Methods and systems for acoustic data transmission

• US 9,173,592 B2
• Filed: 08/19/2013
• Issued: 11/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/06/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Innurvation Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Innurvation Incorporated
• Inventors: Bandy, William Robert, Davenport, Roger Allen, Okunev, Yuri
• Primary Examiner(s): Ghafoorian, Reza
• Application Number:
  US13/969,979
• Publication Number:
  US 20140200418A1
• Time in Patent Office: 806 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00016 using wireless means
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00036 Means for power saving, e.g. sleeping mode
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/041 Capsule endoscopes for imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0022 Monitoring a patient using a global network, e.g. telephone networks, internet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0028 Body tissue as transmission medium, i.e. transmission systems where the medium is the human body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/073 Intestinal transmitters
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/411 Detecting or monitoring allergy or intolerance reactions to an allergenic agent or substance
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/42 Detecting, measuring or recording for evaluating the gastrointestinal, the endocrine or the exocrine systems A61B1/00, A61B5/4857, A61B5/486, A61B5/4866, A61B5/4869 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6861 Capsules, e.g. for swallowing or implanting
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0833 involving detecting or locating foreign bodies or organic structures
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/4236 characterised by adhesive patches
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/56 Details of data transmission or power supply
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/565 involving data transmission via a network
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 11/00 Transmission systems employing sonic, ultrasonic or infrasonic waves
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/0453 Resources in frequency domain, e.g. a carrier in FDMA

Abstract

A method of communicating with an ingestible capsule includes detecting the location of the ingestible capsule, focusing a multi-sensor acoustic array on the ingestible capsule, and communicating an acoustic information exchange with the ingestible capsule via the multi-sensor acoustic array. The ingestible capsule includes a sensor that receives a stimulus inside the gastrointestinal tract of an animal, a bidirectional acoustic information communications module that transmits an acoustic information signal containing information from the sensor, and an acoustically transmissive encapsulation that substantially encloses the sensor and communications module, wherein the acoustically transmissive encapsulation is of ingestible size. The multi-sensor array includes a plurality of acoustic transducers that receive an acoustic signal from a movable device, and a plurality of delays, wherein each delay is coupled to a corresponding acoustic transducer. Each delay may be adjusted according to a phase of a signal received by the corresponding acoustic transducer.

Claims

1. A receiver that is communicatively coupled to an ingestible capsule, the receiver comprising:

a carrier generator configured to select a first and a second carrier frequency that are associated with a first and a second frequency channel, respectively, based on a hopping pattern; and

a radiating element configured to acoustically receive, from the ingestible capsule, a first portion of data through a body of an animal as an original waveform in accordance with the first carrier frequency for a duration of the first frequency channel,

wherein the carrier generator is further configured to switch from the first carrier frequency to the second carrier frequency before a reflection of the original waveform is received by the radiating element.

2. The receiver of claim 1, wherein the radiating element is further configured to measure a second portion of the duration of the first frequency channel, the second portion of the duration of the first frequency channel including a number of delay intervals that is associated with a logic value of the first portion of data.

3. The receiver of claim 1, wherein the radiating element is further configured to detect a phase of the first carrier frequency to determine a logic value of the first portion of data.

4. The receiver of claim 1, wherein the radiating element comprises:

a transducer configured to convert the acoustically received first portion of data to a first portion of an electrical communication signal.

5. The receiver of claim 4, further comprising:

a filter array configured to receive the first portion of the electrical communication signal and to generate a first portion of a filtered communication signal,

wherein the filter array comprises a first bandpass filter and a second bandpass filter corresponding to the first frequency channel and the second frequency channel, respectively.

6. The receiver of claim 5, further comprising:

a demodulator configured to use the first carrier frequency to demodulate or downconvert the first portion of the filtered communication signal and to generate a first portion of a demodulated signal.

7. The receiver of claim 6, further comprising:

a function generator configured to receive the first portion of the demodulated signal from the demodulator and to generate a first portion of a recovered information signal by decoding the first portion of the demodulated signal.

8. The receiver of claim 1, wherein the receiver is further configured to simultaneously demodulate a plurality of acoustic communication signals.

9. The receiver of claim 1, wherein the receiver is further configured to attach to skin of the body of the animal.

10. The receiver of claim 1, wherein the receiver is further configured to decode the acoustically received first portion of data based on a differential phase shift keying scheme.

11. A receiver that is communicatively coupled to an ingestible capsule, the receiver comprising:

a radiating element configured to acoustically receive, from the ingestible capsule, a first portion of data through a body of an animal as an original waveform in accordance with a first carrier frequency of a first frequency channel and a second portion of data in accordance with a second carrier frequency of a second frequency channel and to convert the acoustically received first portion of data to a first portion of an electrical communication signal;

a carrier generator configured to select the first carrier frequency or the second carrier frequency that are associated with the first frequency channel and the second frequency channel, respectively, based on a hopping pattern, and to switch from the first carrier frequency to the second carrier frequency before a reflection of the original waveform is received by the radiating element; and

a demodulator configured to demodulate and/or downconvert the first portion of the electrical communication signal based on the first carrier frequency and the second portion of the electrical communication signal based on the second carrier frequency.

12. The receiver of claim 11, wherein the radiating element is further configured to measure a second portion of the duration of the first frequency channel, the second portion of the duration of the first frequency channel including a number of delay intervals that is associated with a logic value of the first portion of data.

13. The receiver of claim 11, wherein the radiating element is further configured to detect a phase of the first carrier frequency to determine a logic value of the first portion of data.

14. The receiver of claim 11, wherein the radiating element comprises:

a transducer configured to convert the acoustically received first portion of data to the first portion of the electrical communication signal.

15. The receiver of claim 14, further comprising:

a filter array configured to receive the first portion of the electrical communication signal and to generate a filtered communication signal,

wherein the filter array comprises a first bandpass filter and a second bandpass filter corresponding to the first frequency channel and the second frequency channel, respectively.

16. The receiver of claim 15, wherein the demodulator is further configured to use the first carrier frequency to generate a first portion of a demodulated signal based on a differential phase shift keying scheme.

17. The receiver of claim 16, further comprising:

a function generator configured to receive the first portion of the demodulated signal from the demodulator and to generate a first portion of a recovered information signal by decoding the first portion of the demodulated signal.

18. The receiver of claim 11, wherein the receiver is further configured to simultaneously demodulate a plurality of acoustic communication signals.

19. The receiver of claim 11, wherein the receiver is further configured to attach to skin of the body of the animal.

20. The receiver of claim 11, wherein the receiver is further configured to decode the acoustically received first portion of data based on a differential phase shift keying scheme.