User station for healthcare communication system

• US 8,803,669 B2
• Filed: 06/03/2013
• Issued: 08/12/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hill-Rom Services Incorporated (Baxter International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hill-Rom Services Incorporated (Baxter International Inc.)
• Inventors: Schuman, Richard Joseph Sr., Roehl, Erik E., Collins, Williams F. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): MULLEN, THOMAS J
• Application Number:
  US13/908,062
• Publication Number:
  US 20130257600A1
• Time in Patent Office: 435 Days
• Field of Search: 340/573.1, 340/539.11, 340/539.12, 340/539.16, 340/539.17, 340/286.07, 340/691.6, 340/692, 379/106.02, 379/38, 705/3, 600/300, 600/301
• US Class Current: 340/286.07
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/002 Monitoring the patient using a local or closed circuit, e.g. in a room or building A61B5/0017 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0022 Monitoring a patient using a global network, e.g. telephone networks, internet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/746 Alarms related to a physiological condition, e.g. details of setting alarm thresholds or avoiding false alarms alarms per se G08B
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7465 Arrangements for interactive communication between patient and care services, e.g. by using a telephone network telemetry of measured physiological signal A61B5/0002
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/00 Alarm systems in which the location of the alarm condition is signalled to a central station, e.g. fire or police telegraphic systems
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 25/016 Personal emergency signalling and security systems emergency non-personal manually actuated alarm activators G08B25/12
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 5/222 Personal calling arrangements or devices, i.e. paging systems selective calling systems and call receivers H04W84/00, H04W68/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 7/06 using electric transmission , e.g. involving audible and visible signalling through the use of sound and light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/52 specially adapted for the location of the user terminal

Abstract

A user station configurable for use in a healthcare communication system, such as a nurse call system, is provided.

Claims

1. A user station for a healthcare communication system, the user station comprising

a housing having a front face, a pair of lateral sides that are generally perpendicular to the front face, a top side, and a bottom side, the front face having an opening,

a touch screen display located inside the housing and accessible to a user through the opening in the front face,

a pair of speakers located inside the housing, each speaker of the pair of speakers being situated adjacent a respective lateral side of the pair of lateral sides, each lateral side of the pair of lateral sides having a plurality of openings which serve as a speaker grill for the respective speaker of the pair of speakers, and

a code call lever having a first portion situated over and above the top wall so as to cover a portion of the top wall when the call code lever is in an unactuated position and the call code lever having a second portion extending downwardly from the first portion and situated alongside one of the pair of lateral sides of the housing when the code call lever is in the unactuated position, the code call lever being configured such that no portion of the code call lever is situated in front of the front face of the housing when the code call lever is in the unactuated position, wherein the touch screen display and the code call lever are each usable to send signals to the healthcare communication system to call for assistance.

2. The user station of claim 1, further comprising circuitry located inside the housing and operable to play at least one digital audio file through the pair of speakers.

3. The user station of claim 2, wherein the digital audio file is played in response to a received call.

4. The user station of claim 1, wherein the touch screen display is operable to display at least one of a text string and an icon that is selectable to answer a received call.

5. The user station of claim 1, further comprising circuitry that is located within the housing and that is configured to communicate via a voice over Internet protocol.

6. The user station of claim 1, further comprising circuitry that is located within the housing and that is configured to receive power from a Power over Ethernet switch.

7. The user station of claim 1, wherein the touch screen display has a first field in which patient information is displayed.

8. The user station of claim 7, wherein the touch screen display has a second field in which received calls are displayed.

9. The user station of claim 7, wherein the touch screen display has a second field in which staff information is displayed.

10. The user station of claim 1, further comprising a microphone that is located within the housing adjacent the front face.

11. The user station of claim 1, further comprising a universal mounting plate coupled to the housing.

12. The user station of claim 11, wherein the universal mounting plate is coupled to a rear of the housing.

13. The user station of claim 11, wherein the universal mounting plate has connector slots that are oriented substantially horizontally.

14. The user station of claim 11, wherein the universal mounting plate has a plurality of prongs and the housing has a rear portion with apertures that receive the prongs.

15. The user station of claim 11, further comprising a plurality of electrical connector ports extending from a rear of the housing and wherein the universal mounting plate has at least one opening through which the plurality of electrical connector ports are accessible.

16. The user station of claim 1, wherein the front face, the pair of lateral sides, the top side, and the bottom side are formed as a single-piece unit.

17. The user station of claim 16, wherein the housing includes a rear portion that comprises a piece separate from the single-piece unit and that couples to the single-piece unit.

18. The user station of claim 17, wherein the touch screen display is mounted to the rear portion.

19. The user station of claim 18, wherein the pair of speakers are mounted to the rear portion.

20. The user station of claim 1, wherein the code call lever is pivotable about a substantially horizontal axis relative to the housing.