A) TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present invention generally relates to a patient monitoring system and particularly to sensors connected to a patient. The present invention more particularly relates to a system and method to validate the integration of multiple sensors with a single patient.

B) BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] A patient monitoring system is generally used for repeated and continuous measurement of the patient’s physiological function. The electronic patient monitors are used to collect, display, store, and interpret physiological data. In a hospital or other health care setting, it is necessary to observe critical physiological conditions of a patient, such as temperature, breath rate, pulse, blood pressure, electrocardiogram (ECG) data, and cardiac output (CO) etc.

[0003] The physiological condition data is detected and acquired by the sensors attached to the patient. The sensors are connected to a monitor through cables. The monitor is connected to a central system for recording and displaying the data. The various sensors of the patient monitor may be connected to a single patient or multiple patients. The sensors are connected to patients to monitor physiological parameters such as electrocardiogram (ECG), Non-Invasive Blood Pressure (NIBP), Saturation of Hemoglobin with Oxygen as measured by Pulse Oxirnetry (Sp02), temperature etc. The data received from the patients in real time are stored in the patient monitor for future reference.

[0004] Multi-parameter patient monitors are used to display various biological signals from a patient’s body. All these signals are recorded and kept in the data bank for future references. This stored patient data plays a vital role in the medical patient monitoring. Doctors can use this data for tracking the roots of malicious diseases and it can prove very critical in the process of patient treatment. A single patient monitor displays and stores data from one or more sensors connected to a particular or specific patient, but there is no provision in the present patient monitors to detect whether all the sensors connected to a patient monitor are attached to the same patient or not.

[0005] Inadvertently one sensor may be connected to one patient and another sensor from the same patient monitor is connected to different patients. In such cases, the physiological parameters of two different patients are recorded in the record of a single patient thereby leading to misinterpretation and wrong diagnosis by a doctor.

[0006] Hence, there is a need to develop an intelligent patient monitoring system to identify and detect whether all the sensors communicatively connected to a patient monitor, are connected to a single patient or not.

C) OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The primary object of the present invention is to develop an intelligent patient monitoring system to validate the integration of multiple sensors with a single patient.

[0008] Another object of the present invention is to develop an intelligent padent monitoring system to detect and identify whether the various sensors of the patient monitor are connected to two or more patients.

[0009] Yet another object of the present invention is to develop an intelligent patient monitoring system to display and store biological signals from one or more sensors connected to a single patient in the data bank for future references.

[0010] 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.

B) SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0011] The above mentioned shortcomings, disadvantages and problems are addressed herein and which will be understood by reading and studying the following specification.

[0012] The various embodiments of the present invention provide an intelligent patient monitoring system to detect and identify whether the various sensors of the patient monitor are connected to two or more patients. The system ensures that all the sensors of the patient monitor are connected to a single patient. The system provides an alarm and a message to the user to cheek the connection of sensors when the sensors of a patient monitor are connected to different patients.

[0013] According to one embodiment of the present invention, pluralities of sensors are attached to one patient. A processor is connected to the plurality of the sensors. A display controller is connected to the processor. A display monitor is connected to the display controller. The processor receives and compares the detected parameter values from the sensors to judge whether the sensors are connected to same patient or different patient.

[0014] The sensors includes, thermometer, Electrocardiogram (ECG), Saturation of Hemoglobin with oxygen as measured by Pulse oximetry (SPO2), Non invasive blood pressure monitor (NIBP), cardiac output (CO). Each of the sensors measures the heart rate valves in addition to the intended physiologic& parameter. The intended physiological parameter includes temperature, heart rate value, saturated oxygen level, blood pressure value and cardiac output.

[0015] The processor receives and compares the heart rate values measured by each sensor to judge whether all the sensors are connected to the same patient. The processor judges that all the sensors are connected to the same patient, when the heart rate values received from each sensor are within a tolerance value. The processor controls the display controller to display an alarm and a message on the display monitor to prompt the user to check whether all the sensors are connected w (lie same patient, when the processor judges that all the sensors are not connected to the same patient.

[0016] According to another embodiment, an intelligent patient monitoring system is connected to several sensors attached to a patient to measure the parameters such as
temperature, Non-Invasive Blood Pressure (NIBP), Saturation of Hemoglobin with Oxygen as measured by Pulse Oximetry (SpO2), electrocardiogram (ECG), cardiac output (CD) and so on. The patient monitor also records the heart rate values from each sensor output signal besides the intended physiological parameter measured by the each sensor. A processor is used to compare the heart rate values received from each sensor to judge whether the heart rate values are within a preset threshold level. The processor detects that all the sensors are connected to the same patient, when the heart rate values received from each sensor are within the preset threshold value. When the processor detects that the sensors are not connected to the same patient, then an alert message is displayed on the display device with/without an audible sound to prompt the paramedical personnel to check whether all the sensors connected to a patient monitor are attached to same patient.

[0017] The intelligent patient monitoring system provides an idiot-proof arrangement. It improves the intelligence of a patient monitor in terms of handling patient data. With this kind of check in place, there is a very little probability of accidental misreporting of patient data. Thus the invention improves overall sophistication of the patient monitoring process.

E) BRIEF DESCRJPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] 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:

[0019] FIG. I illustrates a functional block diagram of an intelligent patient monitoring system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0020) FIG. 2 illustrates a flow chart explaining the process of detecting whether all the sensors of a patient monitor are connected to a single patient or not in an intelligent patient monitoring system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] 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

[0022] 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.

[0023] The various embodiments of the present invention provide an intelligent patient monitoring system to detect and identify whether the various sensors of the patient monitor are connected to two or more patients.

[0024] According to one embodiment of the present invention, pluralities of sensors connected to patient monitor are attached to one patient. A processor is connected to the plurality of the sensors. A display controller is connected to the processor. A display monitor is connected to the display controller. The processor receives and compares the detected parameter values from the sensors to judge whether the sensors are connected to same patient or different patient.

[0025] The sensors includes, thermometer, Electrocardiogram (ECG), Saturation of Hemoglobin with oxygen as measured by Pulse oximetry (SPO), Non invasive blood pressure monitor (NIBP), cardiac output (CO). Each of the sensors measures the heart rate values in addition to the intended physiological parameter. The intended physiological parameter includes temperature, heart rate value, saturated oxygen level, blood pressure value and cardiac output.

[0026] The processor receives and compares the heart rate values measured by each sensor to judge whether all the sensors are connected to the same patient. The processor judges that alt the sensors are connected to the same patient, when the heart rate values received from each sensor are within a tolerance value. The processor judges that all the sensors are not connected to the same patient, when the heart rate values received from each sensor are not within a tolerance value. The processor controls the display controller to display an alarm and a message on the display monitor to prompt the user to check whether all the sensors are connected to the same patient, when the processor judges that all the sensors are not connected to the same patient. The processor controls the display controller to display a message on the display monitor to prompt the user to check whether all the measure physiological parameter data received from the sensors are recorded in the history of the same patient, when the processor judges that all the sensors are not connected to the same patient.

[0027] FIG. I shows a functional block diagram of an intelligent patient monitoring system according to one embodiment of the present invention. With respect to FIG. I, pluralities of sensors 2-5 are attached to a patient to measure parameters such as temperature, NIBP, Sp02, and ECG etc. The sensors 2-5 include a temperature sensor 2, NIRP 3, Sp02 4, and ECG 5. Each sensor 2-5 measures a respective physiological parameter. The sensors 2-5 also provide information about patient heart rate (I-fR) / pulse rate (PR) along with the intended parameter they are designated to measure. A central processing unit 6 is connected to the sensors 2-5 to receive the physiological parameter data acquired by the sensors 2-5. The CPU 6 compares the HR/PR values acquired from each sensor 2-5 to detect whether all the sensors 2-5 are connected to the same patient I only. The CPU 6 detects that all the sensors 2-5 are connected to the same patient I, when the received HR/PR values from the different sensors 2-5 are within a preset threshold value. When the central processing unit 6 detects that all the sensors 2-5 are not connected to the same patient 1, an alert message is passed to a display unit 9 through a display controller 8. The alert message is displayed on the display unit 9 with/without an audible sound to prompt the para medical staff to check whether all the sensors 2-5 are attached to the same patient I When all the sensors 2-5 are connected to the same patient I, the data received from the sensors 2-5 are stored in a memory 7 for future reference. The acquired data and the results are stored in the memory 7 for future reference.

[0028] FIG. 2 illustrates a flow chart explaining the process of detecting whether aH the sensors of a patient monitor are connected to a single patient or not in an intelligent patient monitoring system according to one embodiment of the present invention. With respect to FIG. 2, several sensors are attached to a patient for monitoring various physiological parameters (202). The sensors include temperature sensor, Non-Invasive Blood Pressure (NIBP) monitor, Saturation of Hemoglobin with Oxygen as measured by Pulse Oximetry (Sp02) probe, electrocardiogram (ECG) probe, cardiac output (CO) probe etc. Each sensor measures heart rate value in addition to the intended physiological parameter. The outputs of the sensors are passed to a patient monitoring system provided with a processor and a display. Details of the patient such as identity number (Id), name of the patient, age, gender, height, weight etc., are entered in the patient monitoring system so that trend is stored for a specific patient only.

[0029] The processor in the patient monitoring system acquires and records the heart rare (HR) / pulse rate (PR) measurement from each sensor output besides the respective physiological parameter measured by the each sensor (204). The acquired waveform and parameter data from the sensors are displayed continuously on a screen of the patient monitoring system. The HRIPR values received from each sensor are compared by the processor to judge whether the FIR/PR values are within a preset threshold leave to detect whether all the sensors are connected to a same patient (206). The processor judges that
check whether all the sensors are connected to the same patient, when the processor judges that all the sensors are not connected to the same patient (208). The processor controls the display controller to display a message on the display monitor to prompt the user to check whether all the measure physiological parameter data received from the sensors are recorded in the history of the same patient, when the processor judges that all the sensors are not connected to the same patient.

[0030] The trend storage of the patient monitoring system is not started unless a verification message, that all the sensors of periodic patient monitoring system are connected to a single patient and none of the sensors collects data from other patient, is received from a processor. An alert message is displayed on the display device with/without an audible sound to indicate to the paramedical or medical personnel that all the sensors are not connected to the same patient. The alert message is displayed to prompt the medical personnel to check whether all the sensors are connected to the same patient when the processor detects that the HR/PR values received from the sensors are not with in a tolerance value. Once the problem is corrected by the paramedical personnel, a prompt message is displayed to provide an input from a user to confirm whether the user wants to continue with an anonymous storage or to store the received data in the history of a patient. If the input is ‘yes’, the anonymous trend storage is done under anonymous patient identification. Otherwise the patient waveform and parameter data are displayed continuously on the screen of the patient monitoring system without the trend storage.

G) ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION

[0031] The various embodiments of the present invention provide an intelligent patient monitoring system to validate the integration of multiple sensors with single patient. The intelligent patient monitoring system detects and indicates whether the various sensors of a patient monitor are connected to same patient or not. The system provides an idiot- proof arrangement. The system improves the intelligence of patient monitor in terms of handling patient data. The system prevents the accidental misreporting of patient data.

[0032] 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.

[0033] It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover au 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 intelligent patient monitoring system comprising:

pluralities of sensors attached to one patient;

a processor connected to the pluralities of the sensors;

a display controller connected to the processor; and

a display monitor connected to the display controller;

wherein the processor receives and compares the detected parameter values from the sensors to judge whether the sensors are connected to same patient or different patients.

2. The system according to claim I, wherein each of the sensors measures the heart rate values in addition to an intended physiological parameter.

3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the processor receives and compares the heart rate values measured by each sensor to judge whether all the sensors are connected to the same patient.

4. The system according to claim , wherein the processor judges that all the sensors are connected to the same patient, when the heart rate values received from each sensor are within a tolerance value.

5. The system according to claim I, wherein the processor judges that all the sensors are not connected to the same patient, when the heart rate values received from each sensor are not within a tolerance value.

6. The system according to claim I, wherein the processor controls the display controller to display an alarm and a message on the display monitor to prompt the user to check whether all the sensors are connected to the same patient, when the processor judges that all the sensors are not connected to the same patient.

7. The system according to claim I, wherein the processor controls the display controller to display a message on the display monitor to prompt the user to check whether all the measured physiological parameter data received from the sensors are recorded in the history of the same patient, when the processor judges that all the sensors are not connected to the same patient.

8. The system according to claim I, wherein the sensors include thermometer, Electrocardiogram (ECG, Saturation of Hemoglobin with Oxygen as measured by Pulse Oximetry (SPO2), Non invasive blood pressure monitor (NIBP), cardiac output (CO).

9. The system according to claim 2, wherein the intended physiological parameter includes, temperature, heart rate value, saturated oxygen level, blood pressure value, cardiac output.