Sensing health using fluid sensors in feminine hygiene products

• US 10,349,834 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2016
• Issued: 07/16/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Palo Alto Research Center, Inc. (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Kuniavsky, Michael, Wang, Siqi
• Primary Examiner(s): Mui, Christine T
• Application Number:
  US15/395,829
• Publication Number:
  US 20180184904A1
• Time in Patent Office: 928 Days
• Field of Search: 422 8201, 436151
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0008 Temperature signals
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0022 Monitoring a patient using a global network, e.g. telephone networks, internet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14532 for measuring glucose, e.g. by tissue impedance measurement
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14539 for measuring pH
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14546 for measuring analytes not otherwise provided for, e.g. ions, cytochromes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14551 for measuring blood gases
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

One embodiment of the present invention provides an apparatus for analyzing substances within a liquid. The apparatus includes an absorber that comprises one or more layers of absorbent material for absorbing the liquid and one or more sensors embedded within the one or more layers of absorbent material. The sensors are configured to provide information associated with the substances included in the absorbed liquid. The apparatus further includes electrical conductive traces coupled to the one or more sensors, thereby facilitating transmission of outputs of the sensors.

Claims

1. An apparatus for analyzing substances within a liquid, comprising:

an absorber that comprises one or more layers of absorbent material for absorbing the liquid;

a flexible substrate comprising one or more sensors embedded within the one or more layers of absorbent material, wherein the sensors are configured to provide information associated with the substances included in the absorbed liquid, and wherein the one or more sensors are arranged in such a way that a location of a respective sensor detecting a respective substance is determined based on a diffusion property of the respective substance; and

a plurality of printable electrical conductive traces printed onto the flexible substrate, wherein the electrical conductive traces are coupled to the one or more sensors, thereby facilitating transmission of outputs of the sensors.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the absorber is part of:

a disposable feminine hygiene product (FHP);

a disposable diaper;

or

a disposable wound dressing.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the sensors include one or more of:

a capacitance sensor;

a conductance sensor;

a chemical sensor; and

a biological sensor.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the biological sensor includes a printable carbon-nanotube based sensor.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the liquid comprises body fluid.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the substances include one or more of:

a biological substance; and

a chemical substance.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising one or more of:

a microprocessor coupled to the sensors via the electrical conductive traces;

a near-field communication (NFC) tag; and

a radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag.

8. An apparatus for analyzing a liquid contained in an absorbent material, comprising:

a flexible substrate comprising a needle array for penetrating the absorbent material to extract the liquid;

one or more sensors coupled to the needle array, wherein the sensors are configured to provide information associated with substances included in the liquid, and wherein the one or more sensors are arranged in such a way that a location of a respective sensor detecting a respective substance is determined based on a diffusion property of the respective substance; and

a plurality of printable electrical conductive traces printed onto the flexible substrate, wherein the electrical conductive traces are coupled to the one or more sensors, thereby facilitating transmission of outputs of the sensors.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the sensors include one or more of:

a capacitance sensor;

a conductance sensor;

a chemical sensor; and

a biological sensor.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the biological sensor includes a printable carbon-nanotube based sensor.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the liquid comprises body fluid.

12. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the substances include one or more of:

a biological substance; and

a chemical substance.

13. The apparatus of claim 8, further comprising one or more of:

a microprocessor coupled to the sensors via the electrical conductive traces;

a near-field communication (NFC) tag; and

a radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag.

14. The apparatus of claim 8, further comprising:

a physical enclosure that houses the needle array, the sensors, and the electrical conductive traces; and

a handle coupled to the physical enclosure to reduce contact between a user of the apparatus and the absorbent material.

15. A feminine hygiene product (FHP), comprising:

an absorber that comprises one or more layers of absorbent material for absorbing menstrual fluid;

a flexible substrate comprising one or more sensors embedded within the one or more layers of absorbent material, wherein the sensors are configured to provide information associated with substances included in the menstrual fluid, and wherein the one or more sensors are arranged in such a way that a location of a respective sensor detecting a respective substance is determined based on a diffusion property of the respective substance; and

a plurality of printable electrical conductive traces printed onto the flexible substrate, wherein the electrical conductive traces are coupled to the one or more sensors, thereby facilitating transmission of outputs of the sensors.

16. The FHP of claim 15, wherein the sensors include one or more of:

a capacitance sensor;

a conductance sensor;

a chemical sensor; and

a biological sensor.

17. The FHP of claim 16, wherein the biological sensor includes a printable carbon-nanotube based sensor.

18. The FHP of claim 15, wherein the substances include one or more of:

a biological substance; and

a chemical substance.

19. The FHP of claim 15, further comprising one or more of:

a microprocessor coupled to the sensors via the electrical conductive traces;

a near-field communication (NFC) tag; and

a radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag.

20. A method for obtaining health information associated with a user of a feminine hygiene product (FHP), the method comprising:

receiving outputs from one or more sensors embedded in an absorption layer of the FHP, wherein the absorption layer absorbs the user'"'"'s menstrual fluid, and wherein the one or more sensors are arranged in such a way that a location of a respective sensor detecting a respective substance is determined based on a diffusion property of the respective substance;

analyzing the outputs of the sensors to obtain information associated with one or more biological or chemical substances included in the menstrual fluid; and

extracting health information associated with the user based on levels of the biological or chemical substances.