Patient support apparatus communication systems
First Claim
1. A location detection system comprising:
- a bed having a support surface and a wireless transceiver, the support surface adapted to support a person thereon, and the wireless transceiver adapted to wirelessly communicate with a plurality of access points of a computer network, to transmit bed status information to the computer network, and to receive messages from the plurality of access points; and
a controller adapted to generate a location estimate of the bed within a hospital based upon a signal strength of the messages received from the plurality of access points;
wherein the wireless transceiver is further adapted to transmit the location estimate of the bed, as determined by the controller, to other beds.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A location detection system for person support apparatuses includes multiple network wireless access points that communicate with a plurality of mobile transceivers positioned on board the person support apparatuses. Based upon signal strength data (e.g. RSSI or RCPI) of messages from the access points to the transceivers, the locations of the person support apparatuses are determined. In some embodiments, the person support apparatuses include an additional location detection system that utilizes fixed locators having short range transceivers to generate a second location determination of the person support apparatuses. In still other embodiments, the person support apparatuses utilize the second location detection system to determine the location of the wireless access points. The person support apparatuses may also broadcast their location to other devices that then utilize the received signal strengths of those messages to determine their own location.
40 Citations
25 Claims
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1. A location detection system comprising:
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a bed having a support surface and a wireless transceiver, the support surface adapted to support a person thereon, and the wireless transceiver adapted to wirelessly communicate with a plurality of access points of a computer network, to transmit bed status information to the computer network, and to receive messages from the plurality of access points; and a controller adapted to generate a location estimate of the bed within a hospital based upon a signal strength of the messages received from the plurality of access points; wherein the wireless transceiver is further adapted to transmit the location estimate of the bed, as determined by the controller, to other beds. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A location detection system comprising:
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a bed having a frame, a support surface adapted to support a person thereon, and a wireless transceiver adapted to wirelessly communicate with a plurality of access points of a hospital computer network, the wireless transceiver adapted to transmit bed status information to the hospital computer network and to receive messages from the plurality of access points; a processing station located remotely from the bed and communicatively coupled to the hospital computer network, the processing station adapted to access data indicating locations of each of the plurality of access points; and a controller on board the bed, the controller adapted to send to the processing station signal strength data of the messages, wherein the processing station generates a location estimate of the bed within a hospital based upon the signal strength data and the data indicating locations of each of the plurality of access points. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A person support apparatus comprising:
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a frame; a support surface adapted to support a person thereon; a wireless transceiver adapted to wirelessly communicate with a plurality of access points of a computer network, the wireless transceiver adapted to receive messages from the plurality of access points; a sensor adapted to wirelessly communicate with a locator positioned at a fixed location within a hospital; and a controller adapted to determine in which room of the hospital the person support apparatus is located based upon data from the messages and to determine in which zone of the room the person support apparatus is located based on communication between the sensor and the locator. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A person support apparatus comprising:
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a frame; a support surface adapted to support a person thereon; a first wireless transceiver adapted to wirelessly communicate with a plurality of access points of a computer network, the first wireless transceiver adapted to receive messages from the plurality of access points; a second wireless transceiver adapted to wirelessly communicate with a locator positioned at a fixed location within a facility, the second wireless transceiver adapted to receive a unique identifier from the locator; a memory in which map data indicating a location of the locator is stored; and a controller adapted to determine signal strength data of the messages, to wirelessly receive location data from another person support apparatus that is in communication with at least one of the access points, and to generate a location estimate of the at least one of the access points of the computer network based upon the unique identifier, the map data, the location data, and the signal strength data. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25)
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Specification