Hand cleanliness

• US 7,982,619 B2
• Filed: 11/09/2009
• Issued: 07/19/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Biovigil Hygiene Technologies LLC (BioVigil Healthcare Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Biovigil LLC
• Inventors: Bolling, Steven F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Mehmood; Jennifer
• Application Number:
  US12/614,822
• Publication Number:
  US 20100109877A1
• Time in Patent Office: 617 Days
• Field of Search: 340/572.1, 340/573.1, 340/309.7, 340/514, 340/515, 340/522, 73/14.4, 73/14.5, 116/208
• US Class Current: 340/573.1
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/22 in combination with an identity check of the pass holder
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/26 using a biometric sensor integrated in the pass
• 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, an entry monitor has circuitry to detect when a person enters a monitored space and an indicator perceptible to other people in the space to indicate a cleanliness state of the hands of the person who has entered the space.

Claims

1. An apparatus comprising:

a badge storing identification information about a person; and

a wearable holder for the badge, the holder comprising;

an electronic sensor to be used by the person to generate test results indicating a cleanliness state of the person'"'"'s hands, and

communication elements to send at least some of the identification information and test results to an external device.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, also comprising elements to communicate information about a cleanliness test performed by the person using the electronic sensor to the badge.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the identification information includes a unique identifier of the person that can be read electronically.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, comprising a storage device coupled to the electronic sensor to store information about at least one of frequency, timing, and results of cleanliness measurements performed by the person using the electronic sensor.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, in which the badge comprises the storage device coupled to the electronic sensor.

6. The apparatus of claim 4, in which the wearable holder comprises the storage device coupled to the electronic sensor.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the badge comprises an RFID element and the wearable holder comprises an RFID transceiver.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, in which the communication elements comprise a wireless transmitter or transceiver.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, in which the communication elements comprise a wireless radiofrequency transmitter or transceiver.

10. An apparatus comprising:

an electronic sensor to be carried by a person or mounted in a stationary position accessible to a person'"'"'s hands, and to be used by the person to detect a cleanliness state of the person'"'"'s hands, the electronic sensor having a lifetime that is limited by a number of test cycles; and

circuitry to count a number of times a person has run a cleanliness test using the sensor and compare the number of times cleanliness tests have been run using the sensor to the number of test cycles.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 also including a communication circuit to communicate the counted number of times a person has run a cleanliness test wirelessly for reporting to a third party.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 in which the communication circuit comprises a radio frequency communication circuit.

13. The apparatus of claim 10 also including an indicator to signal when the sensor is reaching the end of its useful life.

14. The apparatus of claim 10 also including a storage device coupled to the sensor to store information about at least one of frequency, timing, and results of cleanliness measurements performed by the person using the electronic sensor.