Hand cleanliness

• US 20070015552A1
• Filed: 05/01/2006
• Published: 01/18/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Biovigil Hygiene Technologies LLC (BioVigil Healthcare Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Biovigil Hygiene Technologies LLC (BioVigil Healthcare Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Bolling, Steven
• Granted Patent: US 7,936,275 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/575.600
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/245 Reminder of hygiene compliance policies, e.g. of washing hands
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 23/00 Alarms responsive to unspecified undesired or abnormal conditions
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms

Abstract

Among other things, from a wireless device, a command is transmitted to wearable monitors within range of the wireless device to update their states to a non disinfected state of the hands of users of the wearable monitors.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising

a wearable device that includes (a) an indicator to indicate a cleanliness state of a user'"'"'s hands based on detecting whether the user'"'"'s hands bear a disinfecting material at a level that indicates cleanliness, and (b) a wireless communication element to communicate, with an external device, information that is useful in connection with indicating the cleanliness state of the user'"'"'s hands.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 also including an element that maintains a cleanliness state of the user'"'"'s hands including a disinfected state and a non-disinfected state.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 also including an element to switch the cleanliness state of the apparatus from disinfected to non-disinfected regardless of the actual cleanliness state of the user'"'"'s hands.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 in which the indicator is at least one of a visual display, a sounding device, a lamp, or a vibrator.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 also including storage for data indicative of the cleanliness state of the user'"'"'s hands.

11. The method of claim 1 in which the condition comprises the presence of water.

12. The method of claim 1 in which the determining is based on whether a drift of the measurements is different in character from an expected drift.

13. The method of claim 1 in which the element is heated until the condition has dissipated.

14. The method of claim 1 also including using the element in a test of a level of alcohol vapor emanating from a user'"'"'s finger.

6. A method comprising

at a wearable device, receiving a command to switch states from disinfected to not disinfected, and

in response to the command, changing an indicator that is perceivable by people in the vicinity of a user of the wearable device from an indication of disinfected to an indication of not disinfected, regardless of the actual cleanliness state of the user'"'"'s hands as determined based on detecting whether the user'"'"'s hands bear a disinfecting material at a level that indicates cleanliness.

7. The method of claim 6 also including transmitting information about the cleanliness state of the user'"'"'s hands to an external device.

16. The apparatus of claim 6 in which the display comprises a device in which pixels can be switched from one state to another state using power and then retain their states after the power is removed to prevent a user from thwarting the impact of the display.

17. The apparatus of claim 6 also including storage to hold information about the cleanliness of the user'"'"'s hands and a processor to cause presentation of the information on the display.

8. A method comprising

tracking cleanliness states of the hands of users of wearable cleanliness monitors at a central location, the cleanliness states being determined based on detecting whether the user'"'"'s hands bear a disinfecting material at a level that indicates cleanliness.

9. A method comprising, from a wireless device, transmitting a command to wearable monitors within range of the wireless device to update their states to a non disinfected state of the hands of users of the wearable monitors.

10. A method comprising

based on successive measurements of a resistance of an element that is sensitive to alcohol vapor, determining if the element is in a condition that degrades its sensitivity to alcohol vapor, and

if so, heating the element to restore its sensitivity to alcohol vapor.

15. An apparatus comprising

an alcohol vapor sensing device, and

a display to show information associated with a use or user of the sensing device to determine cleanliness of a user'"'"'s hands.

18. A method comprising

in response to a measurement of a presence of alcohol on hands of a user, audibly signaling from a device in the vicinity of the user to other people in the vicinity of the user, the cleanliness state of the user'"'"'s hands.

19. The method of claim 18 in which the signaling is different depending whether the cleanliness state is disinfected or not disinfected.

20. The method of claim 18 in which the signaling includes a distasteful sound.

21. The method of claim 18 in which the signaling includes a brief noise repeated at intervals.

22. The method of claim 21 in which the volume of the noise is increased and/or the intervals are decreased over time.

23. An apparatus comprising

a wearable unit that includes an alcohol sensor an indicator of a cleanliness state of a user'"'"'s hands as determined by the sensor, and a wireless transmitter to send information about the cleanliness state to an external device.

24. The apparatus of claim 23 also including a signaling element, on or off the wearable unit, to report to people in the vicinity of the user, the cleanliness state of the user'"'"'s hands.

25. A method comprising

managing hand cleanliness of people within a facility by electronically causing wearable devices worn by the people simultaneously to switch to states representing non disinfection of their hands regardless of actual states of disinfection of the hands of the people.

26. The method of claim 25 also including causing the switching of states selectively.

27. The method of claim 26 in which the selectivity is based on the locations of the people within the facility.

28. The method of claim 26 in which the selectivity is based on characteristics of the people or their conduct.

29. A method comprising

monitoring the cleanliness states of hands of people in a facility using information that is received electronically from monitoring devices worn by the people and is determined based on the monitoring devices detecting whether the user'"'"'s hands bear a disinfecting material at a level that indicates cleanliness.

30. The method of claim 29 in which the monitoring is done from a central location in communication with the monitoring devices.

31. The method of claim 29 also including reporting the cleanliness states of people and groups of people in the facility over time.

32. The method of claim 29 also including monitoring the locations of the people electronically.