS form.

14. The machine of claim 13, wherein when the means for determining a sending format select an e-mail form, the means for generating a content of the signal message predispose the contents in a form of one or more file enclosures with the e-mail.

15. The machine of claim 1, wherein the local user interface comprise a predetermined number of graphic elements each relating to a sending format for sending the signal message, the means for determining the sending format enabling a manual selection of one of the graphic elements for determining the sending format to be sent.

16. The machine of claim 1, wherein the local user interface comprise a plurality of visual representations each relating to a type of contents of the signal message, the means for generating contents enabling a manual selection of one or more of the visual representations for determining a typology of contents of the message.

17. The machine of claim 1, wherein the local user interface comprise a predetermined number of graphic representations each relating to an identifying address of an addressee or a group of identifying addresses of a group of addressees to whom to send the message.

18. The machine of claim 1 further comprising a web server operatively cooperating with the control unit and a predetermined number of web pages publishable by the web server, the web pages being accessible from a remote position via connecting means and being consultable via a web browser, at least a web page reproducing the local user interface.

19. The machine of claim 18, wherein at least a web page reproduces the local user interface shown on the display of the medical machine, the web pages further publishing a plurality of further data relating to the medical machine.

20. The machine of claim 18, wherein the web server is an internet web server which is consultable from a remote position by means of a web browser.

21. The machine of claim 18 comprising remote access and control means for enabling a reproduction on the web pages of the web server of the local user interface shown on the display.

22. The machine of claim 21, wherein the remote access and control means enable reproduction of the local user interface in the web pages, substantially in real-time.

23. The machine of claim 21, wherein the reproduction of the local user interface is updated at an each predetermined time interval or at each predetermined change in at least a parameter represented in the user interface.

24. The machine of claim 23, wherein the user interface is sub-divided into a plurality of regions and that the updating of the reproduction of the user interface includes the reproduction of each region of the user interface being updated at each predetermined change of at least a parameter shown in the region without updating regions where a change has not occurred.

25. The machine of claim 18, wherein the means for generating the contents of the signal message are activated remotely, by acting on the user interface which is accessible via the web pages published by the web server, the means for determining the sending format for sending a signal message being activated remotely by acting on the user interface, selecting respective graphic elements each associated to a respective sending format, the means for determining an addressee being activated remotely by acting on the user interface to select a graphic representation corresponding to an identifying address or a group of identifying addresses.

26. The machine of claim 1, wherein the means for generating contents of the signal message enable determining a type of contents by selection, the information present in the contents of the message being automatically inserted into the signal message by the control unit, simultaneously with selection of the type of contents.

27. The machine of claim 1 further comprising a system memory, at least the information included in the signal message being sent by the control unit to the system memory for a subsequent consultation.

29. The machine of claim 1, wherein the means for generating contents of the signal message are further configured to include one or more specially-sampled machine parameters in the contents of the signal message in addition to the current data.

28. A medical machine for extracorporeal blood treatment, comprising:

means for treatment of a fluid including;

a predetermined number of sensors for detecting functioning parameters of the medical machine, and

a predetermined number of actuators for intervening in order to modify the functioning parameters of the medical machine;

a control unit sending command signals to the actuators and/or receiving information from the sensors for setting and/or determining an operative configuration of the machine, the control unit being further destined to generate at least a local user interface;

a display for viewing the local user interface and for exhibiting at least a part of the information received from the control unit and relating to the means for fluid treatment;

a module for managing and sending signal messages containing information relating to the means for fluid treatment, wherein the module comprises;

means for determining a sending format for sending a signal message, the local user interface comprising a predetermined number of graphic elements each relating to the sending format for sending the signal message, the means for determining the form enabling a manual selection of one of the graphic elements for determining the form to be sent;

means for generating contents of the signal message, the contents being determined by selection from among a plurality of types having predefined contents and comprising information relating to the means for fluid treatment, the local user interface comprising a plurality of visual representations each relating to a type of contents of the signal message, the means for generating contents enabling a manual selection of one or more of the visual representations for determining a typology of contents of the message, the types of contents being different according to the sending format selected from among the plurality of predefined sending formats;

means for determining at least an addressee to whom to send the signal message enabling one or more addressees to be selected for the signal message, from a list of identifying addresses of addressees, the types of contents of the signal message being different according to the one or more addressees selected from the list of identifying addresses of addressees.

30. A medical machine for extracorporeal blood treatment, comprising:

means for treatment of a fluid including;

a predetermined number of sensors for detecting functioning parameters of the medical machine, and

a predetermined number of actuators for intervening in order to modify the functioning parameters of the medical machine;

a control unit sending command signals to the actuators and receiving information from the sensors for setting and determining an operative configuration of the machine, the control unit being further configured to generate at least a local user interface;

a display for viewing the local user interface and for exhibiting at least a part of the information received from the control unit and relating to the means for fluid treatment;

a web server operatively cooperating with the control unit and a predetermined number of web pages publishable by the web server, the web pages being accessible from a remote position via connecting means and being consultable via a web browser, at least a web page reproducing the local user interface;

remote access and control means for enabling a reproduction on the web pages of the web server of the local user interface shown on the display, wherein the remote access and control means enable reproduction of the local user interface in the web pages, substantially in real-time;

a module for managing and sending signal messages containing information relating to the means for fluid treatment;

wherein the module comprises;

means for determining a sending format for sending a signal message;

means for generating contents of the signal message, the contents being determined by selection from among a plurality of types having predefined contents and comprising information relating to the means for fluid treatment;

means for determining at least an addressee to whom to send the signal message.