RFID medical supplies consumption monitoring system and method
US7639136B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | May 15, 2006 |
| Grant date | Dec 29, 2009 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 14, 2027 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG16H40/20
- WIPO fieldIT methods for management
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A system and method for tracking supplies, particularly medical supplies, and specifically individual medical items, to the end of the product lifecycle to the point of utilizes. RFID tag technology is utilized. This has the advantage of enabling a system that requires less or no active intervention by the medical services delivery staff, such as nurses and doctors. Nonetheless, the system is applicable to other stand-off identification systems including taggant-based systems. The system provides for the monitoring of items, such as medical items, between the distribution center, facility stock rooms and inventory cabinets, and the procedure rooms in which the items are put into use. In one example, system and method associate stand-off, such as RFID, readers with waste-disposal or refuse containers and/or readers located near the point of usage, such as in or associated with the procedure rooms in order to monitor the endpoint of the product lifecycle. Thus, the knowledge of medical item disposal or disposal of the medical item's packaging is combined with one or more prior detections of the medical item, e.g., at acquisition and when moved to a different location such as storage,…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.