Monitoring device with selectable wireless communication

• US 9,430,938 B2
• Filed: 07/31/2013
• Issued: 08/30/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fitbit, Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hello, Inc.
• Inventors: Proud, James
• Primary Examiner(s): Deng, Anna
• Application Number:
  US13/955,777
• Publication Number:
  US 20140247140A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,126 Days
• Field of Search: 717/171, 717/172
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2560/0214 of power generation or supply
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/0233 Special features of optical sensors or probes classified in A61B5/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/08 Sensors provided with means for identification, e.g. barcodes or memory chips
• 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 5/02055 Simultaneously evaluating both cardiovascular condition and temperature
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1112 Global tracking of patients, e.g. by using GPS
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1118 Determining activity level
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/443 Evaluating skin constituents, e.g. elastin, melanin, water
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6831 Straps, bands or harnesses
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6898 Portable consumer electronic devices, e.g. music players, telephones, tablet computers
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/743 Displaying an image simultaneously with additional graphical information, e.g. symbols, charts, function plots
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/90 Identification means for patients or instruments, e.g. tags
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/98 using electromagnetic means, e.g. transponders
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 4/002 Remote reading of utility meters
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 2310/23 The load being a medical device, a medical implant, or a life supporting device
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/80 : involving the exchange of data, concerning supply or distribution of electric power, between transmitting devices and receiving devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/90 : involving detection or optimisation of position, e.g. alignment
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00034 : Charger exchanging data with an electronic device, i.e. telephone, whose internal battery is under charge
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 : based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 : involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 : Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 : for social networking applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 : Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 90/20 : Smart grids as enabling technology in buildings sector smart grids supporting the management or operation of end-user stationary applications in general, or like technologies with no associated climate change mitigation effect Y04S20/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y04S 20/30 : Smart metering, e.g. specially adapted for remote reading

Abstract

One or more sensors are coupled to a monitoring device which has a unique user ID. The one or more sensors acquire user information selected from of at least one of, a user'"'"'s activities, behaviors and habit information. ID circuitry including ID storage, a communication system that reads and transmits the unique ID from an ID storage, a power source and a pathway system to route signals through the circuitry is at the monitoring device. A multi-protocol wireless controller coupled to one or more wireless interfaces is at the monitoring device and characterizes available networks to determine current network information. A wireless connectivity assistant is at the monitoring device and selects one of the available networks based on the current network information and at least one of user preferences, application requirements and system information. A telemetry system is in communication with the monitoring device.

Claims

1. A wireless communication system for a medical monitoring device, comprising:

one or more sensors coupled to the medical monitoring device that has a unique user ID, the one or more sensors acquiring user information selected from of at least one of, a user'"'"'s activities, behaviors and habit information, the medical monitoring device configured to provide a change of data capture frequency of at least one of the one or more sensors and ability to change how often the medical monitoring device samples the at least one of the one or more sensors based on received sensor data, and the medical monitoring device configured to identify its user based on its user movement pattern and one or more its user habits;

ID circuitry at the monitoring device, the ID circuitry including ID storage, a communication system that reads and transmits the unique ID from an ID storage, a power source and a pathway system to route signals through the circuitry;

a multi-protocol wireless controller at the medical monitoring device that in operation characterizes available networks to determine current network information, the wireless controller coupled to one or more wireless interfaces;

a wireless connectivity assistant at the medical monitoring device to select one of the available networks based on the current network information and at least one of user preferences, application requirements and system information; and

a telemetry system including a processor in communication with the medical monitoring device.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the wireless interfaces includes at least one of, a packet wireless system interface, a cellular wireless interface, a wireless local area network interface, and a short-range digital wireless interface.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the wireless controller in operation causes wireless interfaces to interrogate available networks to determine current network information.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the wireless controller in operation uses the wireless interfaces to monitor traffic on available networks to determine current network information.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller in operation uses the wireless interfaces to determine a geographic location, and determines the current network information based on the location.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the controller causes at least one of the wireless interfaces to maintain a communication link with an available network to determine current network information.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the current network information includes as least one of a bit-error-rate, packet size, network congestion, security, and cost for an available network.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the medical monitoring device includes user preferences selected from at least one of, a preferred network carrier, a tolerance to quality of service, a security level and power constraint, and wherein the application requirements include at least one of a bit-rate requirement, a quality of service requirement, a connection continuity requirement, and a security requirement.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein, the system information includes at least one of a power constraint, security requirement, processor speed, display resolution, processing capability, camera resolution, and audio capabilities.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the medical monitoring device monitors at least one of, cardiac, hemodynamic, respiratory, respiratory rate, hemodynamic, blood pressure, pulse oximetry, capnography, respiratory, neurologic, blood glucose, childbirth, body temperature, stress, epilepsy, and toxicity.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

a control system at the medical monitoring device to orchestrate communication between different systems.

12. The system of claim 10, further comprising:

logic resources at the medical monitoring device to determine at least one of use, activity type, behavioral patterns and habits based on data relative to a user.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein switching is performed between incremental and full syncing of data based on available communication routes.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the telemetry system in operation creates different classifications for data received from the medical monitoring device.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the classifications are selected from at least one of, a user'"'"'s location, where a user spends its time, with whom the user spends its time, a determination of working relationships, a determination of family relationships, user'"'"'s activities, and user'"'"'s social relationships.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the telemetry system in operation provides firmware updates to the medical monitoring device.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein streams of information are sent from at least one sensor at the medical monitoring device to the telemetry system.

18. A method of communicating wirelessly with a medical monitoring device, comprising:

providing the medical monitoring device with one or more sensors, a unique user ID circuitry and an antenna;

obtaining via the one or more sensors user information selected from of at least one of, a user'"'"'s activities, behaviors and habit information, the medical monitoring device configured to provide a change of data capture frequency of at least one of the one or more sensors and ability to change how often the medical monitoring device samples the at least one of the one or more sensors based on received sensor data, and the medical monitoring device configured to identify its user based on its user movement pattern and one or more its user habits;

characterizing available networks to determine current network information;

selecting one of the available networks based on the current network information and at least one of user preferences, application requirements and system information; and

communicating between a telemetry system and the medical monitoring device.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

initiating a communication session with the selected wireless communication network.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein characterizing includes interrogating at least one of the available networks to determine the current network information.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein characterizing comprises monitoring traffic on at least one of the available networks to determine the current network information.

22. The method of claim 18, wherein characterizing comprises determining a geographic location and determining the current network information from the geographic location.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein determining the geographic location includes a triangulation of signals from at least one of the available networks.

24. The method of claim 18, wherein characterizing includes maintaining a communication link with at least one of the communication networks to determine the current network information.

25. The method of claim 18, wherein the current network information includes at least one of bit-error-rate, bit-rate, packet size, network congestion, delay, security and cost for at least one available network.

26. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

monitoring a quality of the wireless link during communicating;

selecting another wireless link with another network when the quality decreases; and

switching to communicating with the another network.