Location monitoring via implanted radio transmitter

• US 6,034,622 A
• Filed: 08/14/1996
• Issued: 03/07/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 08/18/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Robert A. Levine
• Original Assignee: Robert A. Levine
• Inventors: Levine, Robert A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Horabik, Michael
• Assistant Examiner(s): WILSON JR, WILLIAM HALL
• Application Number:
  US08/698,327
• Time in Patent Office: 1,301 Days
• Field of Search: 340/825.54, 340/825.49, 340/539, 340/573.1, 340/825.72, 340/825.37, 340/573.4, 340/825.36, 455/100, 342/126, 342/385, 342/450, 342/463, 342/146, 342/56, 342/147, 128/903, 607/32
• US Class Current: 340/573.4
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0031 Implanted circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1112 Global tracking of patients, e.g. by using GPS
• 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 5/4839 combined with drug delivery
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6846 specially adapted to be brought in contact with an internal body part, i.e. invasive
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/06 Position of source determined by co-ordinating a plurality of position lines defined by path-difference measurements G01S5/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/28 the pass enabling tracking or indicating presence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/903 Radio telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 607/90 Substance abuse therapy

Abstract

An open-loop internal monitoring system comprising (a) a plurality of internal radio transmitters, each being implanted in a human for transmitting a plurality of signal pulses, each pulse being encoded with unique identifying information; (b) a plurality of external radio receivers each having a corresponding clock, for receiving each of the plurality of signal pulses transmitted by each of the plurality of internal radio transmitters and for generating from each received signal pulse a plurality of data including at least a time-of-arrival generated in accordance with the synchronized clock of the external radio receiver and the internal radio transmitter identifying information; and (c) a central processor for (1) estimating a location for each internal radio transmitter in accordance with the time-of-arrival, (2) storing, for each human, authorized or unauthorized areas to which the human is assigned, (3) determining an event of whether the estimated location is within the authorized area or the unauthorized area assigned to any one of the humans and stored in the central processor, and (4) notifying a monitor of the central processor upon occurrence of the event.

Claims

1. An open-loop internal monitoring system comprising:

a plurality of internal radio transmitters, each said internal radio transmitter being implanted in a human for transmitting a plurality of signal pulses, each said signal pulse being encoded with at least information uniquely identifying one said internal radio transmitter;

a plurality of external radio receivers each having a corresponding clock, with said clocks associated with said external radio receivers being synchronized, each said external radio receiver for receiving each of said plurality of signal pulses transmitted by each of said plurality of internal radio transmitters and for generating from each said received signal pulse a plurality of data including at least (1) a time-of-arrival of when said signal pulse was received by said external radio receiver, the time-of-arrival being generated in accordance with said synchronized clock of said external radio receiver and (2) said internal radio transmitter identifying information decoded from said received signal pulse by said external radio receiver;

a central processor for (1) estimating a location for each said internal radio transmitter, and thus for each said human, in accordance with the time-of-arrival generated by each of said plurality of external radio receivers, (2) storing, for each said human, authorized or unauthorized areas to which said human is assigned, (3) determining an event of whether the estimated location is within said authorized area or said unauthorized area assigned to any one of said humans and stored in said central processor, and (4) notifying a monitor of said central processor upon occurrence of said event; and

a plurality of relays, each relay for relaying said plurality of data from each said external radio receiver to said central processor.

2. An open-loop internal monitoring system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of substance monitoring units, each said substance monitoring unit implanted in a different one of said humans and electrically connected to said implanted internal radio transmitter for detecting the presence of a predetermined amount of a predetermined substance in said one human,

wherein said plurality of signal pulses are further encoded with information regarding the detection of said predetermined substance, said plurality of data also includes said substance detection information received by said external radio receiver, and said central processor notifies said monitor of the detection of the predetermined substance in said human.

3. An open-loop internal monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein each said internal radio transmitter comprises:

a case, said case being hermetically-sealed and sterile;

a radio transmitter unit encased in said case; and

an antenna connected to said radio transmitter unit.

4. An open-loop internal monitoring system according to claim 3, wherein each said internal radio transmitter further comprises:

a processor electrically connected to said radio transmitter unit for controlling said radio transmitter unit.

5. An open-loop internal monitoring system according to claim 3, wherein said antenna is partially positioned below said human'"'"'s skin.

6. An open-loop internal monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said internal radio transmitter is surgically implanted below the skin of said human.

7. An open-loop internal monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of external radio receivers comprises at least three external radio receivers and said central processor estimates location by a hyperbolic method using said times-of-arrival of said pluralities of data.

8. An open-loop internal monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of external radio receivers comprises at least two external radio receivers, wherein each said datum generated by each said external radio receiver further includes a bearing of said received signal pulse as determined by said external radio receiver, and said central processor estimates location by a triangulation method using said bearings of said pluralities of data.

9. An open-loop internal monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of locations for each said internal radio transmitter is stored in a memory of said central processor.

10. An open-loop internal monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein said event is stored in a memory of said central processor.

11. An internal monitoring system comprising:

a plurality of internal radio transmitters and substance monitoring units respectively electrically connected thereto, the substance monitoring units detecting the presence of a predetermined amount of a predetermined substance in said human, each said internal radio transmitter and substance monitoring unit being implanted in a respective human for transmitting a plurality of signal pulses, each said signal pulse being encoded with at least (i) information uniquely identifying one said internal radio transmitter and (ii) information regarding the detection by said substance monitoring unit of the predetermined substance;

a plurality of external radio receivers each having a corresponding clock, with said clocks associated with said external radio receivers being synchronized, each said external radio receiver for receiving each of said plurality of signal pulses transmitted by each of said plurality of internal radio transmitters and for generating from each said received signal pulse a plurality of data including at least (1) a time-of-arrival of when said signal pulse was received by said external radio receiver, the time-of-arrival being generated in accordance with said synchronized clock of said external radio receiver, (2) said internal radio transmitter identifying information decoded from said received signal pulse by said external radio receiver, and (3) information regarding the detection by said substance monitoring unit of the predetermined substance;

a central processor for (1) estimating a location for each said internal radio transmitter, and thus for each said human, in accordance with the time-of-arrival generated by each of said plurality of external radio receivers, (2) storing, for each said human, authorized or unauthorized areas to which said human is assigned, (3) determining an event of whether the estimated location is within said authorized area or said unauthorized area assigned to any one of said humans and stored in said central processor, (4) notifying a monitor of said central processor upon occurrence of said event, (5) storing, for each said human, a list of authorized or unauthorized substances and quantities thereof, (6) comparing the information regarding the detection by said substance monitoring unit of the predetermined substance with the list of authorized or unauthorized substances and quantities thereof, and (7) notifying the monitor of said central processor in accordance with the comparison; and

a plurality of relays, each relay for relaying said plurality of data from each said external radio receiver to said central processor.

12. An internal monitoring system according to claim 11, wherein said substance monitoring unit detects, as the predetermined substance, alcohol.

13. An internal monitoring system according to claim 11, wherein said substance monitoring unit detects, as the predetermined substance, an illegal narcotic.

14. An internal monitoring system according to claim 11, wherein said central processor stores the estimated location and the corresponding time for each of a plurality of estimated locations so as to create a chronological record for each said human.

15. An internal monitoring system according to claim 11, wherein each said human has an internal radio receiver implanted therein for receiving signals from said central processor, the signals being generated by said central processor in accordance with (a) the determination of the event of whether the estimated location is within said authorized area or said unauthorized area assigned to any one of said humans and stored in said central processor or (b) the comparison of information regarding the detection by said substance monitoring unit of the predetermined substance with the list of authorized or unauthorized substances and quantities thereof,

wherein the predetermined substance is alcohol or an illegal narcotic.

16. An internal monitoring system comprising:

a plurality of internal radio transmitters, each said internal radio transmitter being implanted in a human for transmitting a plurality of signal pulses, each said signal pulse being encoded with at least information uniquely identifying one said internal radio transmitter;

a plurality of external radio receivers each having a corresponding clock, with said clocks associated with said external radio receivers being synchronized, each said external radio receiver for receiving each of said plurality of signal pulses transmitted by each of said plurality of internal radio transmitters and for generating from each said received signal pulse a plurality of data including at least (1) a time-of-arrival of when said signal pulse was received by said external radio receiver, the time-of-arrival being generated in accordance with said synchronized clock of said external radio receiver and (2) said internal radio transmitter identifying information decoded from said received signal pulse by said external radio receiver;

a central processor for (1) estimating a location for each said internal radio transmitter, and thus for each said human, in accordance with the time-of-arrival generated by each of said plurality of external radio receivers, (2) storing, for each said human, authorized or unauthorized areas to which said human is assigned, (3) determining an event of whether the estimated location is within said authorized area or said unauthorized area assigned to any one of said humans and stored in said central processor, and (4) notifying a monitor of said central processor upon occurrence of said event; and

a plurality of relays, each relay for relaying said plurality of data from each said external radio receiver to said central processor.