Wrist-held monitoring device for physical condition

• US 5,515,858 A
• Filed: 08/24/1994
• Issued: 05/14/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/1992
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Innovations Limited
• Original Assignee: Matti Myllymaki
• Inventors: Myllymaki, Matti
• Primary Examiner(s): Rimell, Sam
• Application Number:
  US08/290,971
• Time in Patent Office: 629 Days
• Field of Search: 128/670, 128/690, 128/739, 128/782, 128/630, 128/715, 128/773, 128/774, 128/661.07, 128/668, 128/687
• US Class Current: 600/301
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0022 Monitoring a patient using a global network, e.g. telephone networks, internet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02055 Simultaneously evaluating both cardiovascular condition and temperature
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02455 provided with high/low alarm devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0533 Measuring galvanic skin response
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/11 Measuring movement of the entire body or parts thereof, e.g. head or hand tremor, mobility of a limb for measuring pulse A61B5/02 ;A61B5/1038 takes precedence; motion detection to correct for motion artifacts in physiological signals A61B5/721
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/681 Wristwatch-type devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7264 Classification of physiological signals or data, e.g. using neural networks, statistical classifiers, expert systems or fuzzy systems neural networks per se G06N3/00; expert systems per se G06N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0453 worn on the body to detect health condition by physiological monitoring, e.g. electrocardiogram, temperature, breathing detecting, measuring or recording for diagnostic purposes A61B5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0492 Sensor dual technology, i.e. two or more technologies collaborate to extract unsafe condition, e.g. video tracking and RFID tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 29/186 Fuzzy logic; neural networks
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

The present invention relates to a wrist-held monitoring device for independently observing the physical condition of a person by means of motoric activity or movement and physiological conditions, e.g., temperature and/or electric conductivity of the skin. The anomalous condition data is transmitted by conventional techniques on a radio frequency message to one or more receivers, which either set off a local alarm or further transfer the data by conventional techniques to a centralized receiving point for alarm generation there.

Claims

1. A monitoring device for simultaneously monitoring physical condition and movement, comprising:

a wrist-held detector and transmitter unit, comprising a detector, comprising

a first sensor for monitoring physiological condition;

a second sensor for monitoring movements; and

a fuzzy logic circuit in electrical communication with said first sensor and said second sensor;

a radio transmitter in electrical communication with said fuzzy logic circuit; and

a first alarm in electrical communication with said fuzzy logic circuit; and

a receiver unit for receiving a radio signal from said radio transmitter, said receiver unit including a second alarm.

2. The monitoring device of claim 1, wherein said fuzzy logic circuit controls said first sensor and said second sensor such that output from one of said first sensor and said second sensor sets sliding alarm limits for output from the other of said first sensor and said second sensor.

3. The monitoring device of claim 1, wherein said first sensor detects physiological conditions selected from the group consisting of skin temperature, skin electrical conductivity, and heartbeat rate.

4. The monitoring device of claim 1 further comprising a first counter in electrical communication with said first sensor and said fuzzy logic circuit, said first counter capable of switching on said radio transmitter.

5. The monitoring device of claim 1, further comprising a pulse detector and a second counter, said pulse detector in electrical communication with said first counter and said second counter and said second sensor, said second counter capable of switching on said radio transmitter.

6. The monitoring device of claim 3, wherein said first counter is decelerated by high electrical resistance of the skin, and accelerated by low electrical resistance of the skin.

7. The monitoring device of claim 1, wherein said second sensor is an acceleration sensor.

8. The monitoring device of claim 1, wherein said second sensor measures the rate of acceleration of individual hand movements.