System for monitoring patients with alzheimer's disease or related dementia

• US 20020060630A1
• Filed: 11/01/2001
• Published: 05/23/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Stepscan Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Vitrak Wireless Incorporated
• Inventors: Power, Michael W.
• Granted Patent: US 6,753,782 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 340/573.1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1113 Local tracking of patients, e.g. in a hospital or private home
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1124 Determining motor skills
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1127 using markers
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4088 Diagnosing of monitoring cognitive diseases, e.g. Alzheimer, prion diseases or dementia
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/90 Identification means for patients or instruments, e.g. tags
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0211 Combination with medical sensor, e.g. for measuring heart rate, temperature
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0227 System arrangements with a plurality of child units
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0247 System arrangements wherein the alarm criteria uses signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0288 Attachment of child unit to child/article
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0294 Display details on parent unit
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/043 detecting an emergency event, e.g. a fall
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0446 worn on the body to detect changes of posture, e.g. a fall, inclination, acceleration, gait

Abstract

A system is provided for monitoring the behavior, behavior patterns and movements of patients with Alzheimer'"'"'s, related dementia and a range of other diseases, disorders and injuries including childhood autism, attention deficit disorder (ADD), schizophrenia, severe clinical depression, brain injury, and conditions such as recovery from hip replacement surgery. The monitoring system comprises: a transmitter worn by the patient which emits an identification signal; a detector placed at a hazard or a at a location to be monitored, the detector capable of determining the distance of the patient from the detector and determining the occurrence of an incident when the distance falls below a predetermined threshold; a receiving unit for receiving the information transmitted by the detector; and database means for accumulating information received by the receiving unit. The purpose of the system is to safeguard patients from injury and to generate, accumulate and analyze data and information about these diseases, conditions and disorders.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring at least one person under care, comprising:

for each person, a transmitter worn by the person and for emitting an identification signal corresponding to the person;

at least one detector, each detector being capable of detecting a distance to each person, and transmitting information corresponding to each person including the distance to the person;

a controller for receiving the information corresponding to each person from each of the at least one detector; and

database means for accumulating and amalgamating the information received by the controller.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein at least one of the at least one detector is placed at or near a hazard, and wherein if the distance from such a detector to a person falls below a predetermined threshold the detector determines that an incident has occurred with respect to a person and includes information about the incident in the information corresponding to the person when transmitting information corresponding to the person.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the transmitter worn by each person is a radio frequency identification device.

4. The system of claim 2 wherein the transmitter worn by each person is a radio frequency identification device.

5. The system of claim 3 wherein the transmitter worn by each person is housed within an electronic monitoring tag.

6. The system of claim 4 wherein the transmitter worn by each person is housed within an electronic monitoring tag.

7. The system of claim 2 wherein at least one of the at least one detector placed at or near a hazard is coupled to a relay switch for deactivating the hazard, and wherein such a detector activates the relay switch in the event that the detector determines that an incident has occurred.

8. The system of claim 2 further including an alarm, and wherein at least one of the at least one detector placed at or near a hazard transmits a signal to the alarm in the event that the detector determines that an incident has occurred.

9. The system of claim 7 further including an alarm, and wherein at least one of the at least one detector placed at or near a hazard transmits a signal to the alarm in the event that the detector determines that an incident has occurred.

10. The system of claim 2 further including a medical organizer having a display screen, and wherein the controller transmits information about an incident to the medical organizer for display in the event that a detector transmits information about the incident to the controller.

11. The system of claim 8 further including a medical organizer having a display screen, and wherein the controller transmits information about an incident to the medical organizer for display in the event that a detector transmits information about the incident to the controller.

12. The system of claim 1 further including a medical organizer to which the controller transmits information corresponding to persons under care, and wherein a caregiver monitoring a person under care is able to enter observations and comments at the medical organizer.

13. The system of claim 2 further including a medical organizer to which the controller transmits information corresponding to persons under care, and wherein a caregiver monitoring a person under care is able to enter observations and comments at the medical organizer.

14. The system of claim 8 further including a medical organizer to which the controller transmits information corresponding to persons under care, and wherein a caregiver monitoring a person under care is able to enter observations and comments at the medical organizer.

15. The system of claim 10 further including a medical organizer to which the controller transmits information corresponding to persons under care, and wherein a caregiver monitoring a person under care is able to enter observations and comments at the medical organizer.

17. The system of claim 16 wherein the central database is accessible by means of the Internet.

18. The system of claim 16 wherein at least one of the at least one detector is placed at or near a hazard, wherein the detector measures a strength of reception of an identification signal emitted by a transmitter, and wherein if the strength of reception of an identification signal rises above a predetermined threshold the detector determines that an incident has occurred with respect to a person corresponding to the identification signal and includes information about the incident in the information corresponding to the person when transmitting information corresponding to the person.

19. The system of claim 16 wherein the transmitter worn by each person is a radio frequency identification device.

20. The system of claim 18 wherein the transmitter worn by each person is a radio frequency identification device.

21. The system of claim 19 wherein the transmitter worn by each person is housed within an electronic monitoring tag.

22. The system of claim 20 wherein the transmitter worn by each person is housed within an electronic monitoring tag.

16. A system for monitoring a plurality of persons under care, comprising:

a central database for accumulating and amalgamating information about the persons under care;

a plurality of receiving units remote from the central database, each receiving unit transmitting information about one or more persons under care to the central database;

a plurality of detectors, each detector being capable of detecting a distance to one or more persons under care, and transmitting information corresponding to each such person under care to one of the receiving units, the information corresponding to a person under care including the distance to the person; and

for each person, a transmitter worn by the person and for emitting an identification signal corresponding to the person.