Container-located information transfer module

• US 9,185,501 B2
• Filed: 08/24/2012
• Issued: 11/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NXP USA, Inc. (NXP Semiconductors NV)
• Original Assignee: Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom, Inc.)
• Inventors: Pai, Prasan
• Primary Examiner(s): Sorowar, Golam
• Application Number:
  US13/594,489
• Publication Number:
  US 20130344806A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,173 Days
• Field of Search: 455/41.1, 455/41.2, 340/540, 340/539.26, 340/5.8
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 1/00 Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes capsules or the like for oral use A61J3/07; specially adapted for surgical or diagnostic appliances or instruments A61B50/30; containers for radioactive substances G21F5/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2225/43 Signal processing in hearing aids to enhance the speech intelligibility
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2225/55 Communication between hearing aids and external devices via a network for data exchange
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2460/03 Aspects of the reduction of energy consumption in hearing devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2460/13 Hearing devices using bone conduction transducers
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 25/554 using a wireless connection, e.g. between microphone and amplifier or using Tcoils
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

Techniques are described herein that transfer information using a container-located module. The module is coupled to sensor(s) that are configured to detect characteristic(s) pertaining to a medical substance that is included in a medical container. The module wirelessly transfers information that is based on the characteristic(s) to a requesting device in response to a request from the requesting device.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a medical container having an interior surface that defines an interior volume configured to contain a medical substance;

at least one sensor that is associated with the interior surface and that is configured to detect one or more characteristics pertaining to the medical substance, the at least one sensor comprising a first sensor configured to change from a first state to a second state based on the first sensor detecting a first instance of a first characteristic of the one or more characteristics;

processing logic configured to reset the first sensor from the second state to the first state to enable the first sensor to be re-used to detect a second instance of the first characteristic at a time subsequent to the first sensor detecting the first instance of the first characteristic; and

a near field communication device that is coupled to the at least one sensor and that is configured to wirelessly transfer information, which is based on at least one of the one or more characteristics, to a near field reader in accordance with a near field communication protocol in response to receiving a wireless request signal from the near field reader.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the first sensor comprises:

a microfluidics sensor configured to detect a chemical composition of the medical substance.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the first sensor comprises:

a sensor configured to detect whether the medical substance is exposed to ambient air within the interior volume.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the first sensor comprises:

at least one micro electromechanical systems (MEMS) sensor; and

wherein the system comprises;

a semiconductor package that includes at least a first layer and a second layer, the first layer including the at least one MEMS sensor and the second layer including the near field communication device.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

memory that stores a logic identifier that identifies the near field communication device; and

wherein the near field communication device wirelessly transfers the logic identifier to the requesting device to indicate that the information is from the near field communication device.

6. A system comprising:

a medical container having an interior surface that defines an interior volume configured to contain a medical substance;

at least one sensor that is associated with the interior surface and that is configured to detect one or more characteristics pertaining to the medical substance;

an information transfer module that is coupled to the at least one sensor and that is configured to wirelessly transfer information, which is based on at least one of the one or more characteristics, to a requesting device that is external to the medical container in response to receiving a wireless request signal from the requesting device in response to the requesting device coming within a designated proximity of the information transfer module; and

memory that stores designated data, the designated data including at least one of patient data regarding a patient who is associated with the medical substance, doctor data regarding a doctor who is associated with the patient, or treatment data regarding a treatment that the patient is to receive with regard to the medical substance, the information transfer module being further configured to wirelessly transfer the designated data to the requesting device.

7. The system of claim 6, comprising a lab-on-a-chip that is configured to sequence deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) that is included in the medical substance;

wherein the lab-on-a-chip includes a nucleotide sensor configured to detect nucleotides that are included in the DNA; and

wherein the at least one sensor includes the nucleotide sensor.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one sensor comprises:

a temperature sensor configured to detect a temperature associated with the medical substance; and

wherein the system further comprises;

an actuator configured to adjust the temperature in response to the temperature reaching a specified threshold.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the information transfer module communicates with the at least one sensor using a standardized protocol that is agnostic with regard to a type of each of the at least one sensor.

10. The system of claim 6, wherein the information transfer module comprises:

field power logic configured to store energy from the wireless request signal; and

wherein the field power logic is further configured to power the information transfer module using the energy from the wireless request signal in absence of the information transfer module being powered by a battery.

11. The system of claim 6, wherein the information transfer module comprises:

a near field communication (NFC) coil that receives the wireless request signal; and

processing logic that obtains data regarding the at least one of the one or more characteristics from the at least one sensor in response to receipt of the wireless request signal;

wherein the information transfer module wirelessly transfers the information to the requesting device via the near field communication coil.

12. The system of claim 6, wherein the information transfer module comprises:

security logic configured to determine whether a requester identifier that is included in the wireless request signal matches a reference identifier;

wherein the security logic is further configured to enable the wireless transfer of the information to the requesting device in response to the requester identifier matching the reference identifier; and

wherein the security logic is further configured to not enable the wireless transfer of the information to the requesting device in response to the requester identifier not matching the reference identifier.

13. The system of claim 6, wherein the information transfer module comprises:

memory that stores a logic identifier that identifies the information transfer module; and

wherein the information transfer module wirelessly transfers the logic identifier along with the information to the requesting device to indicate that the information is from the information transfer module.

14. The system of claim 6, wherein the system further comprises:

an actuator positioned in the volume and configured to perform at least one of a stir operation or a pump operation with regard to the medical substance.

16. The system of claim 6, wherein the designated proximity is defined by a transmission range of the requesting device, the transmission range being a distance from the requesting device beyond which the wireless request signal, which is transmitted by the requesting device to enable the information transfer module to transfer the information, does not have sufficient power to enable the information transfer module to wirelessly transfer the information to the requesting device.

15. A method comprising:

receiving a wireless request signal that requests information at an information transfer module, which is associated with a medical container, from a requesting device that is external to the medical container;

detecting one or more characteristics that pertain to a medical substance that is included in an interior volume of the medical container using at least one sensor that is coupled to the information transfer module, the interior volume being defined by an interior surface of the medical container, the at least one sensor comprising a first sensor configured to change from a first state to a second state based on the first sensor detecting a first instance of a first characteristic of the one or more characteristics;

resetting the first sensor from the second state to the first state to enable the first sensor to be re-used to detect a second instance of the first characteristic at a time subsequent to the first sensor detecting the first instance of the first characteristic; and

wirelessly transferring the information, which is based on the one or more characteristics, in accordance with a near field communication protocol to the requesting device in response to detecting the one or more characteristics.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein receiving the wireless request signal comprises:

receiving the wireless request signal in response to the requesting device coming within a designated proximity to the information transfer module; and

wherein the method further comprises;

reading the one or more characteristics from the at least one sensor in an order that is specified by the wireless request signal.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

powering the information transfer module using energy from the wireless request signal;

wherein the powering the information transfer module using the energy from the wireless request signal enables the information transfer module to wirelessly transfer the information in absence of the information transfer module being powered by a battery.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein detecting the one or more characteristics comprises:

detecting a pressure within the interior volume;

wherein the method further comprises;

determining at least one of a state or an amount of the medical substance that is included in the interior volume based on the pressure; and

wherein the state is a gaseous state, a liquid state, or a solid state.

20. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

storing a logic identifier that identifies the information transfer module; and

transferring the logic identifier to the requesting device to indicate that the information is from the information transfer module.