Wearable Personal Body Associated Device with Various Physical Configurations

• US 20140206976A1
• Filed: 03/08/2012
• Published: 07/24/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Otsuka Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Otsuka Holdings Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Proteus Digital Health, Inc. (Otsuka Holdings Company Limited)
• Inventors: Thompson, Todd, Colliou, Olivier, Duck, Robert, Behzadi, Yashar
• Granted Patent: US 9,439,599 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/391
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2560/0412 Low-profile patch shaped housings
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/0219 Inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes, tilt switches
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0006 ECG or EEG signals
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0022 Monitoring a patient using a global network, e.g. telephone networks, internet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0024 for multiple sensor units attached to the patient, e.g. using a body or personal area network
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/01 Measuring temperature of body parts ; Diagnostic temperature sensing, e.g. for malignant or inflamed tissue clinical contact thermometers G01K13/20
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/021 Measuring pressure in heart or blood vessels A61B5/0205 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02405 Determining heart rate variability
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0809 by impedance pneumography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1116 Determining posture transitions
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1118 Determining activity level
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/145 Measuring characteristics of blood in vivo, e.g. gas concentration, pH value; Measuring characteristics of body fluids or tissues, e.g. interstitial fluid, cerebral tissuemeasuring of blood pressure or blood flow A61B5/02; non-radiation detecting or locating of foreign bodies in blood A61B5/06
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/25 Bioelectric electrodes therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/259 using conductive adhesive means, e.g. gels
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/283 Invasive
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/369 Electroencephalography [EEG] devices for psychotechnics A61B5/16
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/389 Electromyography [EMG]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6833 Adhesive patches
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 13/005 : Transmission systems in which the medium consists of the human body

Abstract

A body associated device comprises a housing, an adhesive layer configured to be applied to a body of a living subject, and at least one standoff located between the housing and the adhesive layer. An electronic module may be located within the housing of the body associated device. A personal communication system comprises a body associated device including an electronic module and further comprises a feedback portion coupled to the housing and to the electronic module. The feedback portion is configured to communicate information between the living subject and the body associated device. An external local node is operative to provide at least one of transmit communications to and receive communications from the body associated device.

Claims

1-9. -9. (canceled)

10. A body associated device, comprising:

a housing;

an adhesive layer configured to be applied to a body of a living subject;

at least one standoff located between the housing and the adhesive layer; and

comprising at least one attachment point between the housing and the adhesive, wherein an attachment area is defined by the shape of the at least one standoff.

11. The body associated device of claim 10, wherein the number of attachment points between the housing and the adhesive ranges from at least one to 10.

12. The body associated device of claim 11, wherein the number of attachment points between the housing and the adhesive is greater than 10.

13-16. -16. (canceled)

17. A body associated device, comprising:

a housing;

an adhesive layer configured to be applied to a body of a living subject;

at least one standoff located between the housing and the adhesive layer;

wherein the housing is formed of a flexible material.

18. The body associated device of claim 17, wherein the housing comprises a top portion and a bottom portion, and wherein the top and bottom portions define at least one slot therebetween, the at least one slot enabling the bottom portion to flex and adhere to a contour of the body of the living subject.

19. The body associated device of claim 17, wherein the housing comprises a curved preformed body form factor to enhance better fitment to the body of the living subject.

20. The body associated device of claim 17, wherein the housing defines at least one pocket formed therein to receive electrode hydrogel therein.

21. The body associated device of claim 17, further comprising at least one tiered pocket configured to receive electrode hydrogel therein, wherein the tiered pocket forms an expansion slot.

22-23. -23. (canceled)

24. A body associated device, comprising:

a housing;

an adhesive layer configured to be applied to a body of a living subject;

at least one standoff located between the housing and the adhesive layer; and

an electronic module located within the housing;

comprising a transceiver electrically coupled to the electronic module.

25. The body associated device of claim 24, comprising a switch electrically coupled to the electronic module.

26. The body associated device of claim 24, comprising a water ingress indicator electrically coupled to the electronic module.

27. The body associated device of claim 24, comprising an energy source to power an indicator electrically coupled to the electronic module;

wherein the indicator is located within the housing.

28. The body associated device of claim 27, wherein at least a portion of the housing is formed of a translucent material to enable energy emitted by the indicator to be discernable to the living subject or detectable by electronic components external to the housing.

29. The body associated device of claim 24, wherein the at least one standoff is defined by any one of a continuous or broken ring, square, rectangular, oval, kidney shape and a predetermined thickness;

wherein the at least one standoff defines at least one inner aperture configured to receive an electrode hydrogel therein; and

further comprising an electrode hydrogel located in the at least one inner aperture defined by the at least one standoff;

wherein the hydrogel is electrically coupled to the circuit module.

30. A personal communication system, comprising:

a body associated device, comprising;

a housing;

an adhesive layer configured to be applied to a body of a living subject;

at least one standoff located between the housing and the adhesive layer, wherein the at least one standoff defines an air gap between the housing and the adhesive layer;

an electronic module located within the housing;

the body associated device to be worn by a living subject, the body associated device further comprising a feedback portion coupled to the housing and to the electronic module, the feedback portion configured to communicate information between the living subject and the body associated device; and

an external local node operative to provide at least one of transmit communications to and receive communications from the body associated device.

31. The personal communication system of claim 30, wherein the body associated device comprises:

a physiological sensing module operative to sense physiological information from the subject.

32. The personal communication system of claim 30, wherein the body associated device comprises:

a wireless communication module operative to communicate at least one of communicate information from the body associated device to the external local node or receive information from the external local node.

33. The personal communication system of claim 30, comprising:

a remote node operative to communicate at least one of transmit communications to and receive communications from the external local node.