A) TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention generally relates to patient monitoring systems (PMS) and more particularly relates to device for configuring patient monitor system units automatically.

B) BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] In hospitals or other healthcare settings, it is frequently necessary to observe critical physiological conditions of a patient, such as temperature, breathing, pulse, blood pressure, electrocardiogram (ECG) data and cardiac output. Further, other conditions may be observed depending on the injury or illness of the patient.

[0003] In a patient monitoring system, the real time physiological data collected from patient is monitored at a physically separate location. It allows a medical professional to provide care to patients who are not located in his/her physical vicinity. Additionally a single medical professional can provide care to more than one patient at a given time.

[0004] The physiological condition data is obtained by sensors applied to the patient. These sensors may be connected to a monitor by cables. The monitor may be mounted beside the patient's bed and may be connected to a central communication system for recording and monitoring the data. Metering units are also commonly used in healthcare settings to provide physiological condition and specified dosages of medication or fluids to patients. Hospitals or healthcare centers often have number of patient meters, monitors or sensor modules. Typically, each meter, monitor, or sensor module is an electronic device connected to a main monitoring system. Each of these medical electronic devices needs to be configured.

[0005] The physician has to configure the settings in the patient monitoring system unit each time, when the system is switched ON. Most of the time the unit configuration requires a skilled professional for configuration or it takes too much time to configure. More over there may be error while configuring manually. Hence there is a need to provide an auto configuration system to reduce the error while configuring the patient monitoring system unit. Also there is a need to configure the unit in less time.
[0006] Various monitor configuration systems for PMS exist in the art. One such system is configuration management system, in which the base settings are stored and where this configuration management system is in a signal communication mode with a medical device, it is possible to operate the medical device automatically to the current requirements.

[0007] Another system relates to a resource management system which is provided with a first communication network, plurality of electronic devices and a resource manager. The pluralities of electronic devices are provided with a unique identifier that is configured to be in communication with the first communication network. The resource manager is configured to read the identifier of the electronic devices in communication with the first communication network.

[0008] Yet another system relates to radiation beam therapy comprising a database component that stores subsets of parameters associated with selected treatment devices, wherein the parameters comprise instructional information that can be used to configure the selected treatment devices for operation.

[0009] Although the above mentioned systems are provided for the configuration of units in patient monitoring system, one or more of these systems are related to the configuration of parameters of a particular medical device for providing a treatment to the patient. Further one or more of these systems are related to the current operating mode of medical devices. In light of the above discussion, it is apparent that there is a need for a system to configure a unit in a health monitoring and health caring systems automatically without human intervention.

C) OBJECT OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

[0010] The primary object of the present invention is to provide an automatic device configuration management system for Patient Monitoring System (PMS).

[0011] Another object of the present invention is to provide a unique method for automatically configuring various settings in a patient monitoring system with minimal user intervention.

[0012] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic device configuration management system for patient monitoring system to reduce the configuration time and to reduce the errors due to the human intervention.

[0013] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic device configuration system for patient monitoring system with a personal computer (PC) user interface viewer to enable the user to input all the required entries such as unit serial number, all unit modification (mod) status, model etc., to configure the PMS unit.

[0014] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic device configuration system to automatically configure various system parameters in a patient monitoring units without human interface in less time.

[0015] These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

D) SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0016] The above mentioned shortcomings, disadvantages and problems are addressed herein and which will be understood by reading and studying the following specification.

[0017] The various embodiments of the present invention provide an automatic device configuration management system for patient monitoring system (PMS). The system automatically configures various settings in a patient monitoring system with minimal user intervention.

[0018] According to one embodiment of the present invention, an automatic device for configuring patient monitoring system units has a personal computer connected to a patient monitoring unit to be configured. The patient monitoring system is provided with a slave controller called power supply unit (PSU) controller and a main controller. The personal computer is loaded with configuration software to receive and transmit an input configuration data to the patient monitoring unit to be configured through a unique communication protocol to configure the patient monitoring unit automatically.

[0019] The configuration software is executed on the personal computer to display a graphical user interface to enable the user to input the configuration data. The configuration data includes product name, model number and serial number of the patient monitoring unit to be configured, language and the functions to be executed. The functions to be executed include enabling of Arrhythmia, disabling of Arrhythmia, enabling of No breath, disabling of No breath. The personal computer transmits all the configuration data to the slave controller in the patient monitoring unit to be configured through a unique communication protocol such as RS 232 communication standard. The slave controller forwards the received configuration data to the main controller in the patient monitoring unit to be configured through a unique communication protocol such as 12C protocol. The personal computer transmits the configuration data and commands for configuring the personal monitoring unit to the slave controller in a binary coded decimal (BCD) format. The personal computer configures the personal monitoring unit in batches or individually.

[0020] According to one embodiment of the present invention the auto configuration software is run in PC and to enable the PC to communicate input configuration data in the form of commands to the PMS through RS232 port (Com Port). The PMS receives the command through the CNS (Central Nursing Station) port. The input configuration data received through the CNS port is passed to the slave controller or power supply unit (PSU) controller in the PMS through transistor to transistor (TTL)- RS232 level converter. The slave controller (PSU controller) formats the received configuration data and sends the formatted data to the main controller through I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) protocol. The TTL- RS232 converter allows the main controller to communicate with the PC using a standard serial cable and the RS232 port to receive the configuration data to configure the PMS accordingly.

[0021] The auto configuration system communicates with the slave (PSU) controller to transfer all the entered data during boot up period and stores the data in a buffer. When the PMS does not receive any configuration command during the boot-up process, the CNS port is switched to the main controller to configure the system automatically in real-time mode. A particular command number is selected by the user to choose the configuration mode. When the power is switched ON, the main controller polls the PSU controller once by sending the command, to know the status of the configuration mode. When the status responded by the PSU corresponds to a configuration mode, the auto unit configuration settings information are transmitted by the main controller to the PSU controller. When a debugging mode is detected after the transmission of the configuration command number, the main controller forwards the module communication error status to the PSU. In the same manner, the sequence of commands are transmitted with the command number, format, range, number of bytes and encoding scheme by the main controller for performing an auto configuration setting process.

[0022] The automatic configuration software program loaded on the personal computer is executed to configure the PMS unit very easily in few seconds without any human intervention. The configuration software is run to display graphical interface to the user of the personal computer to enable the user to input all the required entries such as unit serial number, all unit modification (mod) status, model etc., to configure the patient monitoring system unit.

[0023] The auto configuration system communicates with the slave (PSU) controller to transfer all the entered data during boot up time and stores it in buffer. When the patient monitoring unit is in configuration mode during boot up period, the PSU controller repackages all the received data and transmits the repackaged data to the main controller. Finally the main controller configures the unit according to the user input, when unit is in configuration mode. Thus the system reduces the configuration time and the errors due to less human intervention.

[0024] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the auto configuration software is run on a personal computer. During the start up of the computer, the software loads the pervious settings saved in a settings file to the Graphical User Interface (GUI).

The user edits these values by going to each field. The system configuration operation is started by pressing the start button. The software is executed to continuously poll the PMS with configuration command until an acknowledgement is received. After receiving the acknowledgement, the PC sends the first configuration data packet to the PMS and checks for an acknowledgement. When the PC receives the acknowledgement for the receipt of the first configuration data packet from the PMS, the PC sends the next configuration data packet and again checks for the acknowledgement. When all the configuration data are passed to the system successfully, the PC notifies the user that the configuration is completed. Also the PC increments the serial number, when the auto increment check box is selected in serial number tab. When an error is occurred during the transfer of configuration data, the PC intimates the user with a message "Error in configuration" and waits for the next unit. The user stops the system configuration operation either by pressing the stop button in the GUI or by closing the application. While closing the application, the software saves the settings.

[0025] When the PMS is turned on, the CNS port is switched to the slave (PSU) controller and the slave (PSU) controller checks for the transmission of configuration data through the CNS port. When the configuration data is received, the PSU sends an acknowledgement to the PC and set the system in to configuration mode. After setting the system to configuration mode slave (PSU) controller collects the configuration data and forwards the collected configuration data to the master or main controller and the main controller configures the unit based on the received configuration data. After completing the configuration process, the main controller sends a configuration completed message to the slave (PSU) controller and the slave (PSU) controller restarts the system. When the PMS didn't receive the configuration command during the boot-up process, the CNS port is switched to the main controller to configure the system in real¬time mode.

[0026] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the slave controller (PSU) and the main controller (mother board) in the PMS communicate with each other through a standard l2C protocol to transfer the configuration data to configure the PMS. In one embodiment, the power supply controller works as a slave controller and the mother board processor works as a main controller.

[0027] In order to read a parameter from the power supply controller, the mother board processor sends the command for that parameter. When the mother board processor queries to the power supply controller, the power supply controller replies in the standard binary format. In the same way, the mother board processor sends the command for a parameter in a standard binary format to the power supply controller to write a parameter to the power supply controller. The standard binary format includes a byte 1 which corresponds to the least significant byte which is sent immediately after the command number. According to one embodiment of the present invention, all the commands are sent to the PSU in BCD (Binary-coded decimal) format. The sequence of commands sent to the main board processor for auto configuration settings are product type, model type, unit serial number, no breath En/Dis, Arrhythmia En/Dis, unit module status. Each command is assigned with a command number, format, range, number of bytes and encoding scheme.

E) BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] The other objects, features and advantages will occur to those skilled in the art from the following description of the preferred embodiment and the accompanying drawings in which:

[0029] FIG. 1 illustrates a functional block diagram of an auto configuration system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0030] FIG. 2 illustrates a flow chart explaining the operation of a personal computer loaded with auto configuration software in the auto configuration system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] FIG. 3 shows a user interface window displayed in the auto configuration system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0032] FIG. 4 illustrates a flow chart explaining the auto configuration process performed in patient monitoring system (PMS) side in the auto configuration system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0033] FIG. 5a and FIG. 5b illustrate a table of the sequence of commands sent from the main board for auto configuration of PMS unit in the auto configuration system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0034] Although specific features of the present invention are shown in some drawings and not in others. This is done for convenience only as each feature may be combined with any or all of the other features in accordance with the present invention.

F) DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0035] In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which the specific embodiments that may be practiced is shown by way of illustration. These embodiments are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the embodiments and it is to be understood that the logical, mechanical and other changes may be made without departing from the scope of the embodiments. The following detailed description is therefore not to be taken in a limiting sense.

[0036] The various embodiments of the present invention provide an auto configuration management system for the patient monitoring system (PMS) units. It automatically configures various settings in a patient monitoring system with minimal user intervention. The auto configuration system comprises of a personal computer loaded with auto configuration software connected to a patient monitoring system provided with slave controller or power supply unit controller (PSU) and main controller. The auto configuration software is executed on the personal computer to communicate the input configuration data to the slave (PSU) unit controller during boot up time. Then the slave controller forwards the received configuration data to the main controller for configuring the PMS unit accordingly. When the slave controller does not receive any configuration command during the boot up process, the CNS port is switched to the main controller to configure the system automatically in real-time mode.

[0037] According to one embodiment of the present invention, an automatic device for configuring patient monitoring system units has a personal computer connected to a patient monitoring unit to be configured. The personal computer is loaded with configuration software to receive and transmit an input configuration data to the patient monitoring unit to be configured through a unique communication protocol to configure the patient monitoring unit automatically. The configuration software is executed on the personal computer to display a graphical user interface to enable the user to input the configuration data. The configuration data includes product name, model number and serial number of the patient monitoring unit to be configured, language and the functions to be executed. The functions to be executed include enabling of Arrhythmia, disabling of Arrhythmia, enabling of No breath, disabling of No breath. The personal computer transmits all the configuration data to a slave controller in the patient monitoring unit to be configured through a unique communication protocol such as RS 232 communication standard. The slave controller forwards the received configuration data to a master controller in the patient monitoring unit to be configured through a unique communication protocol such as I2C protocol. The personal computer transmits the configuration data and commands for configuring the personal monitoring unit to the slave controller in a BCD format. The personal computer configures the personal monitoring unit in batches or individually.

[0038] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the auto configuration software is run on PC to communicate the input configuration data from the user in the form of commands to the PMS through RS232 port (Com Port). The command received through the CNS (Central nursing station) port in the PMS is passed to the slave (PSU) controller through TTL to RS232 level converter. The slave (PSU) converter formats the received configuration data and forwards the formatted configuration data to the main controller through I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) protocol. The TTL to RS232 Converter allows a main controller to communicate with a PC using a standard serial cable and the RS232 port. The slave controller (PSU) and the main controller (mother board) in the PMS communicate with each other through a standard I2C protocol to collect the input configuration data and to configure the PMS accordingly. In the present invention, the power supply controller acts as a slave controller and the mother board processor works as a main controller.

[0039] According to one embodiment of the present invention, the auto configuration software is executed on the personal computer to configure PMS unit automatically based on the input configuration data. During the execution of the software start-up, a Graphical User Interface (GUI) is displayed and the pervious settings saved in a settings file are loaded to the GUI. The user edits these values by going to each field. The system configuration process is started by pressing the start button and closed by pressing the stop button in the GUI or by closing the application.

[0040] When the patient monitoring unit is in configuration mode during the boot up process, the PSU controller collects all the input configuration data from the personal computer and transmits the collected input configuration data to the main controller. The main controller finally configures the PMS unit according to the input user configuration data, when the PMS unit is in configuration mode, the input configuration data are sent to the slave controller from the personal computer in the form of commands. All the commands are sent to the PSU in BCD (Binary-coded decimal) format. The sequence of commands sent to the main board for auto configuration settings are product type, unit modification status, model type, unit serial number, no breath En/Dis, Arrhythmia En/Dis, unit module status. Each command is assigned with the command number, format, range, number of bytes and encoding scheme. The system reduces the configuration time and reduces the errors due to less human intervention.

[0041] FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of an auto configuration system for patient monitoring units according to one embodiment of the present invention. The auto configuration setup comprises of a personal computer (PC) 101 loaded with auto configuration software 102 and a patient monitoring system 104 with slave controller or power supply unit (PSU) controller 109 and main controller 111. The configuration software 102 will run in PC 101 and the PC 101 is communicatively connected to the PMS (Patient Monitoring System) 104 through RS232 port (Com Port) 105 to transmit the input configuration data by the user in the form of commands. The PMS 104 receives this command through the CNS (Central nursing station) port 106. The received commands are passed to the slave (PSU) controller 109 through transistor to transistor logic (TTL) to RS232 converter 107. Slave (PSU) controller 109 formats the received configuration data and forwards the formatted configuration data to the main controller 111 through I2C protocol 110. The TTL to RS232 Converter 107 allows a main controller 1 ] 1 to communicate with a PC 101 using a standard serial cable 106 and the RS232 port 105. The TTL to RS232 converter 107 and slave controller 109 communicates with each other through UART (universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter) 108. In order to configure the PMS 104, the slave controller (PSU) 104 and the main controller (mother board) 11 1 in the PMS 104 communicate with each other through a standard I2C protocol 110. The power supply controller 109 works as a slave controller and the main controller 1 11 works as a master controller.

[0042] The PC 101 communicates with the slave (PSU) unit controller 109 to transfer all the data entered by the user during boot up time and stores it in a buffer. When the PMS 104 does not receive any configuration command, during boot-up process, the CNS port 106 is switched to the main controller 111 to configure the PMS unit 104 automatically in real-time mode.

[0043] FIG. 2 illustrates a flow chart explaining the working of auto configuration software used in the auto configuration system according to one embodiment of the present invention. With respect to FIG.2, the auto configuration software loaded on the personal computer is executed to configure the PMS unit automatically based on the input configuration data. The software is executed to display a GUI to receive the input configuration data and the previous settings saved in a settings file are loaded to the GUI (201). Then the GUI settings are displayed (202). The user edits these values by going to each field in GUI. The PC waits for the start command input by the user. The system configuration process is started by pressing the soft start button provided in the GUI (203). The software is executed to continuously poll the PMS with configuration command until it receives an acknowledgement (204). The software checks for the receipt of the acknowledgement of the configuration command sent to the PMS during a booting process (205). After receiving the acknowledgement of the receipt of the configuration command from the PMS, PC sends the first configuration data packet to the PMS in the form of commands (206). Then the PC checks for the acknowledgement transmitted from the PMS for the receipt of the first configuration data packet sent from the PC (207). When the PC receives the acknowledgement, the PC sends the next data packet and checks again for the acknowledgement. The process is repeated until all the input configuration data are transmitted to the PMS and the acknowledgements are received. When the entire configuration data is passed to the PMS unit successfully, the PC intimates the user that the configuration is completed (209). Also the PC increments the serial number when auto increment check box is selected in serial number tab. When an acknowledgement is not received during the configuration data transfer process or an error occurred during the configuration data transfer process, the PC intimate the user with a message "Error in configuration" and wait for the next unit (208). The user stops the system configuration process either by pressing the stop button in the GUI or by closing the application. During the closing of the application, the software saves the final settings.

[0044] FIG. 3 illustrates a user interface window 301 displayed on the auto configuration system according to one embodiment of the present invention. With respect to FIG.3, the GUI 301 is displayed to enable the user to input the desired configuration data and the settings. The GUI 301 provides several windows to enable the user to input all the required entries such as product type, model type, unit serial number, no breath En/Dis, Arrhythmia En/Dis and module status entry by entering the desired settings in the PC application. The patient monitoring system is configured by transferring the information over I2C bus. During the start-up of the software, the previous settings saved in a settings file are loaded to the GUI. The user edits these values by going to each field. The system configuration process is started by pressing the soft start button provided in the GUI. When the PMS does not receive any configuration command during boot-up process, the CNS port in the PMS is switched to the main controller to configure the system automatically in real-time mode. Thus the system automatically configures the PMS very easily in few seconds without any human intervention.

[0045] FIG. 4 illustrates a flow chart explaining the auto configuration process performed in patient monitoring system (PMS) side using the auto configuration system according to one embodiment. The PMS is turned ON and connected to the PC (401). The CNS port in the PMS is switched to the slave (PSU) controller to receive the data transmitted from the PC through the CNS port (402) and the slave (PSU) controller checks for the configuration command sent from the PC (403). When the configuration data is received, the PSU sends an acknowledgement to the PC (404). When the configuration command is not received from the PC, then the CNS port is switched to the main controller (405) and the PMS is set to the normal mode (406).

[0046] After sending the acknowledgment to the PC for the receipt of the configuration command, the PSU set the PMS unit in the configuration mode (407). After setting the PMS unit to configuration mode, the slave (PSU) controller collects and reads the configuration data sent from the PC (408). The PSU forwards an acknowledgement to PC for the receipt of each configuration data received from the PC (409). The PSU packages and formats all the configuration data received from the PC and forwards all the packaged configuration data to the main controller (410). The main controller configures the PMS unit based on the received configuration data. When the configuration process is completed, the main controller forwards a configuration completion message to the PSU (411). The slave (PSU) controller restarts the system after the receipt of the configuration completion message from the main controller (412). When the PMS didn't receive the configuration command during boot-up process, the CNS port is switched to the main controller to configure the system in real-time mode.

[0047] When the patient monitoring unit is in configuration mode during boot up process, the PSU controller repackages all the data and transmits the repackaged configuration data to the main controller. The main controller configures the unit according to the user input, when the PMS unit is in configuration mode. It reduces the configuration time and hence reduces the errors due to less human intervention. All the configuration data are sent in the form of commands to the PSU in BCD (Binary-coded decimal) format. The sequence of commands sent to the main controller for auto configuration settings are product type, model type, unit serial number, no breath En/Dis, Arrhythmia En/Dis, unit module status. Each command is assigned with the command number, format, range, number of bytes and encoding scheme.

[0048] FIG. 5a and FIG. 5b illustrate a table for sending sequence of commands from main controller for auto configuration of PMS unit. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the slave controller (PSU) and the main controller (mother board) in the PMS communicate with each other through a standard I2C protocol, in order to configure the PMS. In one embodiment of the present invention, the power supply controller works as a slave and the main controller works as a master.

[0049] The Power supply controller communicates to the main controller in the mother board through 12C protocol. It is a two line communication which has a clock line (SCL) & data line (SDA). A communication is started, when there is a HIGH to LOW transition on the SDA line and the SCL is kept in HIGH. The communication is stopped, when there is a LOW to HIGH transition on the SDA line and the SCL is kept in HIGH.

[0050] The slave addresses are given as follows. The Address for write will be 0XB2. The Address for read will be 0XB3.

[0051] Every byte put on the SDA line must be 8-bits long. The number of bytes that can be transmitted per transfer is unrestricted. It is represented by "Bytel, Byte 2, , Byte n." Data is transferred with the most significant bit (MSB) first.

[0052] The acknowledge-related clock pulse is generated by the main controller. The transmitter releases the SDA line (HIGH) during the acknowledge clock pulse. The receiver must pull down the SDA line during the acknowledge clock pulse so that it remains stable LOW during the HIGH period of this clock pulse.

[0053] All the commands are sent to the PSU in BCD (Binary-coded decimal) format. The sequence of commands sent to the main controller for auto configuration settings are product type, model type, unit serial number, no breath En/Dis, Arrhythmia En/Dis, unit module status. Each command is assigned with the command number, format, range, number of bytes and encoding scheme.

[0054] In order to read the parameter sent from the power supply controller, the main controller sends a command for that parameter to the power supply controller. When the main controller queries to the power supply controller, the PSU replies in the standard binary format. In the same way, to write a parameter to the power supply controller, the main controller sends the command for that parameter in a standard binary format. The standard binary format includes a bytel which corresponds to the least significant bye which is sent immediately after the command number.

[0055] To read a parameter sent from the power supply unit, the main controller sends the command for that parameter in the following format

When the main controller queries the Power Supply controller, it replies in following format
To write a parameter to the power supply controller, the Main controller sends a command for that parameter in the following format.

[0056] Consider for example for command number 15 the serial number T08PN1234 is sent as A = T (ASCII value of T'). B=0 (ASCII value of '0'), C=8 (ASCII value of '8'), D=l (ASCII value of ' 1'), E=2 (ASCII value of '2'), F=3 (ASCII value of '3') and G=4 (ASCII value of '4'), 'PN' is for Planet Nano, and 'SN' is for star Nano, depending on the product selection.

[0057] When the command number 21 is sent, then there is no response/acknowledge from the PSU end to the motherboard for this command.

[0058] When the command number 12 is sent, then the configuration mode is selected. When the PMS is turned On, the main controller polls the PSU controller once by sending the command 12, to know the status of the configuration mode. When the status responded by the PSU is configuration mode, the auto unit configuration settings information are transmitted by the main controller to the PSU controller. When a debugging mode is detected after sending the command number 12, the main controller sends the module communication error status to the PSU.

[0059] In the same manner, the sequence of commands are sent by the main controller for the auto configuration setting process with the command number, format, range, number of bytes and encoding scheme as shown in the table 5a and 5b.

G) ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION

[0060] The various embodiments of the present invention provide an auto configuration management system for patient monitoring system (PMS) units. It automatically configures various settings such as product type, model type, unit serial number, No breath En/Dis, arrhythmia En/Dis and module status by entering the desired settings in the PC application and configures the patient monitoring system by transferring this information over I2C Bus. The system configures a Patient Monitoring System with minimal user intervention. It also reduces the configuration time and reduces the errors due to the human intervention.

[0061] Although the invention is described with various specific embodiments, it will be obvious for a person skilled in the art to practice the invention with modifications. However, all such modifications are deemed to be within the scope of the claims.
[0062] It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the present invention described herein and all the statements of the scope of the invention which as a matter of language might be said to fall there between.

CLAIMS

What is claimed is:

1. An automatic device for configuring patient monitoring system units including a slave controller and a main controller, the device comprising:

A personal computer connected to a patient monitoring unit to be configured; Wherein the personal computer is loaded with configuration software to receive and transmit an input configuration data to the patient monitoring unit to be configured through a unique communication protocol to configure the patient monitoring unit automatically.

2. The device according to claim I, wherein the configuration software is executed on the personal computer to display a graphical user interface to enable the user to input the configuration data.

3. The device according to claim 1, wherein the configuration data includes product name, model number and serial number of the patient monitoring unit to be configured, language and the functions to be executed.

4. The device according to claim 3, wherein the functions to be executed includes enabling of Arrhythmia, disabling of Arrhythmia, enabling of No breath, disabling of No breath.

5. The device according to claim 1. wherein the personal computer transmits all the configuration data to a slave controller in the patient monitoring unit to be configured through a unique communication protocol during booting process.

6. The device according to claim 5, wherein the unique communication protocol is RS 232 communication standard.

7. The device according to claim 5, wherein the slave controller formats and forwards the received configuration data to a master controller in the patient monitoring unit to be configured through a unique communication protocol.

8. The device according to claim 7, wherein the communication protocol is I C protocol.

9. The device according to claim 1, wherein the personal computer transmits the configuration data through commands for configuring the personal monitoring unit to the slave controller in a BCD format.

10. The device according to claim 9, wherein each command is assigned with unique command number, format, range, number of bytes and encoding scheme.

11. The device according to claim 1, wherein the PC communicates with the slave controller to transfer all the data entered during boot up time and stores it in the buffer during the configuration mode.

12. The device according to claim 1, wherein the slave controller collects all the data and transmits to the motherboard to enable the motherboard to configures the unit according to the user input during boot up when the patient monitoring unit is in configuration mode.

13. The device according to claim 1, wherein the personal computer communicates with the main controller directly to configure the system automatically in real-time mode, when the slave controller does not receive any configuration command during boot-up process.

14. The device according to claim 1, wherein the personal computer configures the personal monitoring unit in batches or individually.