Computational systems and methods for monitoring medication events including a camera and identified time intervals

• US 9,387,156 B2
• Filed: 05/12/2015
• Issued: 07/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/24/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Bangera, Mahalaxmi Gita, Hyde, Roderick A., Kare, Jordin T., Leuthardt, Eric C., Sweeney, Elizabeth A., Wood, Lowell L. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): HOFSASS, JEFFERY A
• Application Number:
  US14/709,667
• Publication Number:
  US 20150250682A1
• Time in Patent Office: 427 Days
• Field of Search: 340/573.1, 340/539.12, 340/309.16, 600/300, 368/10, 705/2, 348/77
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 7/0481 working on a schedule basis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0639 Performance analysis of employees; Performance analysis of enterprise or organisation operations
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/10 relating to drugs or medications, e.g. for ensuring correct administration to patients

Abstract

Computer-based systems and computer-implemented methods are described for monitoring medication events for an individual. Computer-based systems include systems for monitoring medication events relating to an individual, including: circuitry for analyzing data for an identifier of a first medication event for an individual; circuitry for analyzing the data for at least one attribute of an individual; circuitry for analyzing the data for at least one attribute relating to a medication during the first medication event; circuitry for analyzing the data for at least one feature of visual information and at least one feature of non-visual information relating to the individual during the first medication event; circuitry for analyzing the received data for a time associated with the first medication event; circuitry for determining a compliance likelihood for the first medication event based on the analyses of the received data; and circuitry for indicating the determined compliance likelihood.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including executable instructions for monitoring medication events, the computer-readable storage medium comprising:

instructions for associating a time interval with a first medication event for an individual;

instructions for identifying a start of the time interval associated with the first medication event;

instructions for activating an indicator in response to the identification of the start of the time interval associated with the first medication event;

instructions for activating at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the activating in response to the identification of the start of the time interval associated with the first medication event;

instructions for identifying an end of the time interval associated with the first medication event;

instructions for accepting data relating to the time interval associated with the first medication event from the at least one camera unit; and

instructions for deactivating the at least one camera unit in response to the identification of the end of the time interval associated with the first medication event.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions for activating the at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the activating in response to the identification of the start of the time interval associated with the first medication event comprises:

instructions for activating the at least one camera unit including activating non-visual components of the at least one camera unit.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions for activating the at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the activating in response to the identification of the start of the time interval associated with the first medication event comprises:

instructions for activating at least one camera unit including a microphone.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions for activating the at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the activating in response to the identification of the start of the time interval associated with the first medication event comprises:

instructions for activating the at least one camera unit for video data acquisition.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions for activating the at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the activating in response to the identification of the start of the time interval associated with the first medication event comprises:

instructions for activating the at least one camera unit for data acquisition including near-infrared (IR) data.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, wherein the instructions for activating the at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the activating in response to the identification of the start of the time interval associated with the first medication event comprises:

instructions for activating the at least one camera unit for data acquisition including thermal data.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, comprising:

instructions for retrieving at least one attribute of the individual from memory;

instructions for examining the accepted data for the at least one attribute of the individual;

instructions for forming an identification result for the individual from the examination; and

instructions for transmitting the identification result for the individual.

8. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, comprising:

instructions for retrieving at least one attribute of the medication from memory;

instructions for examining the accepted data for the at least one attribute of the medication;

instructions for forming an identification result for the medication from the examination; and

instructions for transmitting the identification result for the medication.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 1, comprising:

instructions for comparing the accepted data relating to the time interval associated with the first medication event with a set of standard medication event parameters;

instructions for comparing the accepted data relating to the second time interval associated with the second medication event with the set of standard medication event parameters; and

instructions for activating an indicator if either the accepted data relating to the time interval associated with the first medication event or the accepted data relating to the second time interval associated with the second medication event are distinct from the set of standard medication event parameters.

10. A method for monitoring medication events, comprising:

identifying a start of a time interval associated with a first medication event for an individual;

activating at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the activating in response to the identification of the start of the time interval;

accepting data from the at least one camera unit, the data including both visual and non-visual data;

providing at least one sufficiency parameter for visual data from the first medication event;

providing at least one sufficiency parameter for non-visual data from the first medication event;

comparing the accepted data from the at least one camera unit with the provided at least one sufficiency parameter for visual data and with the provided at least one sufficiency parameter for non-visual data;

determining, from the comparison, if the accepted data from the at least one camera unit is sufficient;

activating an indicator in response to the determined sufficiency,

identifying an end of the time interval associated with the first medication event; and

deactivating the at least one camera unit in response to the identification of the end of the time interval associated with the first medication event.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the activating at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the activating in response to the identification of the start of the time interval, comprises:

activating at least one camera unit within a mobile device associated with the individual.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the accepting data from the at least one camera unit, the data including both visual and non-visual data comprises:

accepting data including video data.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the accepting data from the at least one camera unit, the data including both visual and non-visual data comprises:

accepting data including near-infrared (IR) data.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the accepting data from the at least one camera unit, the data including both visual and non-visual data comprises:

accepting data including thermal data.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein the accepting data from the at least one camera unit, the data including both visual and non-visual data comprises:

accepting data including audio data.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein the comparing the accepted data from the at least one camera unit with the provided at least one sufficiency parameter for visual data and with the provided at least one sufficiency parameter for non-visual data comprises:

comparing the accepted data from the at least one camera unit with at least one minimum value for visual data and at least one minimum value for non-visual data.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the comparing the accepted data from the at least one camera unit with the provided at least one sufficiency parameter for visual data and with the provided at least one sufficiency parameter for non-visual data comprises:

comparing the accepted data from the at least one camera unit with at least one range of values for visual data and at least one range of values for non-visual data.

18. The method of claim 10, wherein the comparing the accepted data from the at least one camera unit with the provided at least one sufficiency parameter for visual data and with the provided at least one sufficiency parameter for non-visual data comprises:

comparing the accepted data from the at least one camera unit with at least one sufficiency parameter for visual data specific to the individual and at least one sufficiency parameter for non-visual data specific to the individual.

19. The method of claim 10, comprising:

identifying, in response to the determined sufficiency, a start of a time interval associated with a supplementary medication event for the individual.

20. The method of claim 10, comprising:

processing the accepted data from the at least one camera unit into a medication record for the individual; and

transmitting the medication record.

21. A system for monitoring medication events relating to an individual, comprising:

circuitry for determining a start of a medication event interval for an individual;

circuitry for receiving data from at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the data including both visual data and non-visual data;

circuitry for presenting a set of parameters for determining a first medication event for an individual, the set of parameters including at least one visual parameter and at least one non-visual parameter;

circuitry for comparing the received data with the set of parameters for determining the first medication event for the individual;

circuitry for determining a compliance likelihood for the first medication event based on the comparison; and

circuitry for indicating the determined compliance likelihood for the first medication event.

22. A computer-readable storage medium including executable instructions for monitoring medication events relating to an individual, the computer-readable storage medium comprising:

instructions for determining a start of a medication event interval for an individual;

instructions for receiving data from at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the data including both visual data and non-visual data;

instructions for presenting a set of parameters for determining a first medication event for an individual, the set of parameters including at least one visual parameter and at least one non-visual parameter;

instructions for comparing the received data with the set of parameters for determining the first medication event for the individual;

instructions for determining a compliance likelihood for the first medication event based on the comparison; and

instructions for indicating the determined compliance likelihood for the first medication event.

23. A method for monitoring medication events relating to an individual, comprising:

determining a start of a medication event interval for an individual;

receiving data from at least one camera unit associated with the individual, the data including both visual data and non-visual data;

presenting a set of parameters for determining a first medication event for an individual, the set of parameters including at least one visual parameter and at least one non-visual parameter;

comparing the received data with the set of parameters for determining the first medication event for the individual;

determining a compliance likelihood for the first medication event based on the comparison; and

indicating the determined compliance likelihood for the first medication event.

24. A system for monitoring medication events, comprising:

circuitry for providing a set of attributes for an individual, the set of attributes identifiable in camera unit data;

circuitry for providing a medication regimen for the individual, the medication regimen including a set of medication intervention parameters;

circuitry for accepting first data from at least one camera unit;

circuitry for comparing the accepted first data with the provided set of attributes for the individual and with the medication regimen for the individual;

circuitry for determining, from the comparison, if the accepted first data includes attributes of the individual and includes at least one event within the medication regimen;

circuitry for initiating a first medication intervention event, dependent on the determination from the comparison;

circuitry for accepting second data from the at least one camera unit;

circuitry for comparing the accepted second data with the provided set of attributes for the individual and with the provided set of medication intervention parameters;

circuitry for determining, from the comparison, if the accepted second data includes attributes of the individual and meets the provided set of medication intervention parameters; and

circuitry for activating at least one indicator in response to the second determination.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein the medication regimen comprises:

use of an inhaler by the individual.

26. The system of claim 24, wherein the first medication intervention event comprises:

use of an inhaler by the individual.

27. The system of claim 24, wherein the set of medication intervention parameters comprises:

a set of parameters that indicate a specific physiologic condition of the individual.

28. The system of claim 24, wherein the set of medication intervention parameters comprises:

a set of parameters that indicate at least one specific physical indicator for the individual.