Backhaul link assisted indoor spectrum use enforcement solution for MBAN services

• US 9,232,352 B2
• Filed: 02/24/2012
• Issued: 01/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Inventors: Wang, Dong, Ghosh, Monisha, Smith, Delroy
• Primary Examiner(s): Appiah, Charles
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mastrodonato, Margaret G
• Application Number:
  US14/001,683
• Publication Number:
  US 20130337842A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,411 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 5/0024 for multiple sensor units attached to the patient, e.g. using a body or personal area network
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/024 Detecting, measuring or recording pulse rate or heart rate A61B5/0205, A61B5/021 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0816 Measuring devices for examining respiratory frequency measuring frequency of electric signals G01R23/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/318 Heart-related electrical modalities, e.g. electrocardiography [ECG]
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/20 for indoor coverage or short range network deployment
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 48/04 based on user or terminal location or mobility data, e.g. moving direction, speed
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks

Abstract

A medical system includes one or more MBAN devices which acquire and communicate patient data. One or more medical body area network (MBAN) systems include the one or more MBAN devices communicating the patient data with a hub device via short-range wireless communication. The communication of the patient data via the short-range wireless communication being within a predefined spectrum. The hub device receives patient data communicated from the one or more MBAN devices, communicates with a central monitoring station via a longer range communication and one or more access points (AP), and determines the location of the MBAN system in reference to a healthcare facility. The one or more MBAN devices are inhibited from transmitting within the predefined spectrum when the MBAN hub device is located outside the healthcare facility.

Claims

1. A medical system comprising:

one or more medical body area network (MBAN) devices which acquire and communicate patient data;

one or more MBAN systems, each MBAN system including;

the one or more MBAN devices communicating the patient data with a hub device via short-range wireless communication, the communication of the patient data via the short-range wireless communication being within a predefined spectrum;

the hub device which receives patient data communicated from the one or more MBAN devices, communicates with a central monitoring station via a longer range communication and one or more access points (AP), and determines the location of the MBAN system in reference to a healthcare facility;

wherein signal strength of the AP is used to determine in-facility status of the MBAN system;

wherein the one or more MEAN devices are inhibited from transmitting within the predefined spectrum when the MBAN hub device is located outside the healthcare facility; and

wherein;

in response to the hub device being connected to an Entrance AP, the in-facility status is either set to Indoor if the AP signal strength is greater than or equal to a predefined threshold or set to Outdoor if the AP signal strength is less than the predefined threshold; and

in response to the hub device being connected to an Exterior AP, the in-facility status is either set to Indoor if the AP signal strength is greater than or equal to a predefined threshold or keeps unchanged if the AP signal strength is less than the predefined threshold.

2. A method comprising:

collecting patient data by one or more medical body area network (MBAN) devices;

determining whether an MBAN system is entering or leaving a healthcare facility from one or more Entrance Access Points (APs) of a healthcare facility network, including determining whether a hub device is connected to one of the one or more Entrance APs;

in response to the hub device connecting to one of the one or more Entrance APs and the AP signal strength exceeding a threshold determining that the hub device has entered into the healthcare facility and communicating the collected patient data from the one or more MBAN devices to the hub device via short-range wireless communication within a predetermined spectrum; and

in response to the hub device connecting to one of the one or more entrance devices and the AP signal strength being less than the threshold, determining that the hub device is exterior to the healthcare facility and inhibiting the MBAN device and the hub device from communicating with each other within the predefined spectrum and communicating the collected patient data from the hub device to the central monitoring station via longer range wireless communication through the one or more Entrance APs.

3. A medical system comprising:

one or more processors programmed to perform the method according to claim 2.

4. A non-transitory computer readable medium containing software which when loaded into a processor programs the processor to perform the method according to claim 2.