Patent · US Expired

Respiration and movement monitoring system

US6011477A · kind A · utility

144Cited by
29References
31Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateJul 21, 1998
Grant dateJan 4, 2000
Priority date
Expiry dateJul 21, 2018

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
  • CPC primaryA61B2503/06
  • WIPO fieldMedical technology
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A monitoring system (10) of this invention includes a first sensor (12) for detecting the respiration and/or movements of an infant (14), and an optional second sensor (18) for detecting the presence and/or movement of the infant or proximal objects (20) surrounding the infant. An optional accelerometric sensor (22) detects movements of a platform (16) supporting the infant and contributes supplementary movement data to the monitoring system. An optional audio sensor (24) detects sounds associated with the infant or proximal objects. None of the sensors are physically attached to the infant. A controller (26) conditions and processes the various sensor signals and generates alarms by interpreting the sensor signals. The controller optionally communicates with a remote control unit (30). In one embodiment the first sensor signal is filtered (112, 114) to extract respiration- and nonrespiration-related signals that are processed by a signal processor (116), which compares the extracted signals to thresholds, and if neither signal exceeds its threshold for a predetermined time, a low signal alarm is generated. In another embodiment, the signal processor determines whether a respiratio…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.