Self powered serial-to-serial or USB-to-serial cable with loopback and isolation

• US 9,529,762 B2
• Filed: 06/22/2004
• Issued: 12/27/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Embecta Corporation
• Original Assignee: Becton, Dickinson & Co
• Inventors: Gisler, Scott, Arndt, Dave
• Primary Examiner(s): Thomson, William
• Assistant Examiner(s): SANDS, DAVIN K
• Application Number:
  US10/872,779
• Publication Number:
  US 20050001179A1
• Time in Patent Office: 4,571 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2560/045 with a separable interface unit, e.g. for communication
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/222 Electrical cables or leads therefor, e.g. coaxial cables or ribbon cables
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14532 for measuring glucose, e.g. by tissue impedance measurement
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/301 providing electrical separation, e.g. by using isolating transformers or optocouplers
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/303 Patient cord assembly, e.g. cable harness
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0216 Human interface functionality, e.g. monitoring system providing help to the user in the selection of tests or in its configuration
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0272 Presentation of monitored results, e.g. selection of status reports to be displayed; Filtering information to the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/266 Arrangements to supply power to external peripherals either directly from the computer or under computer control, e.g. supply of power through the communication port, computer controlled power-strips
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/221 to test buses, lines or interfaces, e.g. stuck-at or open line faults
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 11/323 Visualisation of programs or trace data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/4072 Drivers or receivers G06F13/4086 takes precedence; for multistate logic circuits H03K19/0002
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 31/16 the semiconductor device sensitive to radiation being controlled by the light source or sources
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 2201/12 for medicine and surgery
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/78 using opto-electronic devices, i.e. light-emitting and photoelectric devices electrically- or optically-coupled
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/802 for isolation, e.g. using optocouplers

Abstract

The cable for a medical device is an optically isolated serial transmission cable, used to connect a base device with a serial port, or the like, to a medical device. In an alternate embodiment of the invention, the invention enables auto detection of the cable. The base device is used to power the cable electronics. In another embodiment of the present invention, the interface cable is also supported by graphical and text message display that assists users in connecting the cable to both the medical device and a base device.

Claims

1. A system for connecting a glucose monitor to a base device comprising:

a base device and a glucose monitor; and

a detachable cable comprising a detachable serial port connector at a first end and a detachable second connector at a second end, wherein;

the serial port connector detachably connects said first end of said cable to said base device; and

the second connector detachably connects said second end of said cable to said glucose monitor;

the detachable cable further comprising;

an optical isolation circuit between said first end and said second end of said cable that prevents electrical signals from propagating to the glucose monitor from the base device via said cable; and

a loopback circuit on a base device side of the optical isolation circuit that provides a loopback signal to a connected one of a plurality of serial ports of said base device to identify to which of said plurality of serial ports said cable is connected;

wherein the loopback circuit echoes data received from a serial output of the base device to a serial input of the base device; and

wherein the base device comprises a display adapted to graphically display a first connection state of the connection of the serial port connector of the detachable cable to the base device, and a second connection state of the connection of the second connector of the detachable cable to the glucose monitor, said first and second connection states being displayed separately and simultaneously, and to animatedly display a transfer of data between the glucose device and the base device.

2. A cable as claimed in claim 1

wherein said optical isolation circuit receives electrical power from a power supply in said base device.

6. A cable as claimed in claim 1, wherein said serial port connector is a Universal Serial Bus connector.

7. A cable as claimed in claim 1, wherein said serial port connector is a RS-232C connector.

8. The cable as claimed in claim 1, wherein said optical isolation circuit receives power from said base device.

9. A cable as claimed in claim 8, wherein power is removed from the optical isolation circuit after a predetermined condition is satisfied.

10. A cable as claimed in claim 9, wherein said predetermined condition is satisfied when all the required data has been transferred between the glucose monitor and the base device.

21. The cable of claim 1, wherein the loopback circuit echoes data when an RTS line is low.

22. The cable of claim 1, wherein a photocoupler of the cable is powered down when an RTS line is low.

23. The cable of claim 1, wherein a non-isolated base device side of the cable is powered when an RTS line is high.

3. A medical system comprising a detachable cable, a glucose monitor and a base device, wherein the detachable cable comprises a detachable serial port connector at first end and a detachable second connector at a second end, wherein the

the serial port connector detachably connects said first end of said cable to said base device;

and

the second connector detachably connects said second end of said cable to said glucose monitor;

the detachable cable further comprising;

an optical isolation circuit between said first end and said second end of said cable that prevents electrical signals from propagating to the glucose monitor from the base device via said cable;

wherein said optical isolation circuit receives electrical power from a power supply in said base device;

and wherein said cable further comprises a loopback circuit provided on a base device side of the optical isolation circuit that provides a loopback signal to a connected one of a plurality of serial ports of said base device to identify to which of said plurality of serial ports said cable is connected;

wherein the loopback circuit echoes data received from a serial output of the base device to a serial input of the base device; and

wherein the base device comprises a display adapted to graphically display a first connection state of the connection of the serial port connector of the detachable cable to the base device, and a second connection state of the connection of the second connector of the detachable cable to the glucose monitor, said first and second connection states being displayed separately and simultaneously, and to animatedly display a transfer of data between the glucose device and the base device.

4. A medical system as claimed in claim 3 further comprising:

wherein said loopback circuit provides said loopback signal to the base device in response to signals received from the base device;

said loopback signal is interpreted by the base device, and a graphical display related to the interpreted loopback signal is presented to the user.

5. A medical system as claimed in claim 4, wherein said loopback signal provided by said loopback circuit to the base device enable said graphical display to indicate connection points where said cable has not made a proper connection to the base device, the medical device, or both.

11. A medical system comprising a detachable cable, a glucose monitor and a base device, wherein the detachable cable comprises a detachable serial port connector at a first end and a detachable second connector at a second end, wherein:

the serial port connector detachably connects said first end of said cable to said base device; and

the second connector detachably connects said second end of said cable to said glucose monitor;

the detachable cable further comprising;

an optical isolation circuit between said first end and said second end of said cable that prevents electrical signals from propagating to the glucose monitor from the base device via said cable; and

a loopback circuit on a base device side of the optical isolation circuit that provides a loopback signal to a connected one of a plurality of serial ports of said base device to identify to which of said plurality of serial ports said cable is connected;

wherein the loopback circuit echoes data received from a serial output of the base device to a serial input of the base device;

wherein said optical isolation circuit receives power from said base device;

wherein power is removed from the optical isolation circuit after a predetermined condition is satisfied;

wherein power provided to said cable from the glucose monitor is reduced after said predetermined condition is satisfied; and

wherein the base device comprises a display adapted to graphically display a first connection state of the connection of the serial port connector of the detachable cable to the base device, and a second connection state of the connection of the second connector of the detachable cable to the glucose monitor, said first and second connection states being displayed separately and simultaneously, and to animatedly display a transfer of data between the glucose device and the base device.

12. A cable as claimed in claim 11, wherein said serial port connector is a Universal Serial Bus connector.

13. A cable as claimed in claim 11, wherein said serial port connector is a RS-232C connector.

14. A medical system comprising a detachable cable, a glucose monitor and a base device, the detachable cable detachably connecting the glucose monitor to the base device, the detachable cable comprising a detachable serial port connector at a first end and a detachable second connector at a second end, wherein:

the detachable serial port connector at said first end of the cable connects to one of a plurality of serial ports in said base device; and

the detachable connector at said second end connects to said glucose monitor;

the detachable cable further comprising;

an optical isolation circuit between said first end and said second end of said cable that prevents electrical signals from propagating to the glucose monitor from the base device via said cable; and

a loopback circuit on a base device side of the optical isolation circuit that receives a loopback signal from the connected one of said plurality of serial ports of said base device to identify to which of said plurality of serial ports said glucose monitor is connected;

wherein the loopback circuit echoes data received from a serial output of the base device to a serial input of the base device; and

wherein the base device comprises a display adapted to graphically display a first connection state of the connection of the serial port connector of the detachable cable to the base device, and a second connection state of the connection of the second connector of the detachable cable to the glucose monitor, said first and second connection states being displayed separately and simultaneously, and to animatedly display a transfer of data between the glucose device and the base device.

15. A cable as claimed in claim 14 wherein said loopback circuit receives data from the connected one of said plurality of serial ports of said base device, and returns said data to said base device via said connected one of said plurality of serial ports to confirm said medical device is connected to said one of said plurality of serial ports of said base device via said cable.

16. A cable as claimed in claim 15, wherein said base device comprises a graphical display, and said base device provides graphical feedback on said display based on said returned data from said loopback circuit to display to a user whether the glucose monitor is connected to said base device or to said cable.

17. A cable as claimed in claim 14, wherein when power is removed from said loopback circuit said medical device is enabled to transmit data relating to a medical condition to the base device.

18. A cable as claimed in claim 14, wherein power is removed from the optical isolation circuit which reduces the amount of power provided to the cable by the glucose monitor.

19. A cable as claimed in claim 14, wherein said serial port connector is a Universal Serial Bus connector.

20. A cable as claimed in claim 14, wherein said serial port connector is a RS-232C connector.