U.S. patent application number 15/830155 was filed with the patent office on 2018-06-07 for remote monitoring of telemedicine device.
The applicant listed for this patent is Elwha LLC. Invention is credited to Roderick A. Hyde, Jordin T. Kare, Elizabeth A. Sweeney, Lowell L. Wood, JR..
Application Number | 20180160073 15/830155 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 52994773 |
Filed Date | 2018-06-07 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180160073 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hyde; Roderick A. ; et
al. |
June 7, 2018 |
REMOTE MONITORING OF TELEMEDICINE DEVICE
Abstract
Methods and systems for monitoring usage of a telemedicine
system are described. A monitoring system at a hospital or other
central monitoring location provides for communication between
personnel at a monitoring location (e.g. a medical care provider)
and patient and/or caregiver at a patient location (e.g., the
patient's home) via a telemedicine system. The telemedicine system
may provide for audiovisual or other communication between the
monitoring location and patient location, which may be in
combination with medical monitoring or treatment provided with one
or more associated article of medical equipment. The medical
support monitoring system tracks the amount and type of usage of
telepresence system and/or associated medical equipment. Tracked
information regarding system usage may be used for various
purposes, including billing, quality assurance, data analytics,
including population studies of usage patterns, for example. Usage
information may be linked to identity of patient, caregiver, or
equipment used, or anonymized, depending upon the intended use.
Inventors: |
Hyde; Roderick A.; (Redmond,
WA) ; Kare; Jordin T.; (San Jose, CA) ;
Sweeney; Elizabeth A.; (Seattle, WA) ; Wood, JR.;
Lowell L.; (Bellevue, WA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Elwha LLC |
Bellevue |
WA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
52994773 |
Appl. No.: |
15/830155 |
Filed: |
December 4, 2017 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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14089478 |
Jan 2, 2014 |
9838645 |
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15830155 |
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14068188 |
Oct 31, 2013 |
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14089478 |
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14752138 |
Jun 26, 2015 |
9846763 |
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14068188 |
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13930928 |
Jun 28, 2013 |
9075906 |
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14752138 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04N 7/147 20130101;
Y04S 20/30 20130101; H04N 7/141 20130101; Y04S 20/40 20130101; A61B
5/7445 20130101; G01D 4/02 20130101; Y02B 90/20 20130101; Y02B
90/245 20130101; A61M 2205/3553 20130101; H04N 7/15 20130101; A61B
5/0022 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04N 7/14 20060101
H04N007/14; G01D 4/02 20060101 G01D004/02 |
Claims
1.-75. (canceled)
76. A method of providing telemedicine visual monitoring of a
subject comprising: providing a subject with a telemedicine remote
visualization system in a transport container, the telemedicine
remote visualization system including: an audio input device; an
imaging system; a video output device; an audio output device; a
controllable lighting system including at least one light source,
the controllable lighting system built into or received in the
container; electrical control circuitry built into or received in
the container, the electrical control circuitry configured to
control operation of the audio input device, imaging system, video
output device, audio output device, and controllable lighting
system; and communication circuitry configured to, when the
telemedicine remote visualization system is at a first location,
provide communication between the electrical control circuitry of
the telemedicine remote visualization system and remote electrical
control circuitry at a second location remote from the first
location; when the telemedicine remote visualization system is at
the first location, receiving at the second location a first image
of at least a portion of the subject via the communication
circuitry, wherein the first image was captured at a first lighting
condition with the imaging system, the first image including at
least one feature; detecting the at least one feature of the first
image with image processing circuitry at the second location, the
image processing circuitry including at least one of image
processing hardware and software; determining with lighting
parameter control circuitry at the second location an adjustment to
the controllable lighting system based at least in part on the at
least one detected feature, wherein the adjustment to the
controllable lighting system is determined to modify the amount or
type of medically useful information in the image based upon
analysis of the information content of the image determined from
the at least one detected feature; determining with the lighting
parameter control circuitry at the second location a lighting
control signal based at least in part on the determined adjustment
to the controllable lighting system; when the telemedicine remote
visualization system is at the first location, transmitting the
lighting control signal from the second location to the first
location via the communication circuitry for controlling the
adjustment to the controllable lighting system to provide a second
lighting condition at the first location; and receiving at the
second location a second image of the at least a portion of the
subject via the communication circuitry, wherein the second image
was captured at the second lighting condition with the imaging
system; wherein at least one of the first image and the second
image contains information indicative of a health status of the
subject, and wherein the adjustment to the controllable lighting
system influences at least one of the amount or type of medically
useful information indicative of the health status of the subject
in the second image of the subject.
77. The method of claim 76, wherein the at least one feature
includes at least one of a contrast of at least a portion of the
image, a spatial frequency content of at least a portion of the
image, a shape within at least a portion of the image, a line
within at least a portion of the image, an edge within at least a
portion of the image, a corner within at least a portion of the
image, and a measurement of polarization of at least a portion of
the image.
78. The method of claim 76, including transmitting an imaging
system control signal for controlling an adjustment of the imaging
system to the first location from the second location via the
communication circuitry.
79. The method of claim 76, wherein the lighting control signal
specifies separate adjustments of at least a first controllable
light source and at least a second controllable light source at the
first location.
80. The method of claim 76, including at least one of determining
an identity of the subject prior to providing the subject with the
telemedicine remote visualization system in the transport
container; storing information regarding the provision of the
telemedicine remote visualization system to the subject in a data
storage device at the second location; transmitting an image signal
for display on the video output device to the first location from
the second location via the communication circuitry; and
transmitting an audio signal for generating an audio output on the
audio output device to the first location from the second location
via the communication circuitry.
81. (canceled)
82. The method of claim 79, wherein the lighting control signal
specifies at least one of adjusting an intensity of light from at
least one of the first controllable light source and the second
controllable light source, adjusting an aiming of light from at
least one of the first controllable light source and the second
controllable light source, adjusting a light pulse duration of
light from at least one of the first controllable light source and
the second controllable light source, adjusting a divergence or
convergence of light from at least one of the first controllable
light source and the second controllable light source, adjusting a
spectral content of light from at least one of the first
controllable light source and the second controllable light source,
and adjusting a polarization of light from at least one of the
first controllable light source and the second controllable light
source.
83.-85. (canceled)
86. A telemedicine remote visualization system comprising: an audio
input device; an imaging system adapted to acquire an image of a
subject, the image containing information indicative of a health
status of the subject; a video output device; an audio output
device; a controllable lighting system including at least one light
source adapted to illuminate at least a portion of the subject
during acquisition of the image of the subject and at least one
controllable positioning system configured to adjust at least one
of position, orientation, or aiming of the at least one light
source, the controllable lighting system having at least one
controllable lighting system parameter that influences at least one
of the amount or type of medically useful information indicative of
the health status of the subject in an acquired image of the
subject; first electrical control circuitry operatively connected
to and configured to control operation of the audio input device,
imaging system, video output device, audio output device, and
controllable lighting system, wherein the first electrical control
circuitry includes timing circuitry including a clock, timer, or
counter device; and communication circuitry configured to, when the
telemedicine remote visualization system is at a first location,
provide communication between the first electrical control
circuitry of the telemedicine remote visualization system and
second electrical control circuitry at a second location remote
from the first location; wherein the first electrical control
circuitry is configured to control the at least one controllable
parameter of the controllable lighting system responsive to receipt
of a lighting control signal from the second electrical control
circuitry at the second location to increase at least one of the
amount or type of medically useful information in the acquired
image of the subject, the at least one controllable parameter
including at least one of position, orientation, or aiming of the
at least one light source; and wherein the first electrical control
circuitry is configured to control the generation of a light pulse
by the controllable lighting system, the light pulse having a pulse
amplitude, pulse duration, and pulse delivery time, and wherein the
pulse duration and pulse delivery time are controlled by the timing
circuitry.
87. The telemedicine remote visualization system of claim 86,
including at least one of a diagnostic device, a treatment delivery
device, and a substance delivery device.
88.-89. (canceled)
90. The telemedicine remote visualization system of claim 86,
wherein the communication circuitry is configured to provide
communication with the second electrical control circuitry at the
second location via a wireless communication link.
91. The telemedicine remote visualization system of claim 86,
including a controllable mounting structure operable under control
of at least one of the first electrical control circuitry and the
second electrical control circuitry and configured to support the
controllable lighting system.
92. The telemedicine remote visualization system of claim 86,
including a container, the container including the first electrical
control circuitry built into or received in a receptacle in the
container; the controllable lighting system built into or received
in a receptacle in the container; at least one receptacle adapted
to receive at least one of the imaging system, the video output
device, the audio input device, and the audio output device; and an
outer shell adapted to contain and protect the first electrical
control circuitry, controllable lighting system, and the at least
one of the imaging system, the video output device, the audio input
device, and the audio output device during transport.
93. (canceled)
94. The telemedicine remote visualization system of claim 86,
wherein the controllable lighting system includes at least one of
at least a first light source and a second light source, wherein
the first light source differs from the second light source with
regard to at least one of position, waveband, and polarization of
light produced; and at least one compound light source, the
compound light source including at least two individual light
sources.
95.-97. (canceled)
98. The telemedicine remote visualization system of claim 86,
wherein at least a portion of the telemedicine remote visualization
system is configured as at least one of a hand-held unit, a mobile
robot, a smart phone and a tablet computer.
99. The telemedicine remote visualization system of claim 86,
wherein the imaging system includes at least one of a photocell, a
charge-coupled device, a scanner, a 3D scanner, a 3D imager, a
camera, a single pixel camera, a visual camera, an IR camera, a
stereoscopic camera, a digital camera, a video camera, or a high
speed video camera.
100. The telemedicine remote visualization system of claim 86,
wherein the first electrical control circuitry is configured to
control generation of the light pulse by the controllable lighting
system, wherein controlling generation of the light pulse includes
controlling the time of delivery of the light pulse, and wherein
the first electrical control circuitry is configured to coordinate
acquisition of the image by the imaging system with generation of
the light pulse by the controllable lighting system.
101.-103. (canceled)
104. The telemedicine remote visualization system of claim 86,
wherein the controllable positioning system includes at least one
of a controllable mechanical linkage, a controllable mirror, and a
controllable reflector.
105.-108. (canceled)
109. A method of providing telemedicine visual monitoring of a
subject comprising: acquiring a first image of at least a portion
of a subject at a first location at a first lighting condition with
an imaging system located at the first location under control of
electrical control circuitry, the first image including at least
one first feature; transmitting the acquired first image to a
second location remote from the first location under control of the
electrical control circuitry; receiving a lighting control signal
for controlling an adjustment to a lighting condition at the first
location from the second location under control of the electrical
control circuitry; adjusting at least one controllable light source
at the first location under control of the electrical control
circuitry to provide a second lighting condition responsive to
receiving the lighting control signal for controlling the
adjustment to the lighting condition at the first location, wherein
adjusting the at least one controllable light source includes
adjusting at least one controllable positioning system to control
at least one of position, orientation, or aiming of the at least
one controllable light source; acquiring a second image of the at
least a portion of the subject at the first location at the second
lighting condition with the imaging system located at the first
location under control of the electrical control circuitry, the
second image including at least one second feature; and
transmitting the acquired second image to the second location under
control of the electrical control circuitry; wherein at least one
of the first image and the second image contains medically useful
information indicative of a health status of the subject, and
wherein adjusting the at least one controllable light source at the
first location includes adjusting the at least one controllable
light source to change at least one of the amount or type of
medically useful information contained in the second image based
upon analysis of the information content of the second image
determined from the at least one second feature relative to
information content of the first image determined from the at least
one first feature.
110. The method of claim 109, including acquiring at least one of
the first image and the second image through a compressive imaging
technique.
111. The method of claim 109, including recording the acquired
second image to a data storage device at the first location.
112. The method of claim 109, including adjusting the imaging
system located at the first location.
113. The method of claim 112, including receiving at least one
imaging system control signal from the second location for
controlling an adjustment of at least one of the filtration, pan,
tilt, or zoom of the imaging system; and adjusting the imaging
system in response to the at least one imaging system control
signal.
114. The method of claim 112, including adjusting the imaging
system based at least in part on at least one feature detected from
the first image.
115. The method of claim 109, wherein the at least one controllable
light source at the first location is a first controllable light
source at the first location, and wherein the method includes
separately adjusting at least the first controllable light source
at the first location and at least a second controllable light
source at the first location.
116. An article of manufacture comprising: one or more
non-transitory machine-readable data storage media bearing one or
more instructions for providing a subject with a telemedicine
remote visualization system in a transport container, the
telemedicine remote visualization system including an audio input
device; an imaging system; a video output device; an audio output
device; a controllable lighting system including at least one light
source, the controllable lighting system built into or received in
the container; electrical control circuitry built into or received
in the container, the electrical control circuitry configured to
control operation of the audio input device, imaging system, video
output device, audio output device, and controllable lighting
system; and communication circuitry configured to, when the
telemedicine remote visualization system is at a first location,
provide communication between the electrical control circuitry of
the telemedicine remote visualization system and remote electrical
control circuitry at a second location remote from the first
location; one or more instructions for, when the telemedicine
remote visualization system is at the first location, receiving a
first image of at least a portion of a subject at the second
location via the communication circuitry, wherein the first image
was captured at a first lighting condition with the imaging system
located at the first location; one or more instructions for
detecting the at least one feature of the first image with image
processing circuitry at the second location, the image processing
circuitry including at least one of image processing hardware and
software; one or more instructions for determining with lighting
parameter control circuitry at the second location an adjustment to
the controllable lighting system based at least in part on the at
least one detected feature, wherein the adjustment to the
controllable lighting system is determined to modify the amount or
type of medically useful information in the image based upon
analysis of the information content of the image determined from
the at least one detected feature; one or more instructions for
determining with the lighting parameter control circuitry at the
second location a lighting control signal based at least in part on
the determined adjustment to the controllable lighting system; one
or more instructions for, when the telemedicine remote
visualization system is at the first location, transmitting a
lighting control signal from the second location to the first
location via the communication circuitry for controlling an
adjustment to the controllable lighting system to provide a second
lighting condition at the first location, wherein at least one of
the first image and the second image contains information
indicative of a health status of the subject, and wherein the
adjustment to the controllable lighting system influences at least
one of the amount or type of medically useful information
indicative of the health status of the subject in the second image
of the subject; and one or more instructions for receiving at the
second location a second image of the at least a portion of the
subject via the communication circuitry, wherein the second image
was captured at the second lighting condition with the imaging
system at the first location.
117. The telemedicine remote visualization system of claim 86,
wherein the controllable lighting system includes one or more of an
ultraviolet light source; an infrared light source; a visible light
source; a long-wave infrared light source; a plurality of light
sources each capable of producing a different spectral wavelength
of light, wherein the plurality of light sources are separately
controllable to control the spectral content of light from the
controllable lighting system; a controllable optical system; a
reflector; a lens; a lens controllable to modify the divergence or
convergence of the light from the at least one light source; a
reflector controllable to modify the aiming of the light from the
at least one light source; or a controllable filter adapted to
control the intensity, wavelength, wavelength band, polarization
orientation, or range of polarization orientations of light
produced by the at least one light source.
Description
[0001] If an Application Data Sheet (ADS) has been filed on the
filing date of this application, it is incorporated by reference
herein. Any applications claimed on the ADS for priority under 35
U.S.C. .sctn..sctn. 119, 120, 121, or 365(c), and any and all
parent, grandparent, great-grandparent, etc. applications of such
applications, are also incorporated by reference, including any
priority claims made in those applications and any material
incorporated by reference, to the extent such subject matter is not
inconsistent herewith.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0002] The present application claims the benefit of the earliest
available effective filing date(s) from the following listed
application(s) (the "Priority Applications"), if any, listed below
(e.g., claims earliest available priority dates for other than
provisional patent applications or claims benefits under 35 USC
.sctn. 119(e) for provisional patent applications, for any and all
parent, grandparent, great-grandparent, etc. applications of the
Priority application(s)).
PRIORITY APPLICATIONS
[0003] The present application constitutes a continuation-in-part
of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/068,188, entitled
TELEMEDICINE VISUAL MONITORING DEVICE WITH STRUCTURED ILLUMINATION,
naming RODERICK A. HYDE, JORDIN T. KARE, ELIZABETH A. SWEENEY, AND
LOWELL L. WOOD, JR. as inventors, filed 31 Oct. 2013 with attorney
docket no. 0712-004-002-000000, which is currently co-pending or is
an application of which a currently co-pending application is
entitled to the benefit of the filing date.
[0004] If the listings of applications provided above are
inconsistent with the listings provided via an ADS, it is the
intent of the Applicant to claim priority to each application that
appears in the Domestic Benefit/National Stage Information section
of the ADS and to each application that appears in the Priority
Applications section of this application.
[0005] All subject matter of the Priority Applications and of any
and all applications related to the Priority Applications by
priority claims (directly or indirectly), including any priority
claims made and subject matter incorporated by reference therein as
of the filing date of the instant application, is incorporated
herein by reference to the extent such subject matter is not
inconsistent herewith.
SUMMARY
[0006] In an aspect, a method of communicating usage of a patient
medical support system, includes, but is not limited to, accepting
a first communication from a first user of a first telepresence
system at a patient location via a user input device, the patient
medical support system including the first telepresence system and
an article of medical equipment and the first user being a user of
the patient medical support system; transmitting the first
communication to a second telepresence system at a first monitoring
location via a two-way communication link for delivery to a second
user at the first monitoring location; receiving a second
communication from the second user of the second telepresence
system at the first telepresence system via the two-way
communication link; delivering the second communication to the
first user at the patient location; transmitting an operational
mode data signal indicative of an operational mode of the patient
medical support system to the first monitoring location; and
transmitting a usage data signal indicative of usage of the patient
medical support system in the at least one operational mode to the
first monitoring location. In addition to the foregoing, other
method aspects are described in the claims, drawings, and text
forming a part of the disclosure set forth herein.
[0007] In an aspect, a method of monitoring usage of a patient
medical support system includes, but is not limited to, accepting a
first communication from a first user of a first telepresence
system at a first monitoring location via a user input device;
transmitting the first communication to a second telepresence
system at a patient location remote from the first monitoring
location via a two-way communication link for delivery to a second
user at the patient location, the second user being a user of the
patient medical support system, the patient medical support system
including the second telepresence system and at least one article
of medical equipment; receiving a second communication from the
second user at the first monitoring location via the two-way
communication link; delivering the second communication to the
first user via a user output device, the first telepresence system
including the user output device; receiving a telepresence system
operational mode data signal at the first monitoring location, the
telepresence system operational mode data signal indicative of an
operational mode of the second telepresence system; receiving a
telepresence system usage data signal at the first monitoring
location, the telepresence system usage data signal indicative of
usage of the second telepresence system in the operational mode;
receiving a medical equipment operational mode data signal at the
first monitoring location, the medical equipment operational mode
data signal indicative of an operational mode of the at least one
article of medical equipment; and receiving a medical equipment
usage data signal at the first monitoring location, the medical
equipment usage data signal indicative of usage of the at least one
article of medical equipment in the operational mode. In addition
to the foregoing, other method aspects are described in the claims,
drawings, and text forming a part of the disclosure set forth
herein.
[0008] In an aspect, a patient medical support system includes, but
is not limited to, at least one article of medical equipment for
use at a patient location; a first telepresence system including at
least one user input device adapted to accept a communication from
a first user of the patient medical support system at the patient
location for transmission to a second user of a second telepresence
system at a monitoring location remote from the patient location
and at least one user output device adapted to present a
communication received from the second user at the monitoring
location to the first user; electrical control circuitry configured
to determine a first medical support system operational mode from
at least two different operational modes of the patient medical
support system and determine a first medical support system usage
data signal indicative of an amount of usage of the patient medical
support system in the first medical support system operational
mode; and communication circuitry configured to receive the
communication from the second user using the second telepresence
system at the monitoring location and transmit the communication
from the first user, the first medical support system usage data
signal and an identification data signal to the monitoring
location. In addition to the foregoing, other system aspects are
described in the claims, drawings, and text forming a part of the
disclosure set forth herein.
[0009] In an aspect, an article of manufacture includes, but is not
limited to, one or more non-transitory machine-readable data
storage media bearing one or more instructions for accepting a
first communication from a first user of a first telepresence
system at a patient location via a user input device, the patient
medical support system including the first telepresence system and
an article of medical equipment and the first user being a user of
the patient medical support system; transmitting the first
communication to a second telepresence system at a first monitoring
location via a two-way communication link for delivery to a second
user at the first monitoring location; receiving a second
communication from the second user of the second telepresence
system at the first telepresence system via the two-way
communication link; delivering the second communication to the
first user at the patient location; transmitting an operational
mode data signal indicative of an operational mode of the patient
medical support system to the first monitoring location; and
transmitting a usage data signal indicative of usage of the patient
medical support system in the at least one operational mode to the
first monitoring location. In addition to the foregoing, other
aspects of articles of manufacture including one or more
non-transitory machine-readable data storage media bearing one or
more instructions are described in the claims, drawings, and text
forming a part of the disclosure set forth herein.
[0010] In an aspect, an article of manufacture includes, but is not
limited to, one or more non-transitory machine-readable data
storage media bearing one or more instructions for accepting a
first communication from a first user of a first telepresence
system at a first monitoring location via a user input device;
transmitting the first communication to a second telepresence
system at a patient location remote from the first monitoring
location via a two-way communication link for delivery to a second
user at the patient location, the second user being a user of the
patient medical support system, the patient medical support system
including the second telepresence system and at least one article
of medical equipment; receiving a second communication from the
second user at the first monitoring location via the two-way
communication link; delivering the second communication to the
first user via a user output device, the first telepresence system
including the user output device; receiving a telepresence system
operational mode data signal at the first monitoring location, the
telepresence system operational mode data signal indicative of an
operational mode of the second telepresence system; receiving a
telepresence system usage data signal at the first monitoring
location, the telepresence system usage data signal indicative of
usage of the second telepresence system in the operational mode;
receiving a medical equipment operational mode data signal at the
first monitoring location, the medical equipment operational mode
data signal indicative of an operational mode of the at least one
article of medical equipment; and receiving a medical equipment
usage data signal at the first monitoring location, the medical
equipment usage data signal indicative of usage of the at least one
article of medical equipment in the operational mode. In addition
to the foregoing, other aspects of articles of manufacture
including one or more non-transitory machine-readable data storage
media bearing one or more instructions are described in the claims,
drawings, and text forming a part of the disclosure set forth
herein.
[0011] In an aspect, a method of monitoring usage of a patient
medical support system includes, but is not limited to, providing a
patient with a patient medical support system, the patient medical
support system including at least one article of medical equipment,
electrical control circuitry configured to determine two or more
different operational modes of the at least one article of medical
equipment and determine a first usage data signal indicative of an
amount of usage of the at least one article of medical equipment in
a first operational mode, the first operational mode being one of
the two or more different operational modes, and communication
circuitry for transmitting the first usage data signal and an
identification data signal from a patient location remote from the
monitoring location to a monitoring location; receiving the first
usage data signal at the monitoring location; receiving the
identification data signal at the monitoring location; determining
at least one user identification associated with a user of the
patient medical support system based at least in part on the
identification data signal; and determining an amount of usage of
the at least one article of medical equipment based at least in
part on the first usage data signal. In addition to the foregoing,
other method aspects are described in the claims, drawings, and
text forming a part of the disclosure set forth herein.
[0012] In an aspect, a method of monitoring usage of a patient
medical support system including an article of medical equipment
and a telepresence system, includes, but is not limited to
receiving a medical equipment operational mode data signal at a
first monitoring location from the patient medical support system
located remote from the first monitoring location at a patient
location, the medical equipment operational mode data signal
indicative of a medical equipment operational mode of at least two
operational modes of the article of medical equipment; receiving a
medical equipment usage data signal at the first monitoring
location from the patient medical support system, the medical
equipment usage data signal indicative of usage of the article of
medical equipment in the medical equipment operational mode;
receiving a first telepresence system operational mode data signal
at the first monitoring location from the patient medical support
system, the first telepresence system operational mode data signal
indicative of a first telepresence system operational mode of at
least two operational modes of the telepresence system; receiving a
first telepresence system usage data signal at the first monitoring
location from the patient medical support system, the first
telepresence system usage data signal indicative of usage of the
telepresence system in the first telepresence system operational
mode; determining at least one user identification associated with
a user of the patient medical support system; and storing
information regarding at least one of the medical equipment
operational mode, the usage of the article of the medical
equipment, the first telepresence system operational mode and the
usage of the telepresence system, in association with the at least
one user identification, to a data storage device. In addition to
the foregoing, other method aspects are described in the claims,
drawings, and text forming a part of the disclosure set forth
herein.
[0013] In an aspect, a medical support monitoring system includes,
but is not limited to, a first telepresence system for use at a
first monitoring location including at least one user input device
adapted to accept a communication from a first user at the first
monitoring location for transmission to a second user of a patient
medical support system at a patient location remote from the first
monitoring location via a two-way communication link; and at least
one user output device adapted to deliver a communication to the
first user, the communication received from the second user via the
two-way communication link; first communication circuitry forming a
portion of the two-way communication link between the medical
support monitoring system at the first monitoring location and the
patient medical support system at the patient location, the patient
medical support system including a second telepresence system, an
article of medical equipment, and second communication circuitry
forming a portion of a two-way communication link, wherein the
first communication circuitry is adapted to: receive at least one
operational mode data signal indicative of at least one operational
mode of the patient medical support system; receive at least one
usage data signal indicative of an amount of usage of the patient
medical support system in the at least one operational mode;
receive via the two-way communication link the communication from
the second user to the first user; and transmit via the two-way
communication link the communication from the the first user to the
second user; a data storage device; and electrical control
circuitry configured to: determine the identity of at least one
user of the patient medical support system; and control storage of
information relating to at least one of the at least one
operational mode and the amount of usage of the patient medical
support system in the at least one operational mode in the data
storage device in association with the identification of the at
least one user of the patient medical support system. In addition
to the foregoing, other system aspects are described in the claims,
drawings, and text forming a part of the disclosure set forth
herein.
[0014] In an aspect, an article of manufacture includes, but is not
limited to, one or more non-transitory machine-readable data
storage media bearing one or more instructions for receiving a
medical equipment operational mode data signal at a first
monitoring location from the patient medical support system located
remote from the first monitoring location at a patient location,
the medical equipment operational mode data signal indicative of a
medical equipment operational mode of at least two operational
modes of the article of medical equipment; receiving a medical
equipment usage data signal at the first monitoring location from
the patient medical support system, the medical equipment usage
data signal indicative of usage of the article of medical equipment
in the medical equipment operational mode; receiving a first
telepresence system operational mode data signal at the first
monitoring location from the patient medical support system, the
first telepresence system operational mode data signal indicative
of a first telepresence system operational mode of at least two
operational modes of the telepresence system; receiving a first
telepresence system usage data signal at the first monitoring
location from the patient medical support system, the first
telepresence system usage data signal indicative of usage of the
telepresence system in the first telepresence system operational
mode; determining at least one user identification associated with
a user of the patient medical support system; and storing
information regarding at least one of the medical equipment
operational mode, the usage of the article of the medical
equipment, the first telepresence system operational mode and the
usage of the telepresence system, in association with the at least
one user identification, to a data storage device. In addition to
the foregoing, other aspects of articles of manufacture including
one or more non-transitory machine-readable data storage media
bearing one or more instructions are described in the claims,
drawings, and text forming a part of the disclosure set forth
herein.
[0015] The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not
intended to be in any way limiting. In addition to the illustrative
aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further
aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by
reference to the drawings and the following detailed
description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0016] FIG. 1 is an illustration of an embodiment of a patient
medical support system and associated medical support monitoring
system.
[0017] FIG. 2 is a system block diagram of a patient medical
support system and associated medical support monitoring
system.
[0018] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of portion of a telepresence
system used in a patient medical support system.
[0019] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of medical equipment used in
connection with a patient medical support system.
[0020] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of control and communication
circuitry used in a patient medical support system.
[0021] FIG. 6 is a depiction of data signals produced by a patient
medical support system.
[0022] FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of a method of communicating usage
of a patient medical support system.
[0023] FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of a method of communicating usage
of a patient medical support system.
[0024] FIG. 9 is a flow diagram of a method of communicating usage
of a patient medical support system.
[0025] FIG. 10 is a flow diagram of a method of communicating usage
of a patient medical support system.
[0026] FIG. 11 is a flow diagram of a method of communicating usage
of a patient medical support system.
[0027] FIG. 12 is a flow diagram of a method of communicating usage
of a patient medical support system.
[0028] FIG. 13 is a flow diagram of a method of communicating usage
of a patient medical support system.
[0029] FIG. 14 is a block diagram of a medical support monitoring
system.
[0030] FIG. 15 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0031] FIG. 16 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0032] FIG. 17 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0033] FIG. 18 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0034] FIG. 19 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0035] FIG. 20A is a depiction of a database.
[0036] FIG. 20B is a depiction of a database.
[0037] FIG. 21 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0038] FIG. 22 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0039] FIG. 23 depicts anonymization of patient records.
[0040] FIG. 24 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0041] FIG. 25 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0042] FIG. 26 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0043] FIG. 27 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0044] FIG. 28 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0045] FIG. 29 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system
[0046] FIG. 30 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system FIG. 31 is a flow diagram of a
method of monitoring usage of a patient medical support system.
[0047] FIG. 32 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0048] FIG. 33 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0049] FIG. 34 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0050] FIG. 35 is a flow diagram of a method of monitoring usage of
a patient medical support system.
[0051] FIG. 36 illustrates an article of manufacture including
non-transitory machine readable data storage media bearing one or
more instructions.
[0052] FIG. 37 illustrates an article of manufacture including
non-transitory machine readable data storage media bearing one or
more instructions.
[0053] FIG. 38 illustrates an article of manufacture including
non-transitory machine readable data storage media bearing one or
more instructions.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0054] In the following detailed description, reference is made to
the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof. In the
drawings, similar symbols typically identify similar components,
unless context dictates otherwise. The illustrative embodiments
described in the detailed description, drawings, and claims are not
meant to be limiting. Other embodiments may be utilized, and other
changes may be made, without departing from the spirit or scope of
the subject matter presented here.
[0055] FIG. 1 depicts an example of a patient medical support
system 100 that includes a telepresence system 102 and an article
of medical equipment 104 at a patient location 106, used in
combination with a medical support monitoring system 108 at a
remote location 110. Patient medical support system 100 and medical
support monitoring system 108 work in cooperation to track and
document usage of patient medical support system 100. Patient
medical support system 100 tracks the amount and type of usage of
the patient medical support system 100 and transmits information
regarding the amount and type of usage to a remote monitoring
location 110. Remote monitoring system 110 may reside at a hospital
or other central monitoring location. Remote monitoring system 110
cooperates with patient medical support system 100 to provide
communication between personnel at a monitoring location (e.g. a
medical care provider 112) and patient 114 and/or caregiver 116 at
a patient location 106 (e.g., the patient's home) via a
telemedicine system including telepresence system 102 at patient
location 106 and telepresence system 118 at remote monitoring
location 110. The telemedicine system may provide for audiovisual
or other communication between the monitoring location 110 and
patient location 106, which may be provided in combination with
medical monitoring or treatment provided with one or more
associated article of medical equipment 104. Telemedicine methods
and systems are used, for example, in situations where a patient
needs or would benefit from medical monitoring, treatment and
consultation with a doctor, nurse, or other medical caregiver but
is unable to safely or conveniently travel to a medical care
facility for the monitoring, treatment, or consultation, or in
situations where it is preferable for the patient to stay at home
rather than stay at a hospital or other facility at which medical
monitoring, treatment or consultation would typically be provided.
Use of telemedicine systems allows medical care to be provided in
remote locations where medical caregivers are unavailable, and
allows patients to receive medical monitoring, treatment, and
consultation from home or another suitable location rather than in
the hospital. Thus, patients may be discharged from the hospital
sooner after treatment, or remain at home longer before being
brought to the hospital or other care facility. In the present
example, patient medical support system 100 is provided to patient
114 to allow for both telemedicine consultation with medical care
provider 112 and use of medical equipment 140 while the patient is
at home, but under the care of medical care provider 112. Medical
support monitoring system 108 tracks the amount and type of usage
of telepresence system 102 and/or associated medical equipment 104.
Tracked information regarding usage of patient medical support
system 100 may be used for various purposes, including billing,
quality assurance, and data analytics, including individual or
population studies of usage patterns, for example. Usage
information may be linked to identity of patient, caregiver, or
equipment used, or anonymized, depending upon the intended use.
[0056] In the example of FIG. 1, telepresence system 102 includes a
video camera 120 (e.g., a webcam) mounted on display 122,
microphone 124, and speaker 126 (built into display 122).
Microphone 124 receives a voice input from patient 114 and/or
caregiver 116, while video camera 120 receives a video input of
patient 114 and/or caregiver 116. As used herein, receiving a
communication from a user may include capturing at least one still
or moving image of a user, where the image provides any or all of
information regarding the user's presence, location, identity,
posture, gestures or other movements, health state or condition,
facial expression, etc. . . . . Voice and image signals from
telepresence system 102 are transmitted to telepresence system 118
at remote monitoring location 110 via communication link 130, where
they are presented to medical care provider 112 via a speaker 132
and display 134, respectively. Similarly, voice and image signals
from medical care provider 112 may be captured by microphone 136
and camera 138, respectively, and transmitted to patient location
106. For example, speaker 132, display 134, microphone 136 and
camera 138 may be associated with a computer 150.
[0057] In the example of FIG. 1, one article of medical equipment
104 is shown: a blood pressure monitoring device 140 including a
cuff 142. Blood pressure monitoring device 140 may communicate with
electrical control circuitry 144 via either a wired or a wireless
connection, without limitation. Patient blood pressure data, device
status and/or operational mode data are transmitted to electrical
control circuitry 144 from blood pressure monitoring device 140,
while instructions (e.g. to set device parameters and/or start
blood pressure measuring are transmitted from electrical control
circuitry 144 to blood pressure monitoring device 140. Blood
pressure monitoring device 140 may also include controls that allow
a user (e.g. caregiver 116) to set various parameters or otherwise
control aspects of operation of blood pressure monitoring device
140. Usage of blood pressure monitoring device 140 is determined
and details of the usage tracked. For example, each time a blood
pressure measurement is made, the time and date of the measurement
is stored by electrical control circuitry 144, and the number of
blood pressure measurements, as well as the time and data of the
measurements is sent to remote monitoring location 108. In
addition, the usage of telepresence system 102 may be tracked
(including any or all of tracking the number of times communication
is attempted or established with telepresence system 118 at remote
monitoring location 110, the amount of time spent communicating
with telepresence system 118, or the identity of the party
initiating the communication, for example). For example, caregiver
116 may be a home healthcare nurse who has a regularly scheduled
daily visit with patient 114, during which the patient's blood
pressure is measured and patient 114 and caregiver 116 speak to
medical care provider 112. A hospital through which the service is
provided may charge a fixed fee for a routine visit by caregiver
116, which includes a blood pressure measurement and scheduled
consultation with medical care provider 112. If patient 114 wishes
to speak to medical care provider 112 outside the regularly
scheduled time, the patient may request such a consultation via
patient medical support system 100 (e.g., by activating
telepresence system 118 by activating a hard or soft button or
switch associated with electrical control circuitry 144, etc.) but
an additional fee may be charged, which may include a fixed base
fee plus an additional per-minute charge for the time spent on the
consultation. The per-minute charge may differ depending on the
identity of the medical care provider providing the consultatation;
a consultation with a nurse practitioner may be charged at a
different rate than a consultation with a medical doctor, and
charges for different medical care providers may differ depending
upon experience, specialty, etc.
[0058] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of generalized telemedicine system
200 of which the system depicted in FIG. 1 is an example. In this
and other figures, dashed lines indicate optional or alternative
components. FIG. 2 depicts patient medical support system 202 at
patient location 204 that includes at least one article of medical
equipment 206, a telepresence system 208, electrical control
circuitry 210, and communication circuitry 212. Telepresence system
208 accepts communication 214 from user 216, and provides for
two-way communication between user 216 at patient location 204 and
a user 220. User 216 may be, for example, a patient or a caregiver
providing medical care and/or assistance to the patient. User 220
is a user of a second telepresence system 222 at remote monitoring
location 224. User 220 may be medical care provider, including but
not limited to a physician, a nurse, or a medical assistant, for
example. Telepresence system 222 at remote monitoring location 224
presents a communication 226 (originating from user 216) to user
220. Telepresence system 222 also accepts communication 230 from
user 220.
[0059] Second telepresence system 222 forms a part of medical
support monitoring system 228. In addition to medical telepresence
system 222, medical support monitoring system 228 includes other
components, such as communication circuitry 232 and electrical
control circuitry 234. Medical support monitoring system 228 may
also include, or be associated with, data storage device 236.
Electrical control circuitry 210 and 234 may include, but are not
limited to, electronic hardware, software, and firmware. Electrical
control circuitry 210 and 234 may include micro-processor-based
devices, including special-purpose devices, or general purpose
computing devices configured with appropriate software. Electrical
control circuitry 234 at remote monitoring location system may
include computing devices and systems that form a part of or are
configured to work in connection with hospital computing or
information systems, for example. Medical support monitoring system
228 may include, or be configured to communicate with or operate in
connection with one or more data storage devices 236, which may
store database 238, including, for example, medical records 240 or
billing records 242. In addition, medical support monitoring system
228 may be configured to communicate (via communication link 250)
with a secondary monitoring location 252. Secondary monitoring
location 252 may be, for example, a location associated with a
medical care-providing entity (a hospital, a clinic, etc.) or with
a service provider associated therewith (e.g., insurance, billing,
documentation, compliance monitoring, data analysis, records
management, etc.).
[0060] As noted above, telepresence system 222 presents
communications 226 originating from user 216 at patient location
204 to user 220 at remote monitoring location 224, and receives
communications 230 from user 220. Similarly, telepresence system
208 accepts communications 214 from user 216, and presents
communications 244 originating from user 220 to user 216.
Telepresence system 208 provides for transmission of communications
from user 214 via communication circuitry 212 and communication
circuitry 228 to telepresence system 222. Communication circuitry
212 and communication circuitry 228 work together to establish
two-way communication link 246. Communication circuitry 212 is
configured to receive the communication from the second user via
two-way communication link 246. Two-way communication link 246 may
be used, e.g., for remote consultation, asking and answering of
questions, offering of medical advice and instructions, etc.
Communications between users 216 and 220 may include, but are not
limited to, audio and visual communications, for example.
[0061] Two-way communication link 246 may carry a variety of
communication and data signals between patient medical support
system 202 and medical support monitoring system 228, including but
not limited to one or more telepresence system communication signal
260, operational mode data signal 262, usage data signal 264,
identification data signal 266, patient medical data 268,
instruction 270, and query 272, as will be described in greater
detail herein. Usage, operational mode, and identification data
signals may pertain to the patient medical support system 202 as a
whole, or may pertain specifically to a telepresence system (e.g.
telepresence system 208 or telepresence system 222), or one or more
article of medical equipment. FIG. 2 depicts article of medical
equipment 206 and article of medical equipment 274, but it will be
appreciated that, in various aspects, one, two, or multiple
articles of medical equipment may be used, without limitation.
Furthermore, a single article of medical equipment may be capable
of performing a single function (e.g. detecting blood pressure), or
may be capable of performing multiple functions (e.g detecting
blood pressure, heart rate, and blood oxygenation). Various device
control signals, data signals, instructions, status signals, and
the like may be transmitted between medical support monitoring
system 228 and patient medical support system 202 other than those
explicitly recited herein.
[0062] In a general sense, those skilled in the art will recognize
that the various embodiments described herein can be implemented,
individually and/or collectively, by various types of electrical
circuitry having a wide range of electrical components such as
hardware, software, firmware, and/or virtually any combination
thereof. Electrical circuitry (including electrical control
circuitry 210 and electrical control circuitry 234 depicted in FIG.
2, for example) includes electrical circuitry having at least one
discrete electrical circuit, electrical circuitry having at least
one integrated circuit, electrical circuitry having at least one
application specific integrated circuit, electrical circuitry
forming a general purpose computing device configured by a computer
program (e.g., a general purpose computer configured by a computer
program which at least partially carries out processes and/or
devices described herein, or a microprocessor configured by a
computer program which at least partially carries out processes
and/or devices described herein), electrical circuitry forming a
memory device, which may include various types of memory (e.g.,
random access, flash, read only, etc.)), electrical circuitry
forming a communications device (e.g. communication circuitry 212
or 230) (e.g., a modem, communications switch, optical-electrical
equipment, etc.), and/or any non-electrical analog thereto, such as
optical or other analogs (e.g., graphene based circuitry). In a
general sense, those skilled in the art will recognize that the
various aspects described herein which can be implemented,
individually and/or collectively, by a wide range of hardware,
software, firmware, and/or any combination thereof can be viewed as
being composed of various types of "electrical circuitry."
[0063] Those skilled in the art will recognize that at least a
portion of the devices and/or processes described herein can be
integrated into a data processing system. Those having skill in the
art will recognize that a data processing system generally includes
one or more of a system unit housing, a video display, memory such
as volatile or non-volatile memory, processors such as
microprocessors or digital signal processors, computational
entities such as operating systems, drivers, graphical user
interfaces, and applications programs, one or more interaction
devices (e.g., a touch pad, a touch screen, an antenna, etc.),
and/or control systems including feedback loops and control motors
(e.g., feedback for sensing position and/or velocity; control
motors for moving and/or adjusting components and/or quantities). A
data processing system may be implemented utilizing suitable
commercially available components, such as those typically found in
data computing/communication and/or network computing/communication
systems. In an aspect, patient medical support system 202 includes
at least one data storage device 276, which may include any sort of
memory or other data storage element or device included in or used
in connection with patient medical support system 202, to store
data at first location 204. In an aspect, patient medical support
system 202 includes one or more user input device 280 to permit
user 216 to control various aspects of operation of patient medical
support system 202. User input device can also be used to receive
input of other information from the user, either user-initiated or
in response to a query. For example, a patient may be asked to
provide inputs in response to questionnaires, tests of user ability
or condition (e.g. test of vision, cognitive skills, motor skills,
etc.) User input device 280 can include various types of user input
devices or controls as are well known to those of ordinary skill in
the art, including but not limited to keyboards, touchpads,
touchscreen, mouse, joystick, microphone, buttons, or switches.
User input devices may be designed to interface directly with a
patient's nervous system or track a patient's muscular activity or
correlates thereof, including a brain-computer interface, EEG or
EMG sensors, motion tracking devices (such as a Kinect sensor) or
one or more camera (e.g. a video camera) used in combination with
appropriate image-analysis hardward/software, eye tracking devices
etc. Switches may includes those activitable by sipping or puffing
air through a tube, for use by patients with limited mobility or
muscle strength. Patient medical support system 202 may also
include one or more user output devices 282, for providing
information or feedback to a user, including video, graphic, or
text displays, indicator lights, seven-segment displays, gauges,
strip charts, auditory alarms, buzzers, voice outputs, tactile,
haptic, or braille displays, electrical or magnetic stimulation
devices, etc.
[0064] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a telepresence system 208
located at a patient location, as shown generally in FIG. 2.
Telepresence system includes at least one user input device 302 and
at least one user output device 304. User input device 302 is
adapted to accept a communication 306 from a first user of the
patient medical support system (e.g., a patient or caregiver, as
discussed herein above). User output device 304 is adapted to
present a communication 308 to the first user. Communication 308 is
a communication that was received from a second user at the
monitoring location, for example. Communication signal 310 from
user input device 302 is transmitted to electrical control
circuitry 210 and/or communication circuitry 212 (as depicted and
described in connection with FIG. 2) for transmittal to a second
telepresence system at a remote monitoring location via a
communication link. Communication signals 312 originating from the
remote monitoring location are provided to the telepresence system
208 via communication circuitry 212.
[0065] In an aspect, at least one user input device 302 includes at
least one of a camera 314, a video camera 316, a mouse 318, a
keyboard 320, a joystick 322, a touchpad 324, a touchscreen 326, a
microphone 328, a button 330, a switch 332, a motion-tracking
device 334, an eye tracking device 336, an EEG sensor 338, and EMG
sensor 340, a brain-computer interface 342, and a braille
translation/transcription device 344.
[0066] In an aspect, at least one user output device 304 includes
at least one of a video display 344, a speaker 346, a braille
display 348, and a haptic device 350.
[0067] In an aspect telepresence system 208 includes a two-way
audiovisual system 352, of which user input device 302 and user
output device 304 may be components. In an aspect, telepresence
system 208 includes at least one of a microphone (e.g. microphone
328), a speaker (e.g. speaker 346), a video display (e.g.
videodisplay 344), and a camera (e.g. camera 314).
[0068] User input devices and user output devices of telepresence
system 208 may be configured as separately packaged devices
configured to communicate with electrical control circuitry 210 via
a wired connection (via a plug and jack or USB, for example) or
wireless connection, or they may be built into or packaged with
other system components. One or multiple user input devices or
output devices may be used, and they may be of the same or
different types. For example, a conventional commercially available
video camera suitable for video conferencing can be used for
audio/visual communication between patient and medical care
provider. In an aspect, the camera for audio/visual communication
between patient and medical care provider may also provide
medically useful information. In an aspect, a camera may function
as an article of medical equipment. In an aspect, two or more
cameras may be used to provide views of the subject from two or
more different angles or positions. In an aspect, a specialized
camera may be used to obtain images for medical diagnostic
purposes. For example, a specialized camera may produce images at a
particular wavelength or range of wavelengths of light, have a
higher spatial resolution or higher frame rate, or have other
characteristics that permit it to obtain medically useful
information, for example as described in U.S. Patent Publication
20120307056 dated Dec. 6, 2012 to Zuzak et al., and U.S. Patent
Publication 201230128223 dated May 23, 2013 to Wood, each of which
is incorporated herein by reference. In an aspect, telepresence
system 208 may include one or more photocell, charge-coupled
device, scanner, 3D scanner, 3D imager, camera, single pixel
camera, a visual camera, IR camera, a stereoscopic camera, a
digital camera, a video camera, and a high speed video camera, for
example. One or more digital images of the skin surface of the
subject for use in generating a digital three-dimensional
representation of the skin surface can be acquired from one or more
of a digital camera or scanning device. For example, two video
cameras, slightly apart, can be used to image the same portion of
skin surface of the individual in a process termed
stereophotogrammetry. For example, a single camera can be used to
take multiple images under different lighting conditions or from
different positions. In an aspect, the topography of the skin
surface of an individual can be acquired in a point-cloud format
using a three-dimensional sensing system consisting of two or more
digital cameras and one or more projectors connected to a personal
computer. The camera position and shutter can be adjusted to the
body region, which is exposed to structured light, allowing for
optical representation of the surface by a cloud of up to 300,000
points in three-dimensional coordinates (see, e.g., Feng et al.,
Br. J. Oral Maxillofac. Surg. (2010) 48:105-109, which is
incorporated herein by reference). In some embodiments, the
combination of stereophotogrammetry and 3D laser scanner techniques
can be combined to generate a three-dimensional model of the skin
surface of an individual (see, e.g., Majid, et al. International
Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial
Information Science. Vol. XXXVII. Part B5. (2008) 805-811;
Markiewicz & Bell, Facial Plast. Surg. Clin. N. Am. (2011)
19:655-682; van Heerbeek et al., Rhinology (2009) 47:121-125, which
are incorporated herein by reference). Scanners for scanning head,
face and/or whole body are commercially available (from, e.g.,
Cyberware, Monterery Calif.; Accurex Measurement Inc., Swathmore,
Pa.; 3dMD Atlanta, Ga.; Konica/Minolta, Ramsey, N.J.). In an
aspect, user input device 302 includes optical system 352, which
may include one or more components such as reflectors, filters,
lenses, or shutters, which may be used to control various aspects
of an image detected by user input device 302. In an aspect, user
input device 302 includes a positioning system 354 including
positioning components for adjusting and/or controlling the
position, e.g. of camera 314 or video camera 316 in order to obtain
a desired input. In an aspect, user input device 302 includes input
signal processing system 356 for performing filtering,
amplification, and/or other processing of inputs received by user
input device 302. In an aspect, optical system 352, positioning
system 354, and/or input signal processing system 356 are
controlled by electrical control circuitry 210. Filtration, pan,
tilt, or zoom may be controlled by adjustment of these and/or other
controllable components, for example.
[0069] In an aspect, telepresence system 208 includes a lighting
system 370 which provides light during imaging of the subject,
e.g., by camera 314 or video camera 316, or other imaging devices
or systems used in the telepresence system. Lighting system 370 may
include one or more light sources. Lighting system 370 may also
include optical system 372, which may include components of the
types described in connection with optical system 352, e.g. for
adjusting filtration of light produced by lighting system 370. In
an aspect, lighting system 370 includes positioning system 374 for
adjusting or controlling the position of one or more components of
lighting system 370 and the aiming of light produced thereby.
[0070] In an aspect, user output device 304 includes output signal
processing 376, for processing the output of user output device 304
prior to presentation of output 308 to user 216 as known by those
having skill in the art, e.g. to provide amplification, filtration,
or filtering of the signals produced by user output device 304.
[0071] In an aspect, an operational mode of the telepresence system
is set by telepresence system operational mode command signal 360,
which is transmitted to telepresence system 208 from electrical
control circuitry 210. In an aspect, telepresence system
operational mode signal 362, which contains information regarding
the operational mode of telepresence system 208, is transmitted to
electrical control circuitry 210 from telepresence system 208. The
operational mode of the telepresence system may include one or more
of the following: turned on, turned off, standby, audio
communication, video communication, send communication, receive
communication. The operational mode of the telepresence system may
be medical care provider-initiated (e.g., use of the telepresence
system was initiated in response to a signal originating from the
medical support monitoring location at the remote location), or
user-initiated (e.g., use of the telepresence system was initiated
by a user at the patient location issuing a command to the system
via a user input device forming a part of the patient medical
support system). Other telepresence system operational modes may
apply, depending on the number and type of components forming
telepresence system 208, and the operational mode is not limited to
the specific examples of operational modes listed above. It will be
appreciated that telepresence system operational mode may include
one or more operational modes; for example, the telepresence system
may be turned on, sending one or both of audio and visual
communications, and operating in a user-initiated mode (in response
to a user input).
[0072] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an article of medical equipment
206, as shown generally in FIG. 2. Article of medical equipment 206
may include a diagnostic device 402, or a medical treatment
delivery device 428.
[0073] Diagnostic device 402 may include, for example, one or more
of a blood pressure cuff 404, a thermometer 406, a stethoscope 408,
an electrocardiogram (ECG) monitor 410, an electroencephalogram
(EEG) monitor 412, a bioelectromagnetic sensor 414 for sensing one
or more bioelectric or biomagnetic signals (including but not
limited to electroencephalogram, electrocardiogram, electromyogram,
electrooculogram, magnetic counterparts thereof), an ultrasound
probe 416, a chemical sensor 418 (e.g. for measuring chemicals or
gases in bodily fluids in samples taken from the body or within the
body, including but not limited to blood, plasma, serum, saliva,
urine, mucus, tears, semen, and vaginal secretions), a gas sensor
420 (for measuring blood gases, expired gases, flatus, etc.) a
touch probe 422, or a bed mat sensor 424.
[0074] In an aspect, article of medical equipment 206 includes
medical treatment delivery device 428, which may be, for example, a
substance delivery device 430, e.g. controllable medication
dispensing device 432 configured to dispense at least one
formulated medication in response to a control signal from the
first electrical control circuitry 210. Controllable medication
dispensing device 432 may be, for example, a pill dispenser of the
type described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,452,446 issued May 28, 2013 to
Madras et al., which is incorporated herein by reference, or other
device configured to dispense pills, capsules, powders, liquids,
inhalants, and other oral medications or inhalable medications. A
medication dispenser may also deliver formulated medications for
topical delivery, such as creams, ointments, eye drops, etc. In an
aspect, medical treatment delivery device 428 includes a
transdermal substance delivery device 434, including for example,
one or more of an injection device 436, a needle-based injection
device 438 (e.g. as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,056,716 issued May
2, 2000 to D'Antonio et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 8,544,645 issued Oct.
1, 2013 to Edwards et al., both of which are incorporated herein by
reference), a needleless injection device 440, an air gun 442, a
jet injector 444, microneedles 446, a patch 448, or an infusion
system 450 configured to deliver an infusible substance (e.g., of
the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,348,885 issued Jan. 8, 2013
to Moberg et al., which is incorporated herein by reference). In
other aspects, medical treatment delivery device 428 may be
configured to deliver other types of treatments to the subject, for
example, including delivery of various forms of energy (light,
electrical, magnetic, electromagnetic, acoustic, ultrasonic,
thermal), pressure, vibration, or cooling (i.e., removal of
energy), to produce various therapeutic effects in the subject.
Medical treatment delivery device 428 may include one or more
electrode 452, light source 454, electromagnetic field source 456,
piezoelectric device 458, magnet 460, electromagnet 462, or heating
element 464, for example.
[0075] In an aspect, an operational mode of article of medical
equipment 206 is set by medical equipment operational mode command
signal 470, which is transmitted to article of medical equipment
206 from electrical control circuitry 210. In an aspect, medical
equipment operational mode signal 472, which contains information
regarding the operational mode of article of medical equipment 206,
is transmitted to electrical control circuitry 210 from article of
medical equipment 206. The operational mode of the article of
medical equipment may include one or more of the following: turned
on, turned off, standby, patient data gathering, treatment
delivery, error (indicating a device malfunction or faulty state,
for example), or data transmission (e.g. of patient data or device
status data), for example. Other medical equipment operational
modes may apply, and the operational mode is not limited to the
specific examples of operational modes listed above. It will be
appreciated that article of medical equipment operational mode may
include one or more operational modes; for example, the article of
medical equipment may be turned on, and also delivering a treatment
to a patient.
[0076] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating electrical control
circuitry 210 and communication circuitry 212 of patient medical
support system 202.
[0077] In an aspect, electrical control circuitry 210 includes one
or more of hardware 502, software 504, firmware 506, and a
microprocessor 508. Electrical control circuitry 210 may include or
consist entirely of application-specific hardware, software, and/or
firmware (e.g., an application-specific microprocessor based
device), or electrical control circuitry 210 may include a general
purpose computing device configured with and/or used in combination
with appropriate software and/or hardware (e.g., as depicted in
FIG. 1). In an aspect, electrical control circuitry 210 includes a
general purpose computing device configured with appropriate
software used in combination with separately packaged
application-specific electrical circuitry.
[0078] In an aspect, electrical control circuitry 210 includes
operational mode determination module 500, which is used to
determine one or more operational modes of patient medical support
system 202. The operational mode of patient medical support system
may include, for example, one or more operational modes of
telepresence system 208 (e.g. telepresence system operational mode
524) and one or more operational modes of at least one article of
medical equipment 206 (e.g., medical equipment operational mode
526). Medical equipment operational mode 526 and telepresence
system operational mode 524 may be determined by the electrical
control circuitry (e.g. by operational mode determination module
500) based on stored information regarding instructions or control
signals sent to the medical equipment and/or telepresence system by
the electrical control circuitry (e.g., medical equipment
operational mode command signal 470 or telepresence system
operational mode command signal 360), or by reading device status
from the medical equipment and/or telepresence system connected to
the electrical control circuitry (e.g., medical equipment
operational mode signal 472 or telepresence system operational mode
signal 362, as shown in FIG. 5). Information regarding the
operational modes may be stored in data storage device 276.
[0079] In an aspect, electrical control circuitry 210 is configured
to determine a first medical support system operational mode from
at least two different operational modes of the patient medical
support system, and determine a first medical support system usage
data signal indicative of an amount of usage of the patient medical
support system in the first medical support system operational
mode. In an aspect, electrical control circuitry 210 is configured
to determine the first medical support system operational mode at
least in part by determining a medical equipment operational mode
from at least two different operational modes of the at least one
article of medical equipment, and determine the first medical
support system usage data signal at least in part by determining a
medical equipment usage data signal indicative of an amount of
usage of the at least one article of medical equipment in the
medical equipment operational mode. In connection therewith,
communication circuitry 212 is configured to transmit the medical
equipment operational mode and the medical equipment usage data
signal to the monitoring location.
[0080] In an aspect, electrical control circuitry 210 is configured
to determine the first medical support system operational mode by
determining a telepresence system operational mode from at least
two different operational modes of the first telepresence system
and determine the first medical support system usage data signal by
determining a telepresence system usage data signal indicative of
an amount of usage of the first telepresence system in the first
telepresence system operational mode. In addition, the
communication circuitry is configured to transmit the first
telepresence system operational mode and the first telepresence
system usage data signal to the monitoring location.
[0081] In an aspect, electrical control circuitry 210 includes
counter/timer 510, which is used in the determination of usage of
patient medical support system 202, including usage of telepresence
system 208 and article of medical equipment 206. Usage measure
determination module 528 includes or makes use of counter/timer 510
and/or system clock 512. Counter/timer may be a programmable
counting/timing device, for example. In an aspect, when an
operational mode of patient medical support system 202 (or a
component thereof) changes, as determined by operational mode
determination module 500, the time at which the operational mode
changes is tracked, by storing an absolute or relative time measure
or counter value (e.g. in data storage device 276), or by resetting
a count or time in counter/timer 510. When the operational mode of
patient medical support system 202 (or the component thereof)
changes again, the time at which the change occurred may again be
tracked, by storing an absolute or relative time measure or counter
value, or by resetting a count or time in counter/timer 510. In an
aspect, start of usage, end of usage, duration, or number of usage
events are determined using techniques well known to those having
ordinary skill in the art.
[0082] In an aspect, identity determination module 530 is used to
determine a user identity 532 of a user at the patient location.
The identity of the user may be stored or pre-programmed into the
electrical control circuitry (e.g., stored in data storage device
276), or determined by prompting the user or a representative of
the user (e.g., via user output device 282, shown in FIG. 2) to
enter a username, identification number, etc. associated with the
user via a user input device (e.g., user input device 280, shown in
FIG. 2). Alternatively, or in addition, the identity of the user
may be determined by various types of biometric techniques, such as
facial recognition, retinal scan, etc., by entry of a password or
use of a key.
[0083] In an aspect, identity determination module 530 is used to
determine a device identity 534 indicative of an identity of at
least a portion of the patient medical support system. Device
identity 534 may represent the identity of telepresence system 208,
article of medical equipment 206, electrical control circuitry 210,
communication circuitry 212, or other portions, parts, or
components of the patient medical support system, for example.
Identities of systems, parts, component types, or specific
components may be stored in data storage device 276, or may be
determined by the electrical control circuitry 210 by reading
device status from the devices or components of patient medical
support system 202.
[0084] As discussed in connection with FIG. 2, communication
circuitry 212 in patient medical support system 202 and
communication circuitry 232 in medical support monitoring system
228 are configured to provide a communication link 246 between the
two locations. As shown in FIG. 5, in an aspect, communication
circuitry 212 is adapted to provide at least one of WiFi 558,
cellular 552, wireless 550, radio frequency 560, satellite 554, and
BlueTooth 556 communication. In an aspect, communication link 246
may be a wireless communication link. In an aspect, the
communication link 246 may be a cellular communication link. In
various aspects, a wireless communication link includes at least
one of a radiowave, wireless network, cellular network, satellite,
WiFi, Wide Area Network, Local Area Network, or Body Area Network
communication link. Communication link 246 may be any of various
types of communication links suitable for providing communication
between two remote locations. Communication between locations
remote from each other may take place over telecommunications
networks, for example public or private Wide Area Network (WAN). In
general, communication between remote locations is not considered
to be suitably handled by technologies geared towards physically
localized networks, e.g. Local Area Network (LAN) technologies
operation at Layer 1/2 (such as the forms of Ethernet or WiFi).
However, it will be appreciated that portions (but not the
entirety) of communication networks used in remote communications
may include technologies suitable for use in physically localized
network, such as Ethernet or WiFi. In an aspect, system components
are considered "remote" from each other if they are not within the
same room, building, or campus. In an aspect, a remote system may
include components separated by a few miles or more. Conversely,
system components may be considered "local" to each other if they
are located within the same room, building, or campus.
[0085] In an aspect, communication circuitry 212, operating in
cooperation with electrical control circuitry 210, is configured to
receive telepresence system communication signal 260 including a
communication from a user of a telepresence system at the remote
monitoring location 224, and transmit telepresence system
communication signal 260 containing a communication from a user of
patient medical support system 202 to the remote monitoring
location 224. In an aspect, communication circuitry 212 is
configured to transmit one or more operational mode data signal
262, usage data signal 264 and an identification data signal 266 to
monitoring location 224. In a further aspect, communication
circuitry 212 is configured to transmit patient medical data 268
(e.g. as may be detected from an article of medical equipment that
includes a diagnostic device 402 as shown in FIG. 4) or from
patient medical support system 202 to monitoring location 224, and
to transmit one or more of instructions 270 or queries 272 from
monitoring location 224 to patient medical support system 202.
[0086] In an aspect, the communication circuitry 212 is configured
to provide wireless communication between at least two system
components at the patient location. In an aspect, communication
circuitry 212 is configured to provide wired communication between
at least two system components at the patient location. System
components connected via wired or wireless connections may include,
but are not limited to, electrical control circuitry 210,
telepresence system 208, one or more article of medical equipment
206, and one or more data storage device 276, for example.
[0087] FIG. 6 illustrates information contained in the various data
signals transmitted between patient medical support system 202 and
remote monitoring location 224 via communication link 246,
including operational mode data signal 262, usage data signal 264,
and identification data signal 266.
[0088] Operational mode data signal 262 represents the operational
mode of one or more of a telepresence system (e.g., telepresence
system 208 in FIG. 2) and one or more article of medical equipment
(e.g., article of medical equipment 206 and 274, as depicted in
FIG. 2). For each article of medical equipment, one or more
operational modes may be indicated. Medical equipment operational
mode 602 may include, for example, "turned on" 604, "turned off"
606, "standby" 608, "patient data gathering" 610, "treatment
delivery" 612, "error" 614, or "data transmission" 616. The
specific number and types of operational modes will depend upon the
specific article of medical equipment; it will be appreciated that
the listed operational modes are only provided as examples, and
other medical equipment operational modes may be used. More than
one medical equipment operational mode 602 may apply to an article
of medical equipment at a particular time; for example, "turned on"
and "treatment delivery" apply simultaneously. Similarly,
telepresence system operational mode 620 may include, for example,
"turned on" 622, "turned off" 624, "standby" 626, "audio
communication" 628, "video communication" 630, "send communication"
632, or "receive communication" 634. Additional telepresence system
operations modes include "medical care provider initiated" 636 and
"user-initiated" 638, representing whether the use of the
telepresence system was intitiated by the medical care provider, or
by a user at the patient location. Again, the number and types of
operational modes will depend upon the telepresence system. Other
telepresence system operational modes may be used, without
limitation. Furthermore, more than one telepresence system
operational mode 620 may apply at a particular time. Medical
equipment operational mode 602 and telepresence system operational
mode 620 may be determined by the electrical control circuitry
based on stored information regarding instructions or control
signals sent to the medical equipment and/or telepresence system by
the electrical control circuitry (e.g., medical equipment
operational mode command signal 470 or telepresence system
operational mode command signal 360, as shown in FIG. 5), or by
reading device status from the medical equipment and/or
telepresence system connected to the electrical control circuitry
(e.g., medical equipment operational mode signal 472 or
telepresence system operational mode signal 362, as shown in FIG.
5).
[0089] Identification data signal 266 contains information
indicative of one or more of device identity 534 or user identity
532. In an aspect, identification data signal is indicative of an
identity of a user at the patient location; for example, in an
aspect identification data signal 266 is indicative of patient
identity 676. In another aspect, identification data signal 266 is
indicative of caregiver identity 678. In an aspect, identification
data signal 266 is indicative of an identity of a user at the
remote monitoring location; for example, medical care provider
identity 680. Identity of the user may be stored or pre-programmed
into the electrical control circuitry, or determined during use of
the telepresence system, by prompting the user or a representative
of the user (e.g., via user output device 282, shown in FIG. 2) to
enter a username, identification number, etc. associated with the
user via a user input device (e.g., user input device 280, shown in
FIG. 2). Alternatively, or in addition, the identity of the user
may be determined by various types of biometric techniques, such as
facial recognition, retinal scan, etc., by entry of a password or
use of a key.
[0090] In an aspect, identification data signal 266 is a device
identification data signal indicative of a device identity 534 of
at least a portion of the patient medical support system. In an
aspect, the identification data signal may uniquely identify an
individual system, portion, part, or component, as indicated at
662. In another aspect, the identification data signal may identify
a type of a component of the patient medical support system, as
indicated at 664. For example, the identification data signal may
identify that the patient medical support system includes a
particular type of medical equipment, such as heart rate monitor.
The identification data signal may be indicative of one or more
identifications associated with the patient medical support system
(e.g., a serial number, a part number, a model number, a
manufacturer, a supplier, etc.). In various aspects, identification
data signal 266 may be indicative of a device identity of
telepresence system 666, article of medical equipment 668,
electrical control circuitry 670, communication circuitry 672, or
other portions, parts, or components of the patient medical support
system, for example. Identities of systems, parts, components,
component types, or specific components may be stored in data
storage device forming a portion of the electrical control
circuitry of the patient medical support system, or it may be
determined by the electrical control circuitry by reading device
status from individual devices (telepresence system components
and/or articles of medical equipment) connected to the electrical
control circuitry. As will be described herein below, a device
identity may be associated with a user identity when a specific
device is assigned to a specific patient, and subsequently the
identity of the device may serve to identify the user of the
device.
[0091] Identification data signal 266 may contain one or multiple
identities associated with a particular operational mode of the
patient medical support system. For example, a particular usage of
the patient medical support system may include the use of a
telepresence system, a particular article of medical equipment, one
or more user at the patient location (e.g., the patient and the
caregiver) and one or more user at the remote monitoring location
(e.g., one or more medical care provider). Accordingly, information
regarding or indicative of the identity of any or all of these
users and system components may be communicated to the remote
monitoring location for record keeping and further analysis.
[0092] In an aspect, usage data signal 264 represents the amount of
usage 644 of the patient medical support system. In an aspect,
usage data signal 264 represents medical equipment usage 640, which
may include usage of one or more article of medical equipment. In
an aspect, usage data signal 264 represents telepresence system
usage 642. In an aspect, usage data signal 264 is indicative of an
amount of usage of the patient medical support system (or one or
more component thereof, e.g. the telepresence system and one or
more article of medical equipment) in an operational mode. In an
aspect, usage data signal 264 is indicative of a start of usage 646
or an end of usage 648. In another aspect, the usage data signal is
indicative of a number of usage events 652 of the patient medical
support system (or component(s) thereof) in the operational mode.
The information transmitted to the remote monitoring location (e.g.
remote monitoring location 224 in FIG. 2) in usage data signal 264
may be combined with other information available at the remote
monitoring location in order to determine or derive an amount of
usage. If each usage of the patient medical support system takes a
fixed amount of time, transmitting start time 646, or number of
usage events 652 provides sufficient information to determine the
amount of usage at the remote monitoring location. If start time
information is already available at the remote monitoring location
(e.g., because use of the patient medical support system is
initiated by a control signal send from remote monitoring location,
or because use of the patient medical support system occurs at
regularly scheduled times known at the remote monitoring location),
end time information 648 can be used to determine the duration of
usage. In an aspect, the usage data signal contains values
indicative of an amount of usage that were derived at the patient
location before being transmitted to the remote monitoring
location, e.g. cumulative usage 654, or remaining usage 656 (e.g.,
if a pre-set amount of usage is authorized, and after each usage
the remaining available usage is reported to the remote monitoring
location). Start of usage 646, end of usage 648, duration 650,
number of usage events 652 values can be determined at the patient
location through the use of, e.g. counter/timer 510 in electrical
control circuitry 210, as depicted in FIG. 5, using techniques well
known to those having ordinary skill in the art. Derived values
(cumulative usage 654 or remaining usage 656) may similarly be
determined by electrical control circuitry 210 including properly
configured hardware and or software.
[0093] FIG. 7 depicts a method 700 of communicating usage of a
patient medical support system. Method 700 includes accepting a
first communication from a first user of a first telepresence
system at a patient location via a user input device, the patient
medical support system including the first telepresence system and
an article of medical equipment and the first user being a user of
the patient medical support system, at 702; transmitting the first
communication to a second telepresence system at a first monitoring
location via a two-way communication link for delivery to a second
user at the first monitoring location, at 704; receiving a second
communication from the second user of the second telepresence
system at the first telepresence system via the two-way
communication link, at 706; delivering the second communication to
the first user at the patient location, at 708; transmitting an
operational mode data signal indicative of an operational mode of
the patient medical support system to the first monitoring
location, at 710; and transmitting a usage data signal indicative
of usage of the patient medical support system in the at least one
operational mode to the first monitoring location, at 712.
[0094] FIGS. 8-13 depict variations and expansions of method 700 as
shown in FIG. 7. In the methods depicted in FIGS. 8-13, steps
702-712 are as described generally in connection with FIG. 7. Here
and elsewhere, method steps outlined with dashed lines represent
steps that are included in some, but not all method aspects, and
combinations of steps other than those specifically depicted in the
figures are possible as would be known by those having ordinary
skill in the relevant art.
[0095] As shown in FIG. 8, in an aspect a method 800, includes
transmitting an identification data signal indicative of an
identity of the second user (i.e., the user at the first monitoring
location), as indicated at 802. In an aspect, method 800 includes
transmitting an identification data signal indicative of an
identity of the first user, as indicated at 804. The first user may
be a patient, as indicated at 806, or a caregiver, as indicated at
808. In another aspect, method 800 includes transmitting an
identification data signal indicative of a device identity of at
least a portion of the patient medical support system to the first
monitoring location, as indicated at 810.
[0096] As shown in FIG. 9, in an aspect of a method 900, the usage
data signal is indicative of an amount of usage of the patient
medical support system in the operational mode, as indicated at
902. In an aspect, the usage data signal is indicative of a
duration of usage of the patient medical support system in the
operational mode, as indicated at 904. In another aspect, the usage
data signal is indicative of a start of usage of the patient
medical support system in the operational mode, as indicated at
906. In an aspect, the usage data signal is indicative of an end of
usage of the patient medical support system in the operational
mode, as indicated at 908. In another aspect, the usage data signal
is indicative of a number of usage events of the patient medical
support system in the operational mode, as indicated at 910. It
will be appreciated that the information transmitted to the first
monitoring location in the usage data signal may be combined with
other information available at the first monitoring location in
order to determine or derive the amount of usage. For example, if
start time information is already available, end time information
can be used to determine the duration of usage. The amount of usage
can be an absolute amount of usage, or an amount of usage during a
certain time period. The amount of usage can be determined for a
particular time period, which may be, for example, a particular
amount of time (e.g., an hour, a day, or a week) or a time period
bounded by particular events (e.g., the time between a starting
event such as a patient's discharge from the hospital with the
patient medical support system and an ending event such as the time
that the patient medical support system is no longer needed and is
returned to the hospital, or the start and end of a billing cycle).
Usage can be expressed in duration or number of events (e.g. the
medical support system was used for a total of five hours, or it
was used ten times during a one-week period).
[0097] FIG. 10 depicts a method 1000, in which the operational mode
data signal is indicative of an operational mode of the at least
one article of medical equipment, and the usage data signal is
indicative of an amount of usage of the at least one article of
medical equipment in the operational mode, as indicated at 1002.
For example, in various aspects, the operational mode data signal
is indicative of one or more of a turned on operational mode (at
1004), a turned off operational mode (at 1006), a standby
operational mode (at 1008), a patient data gathering operational
mode (at 1010), a treatment delivery operational mode (at 1012), or
an error operational mode (at 1014) of the at least one article of
medical equipment.
[0098] FIG. 11 depicts a method 1100, which in an aspect includes
transmitting a medical equipment operational mode command signal to
the at least one article of medical equipment; determining the at
least one operational mode based at least in part on the medical
equipment operational mode command signal; and determining the
usage data signal based at least in part on a time of transmission
of the medical equipment operational mode command signal, as
indicated at 1102. In another aspect, method 1100 includes
receiving a medical equipment operational mode signal from the at
least one article of medical equipment; determining the at least
one operational mode based at least in part on the medical
equipment operational mode signal; and determining the usage data
signal responsive to receiving the at least one medical equipment
operational mode signal, as indicated at 1104.
[0099] FIG. 12 depicts a method 1200 in which the operational mode
data signal is indicative of an operational mode of the first
telepresence system, and wherein the usage data signal is
indicative of an amount of usage of the first telepresence system
in the operational mode, as indicated at 1202. In various aspects,
the operational mode data signal is indicative of one or more of a
turned on operational mode (at 1204), turned off operational mode
(at 1206), standby operational mode (at 1208), send communication
operational mode (at 1210), receive communication operational mode
(at 1212), audio communication operational mode (at 1214), video
communication operational mode (at 1216), user-initiated
operational mode (at 1218), or medical care provider-initiated
operational mode (at 1220) of the first telepresence system.
[0100] FIG. 13 depicts a method 1300, which in an aspect includes
receiving a telepresence system operational mode signal from the
first telepresence system; determining the at least one operational
mode based at least in part on the telepresence system operational
mode signal; and determining the usage data signal responsive to
receiving the telepresence system operational mode signal, as
indicated at 1302. In another aspect, method 1300 includes
transmitting a telepresence system operational mode command signal
to the first telepresence system; determining the at least one
operational mode based at least in part on the telepresence system
operational mode command signal; and determining the usage data
signal based at least in part on the time of transmission of the
telepresence system operational mode command signal, as indicated
at 1304.
[0101] FIG. 14 is a block diagram of a medical support monitoring
system 228 at a remote monitoring location 224. Medical support
monitoring system includes telepresence system 222 for use at a
remote monitoring location 224, which includes at least one user
input device 1400 adapted to accept a communication 230 from a user
220 at the remote monitoring location 224 for transmission to a
user of a patient medical support system (e.g., user 216 depicted
in FIG. 2 but not shown in FIG. 14) at a patient location 204
remote from the first monitoring location via two-way communication
link 246. In addition, telepresence system 22 includes at least one
user output device 1402, which is adapted to deliver a
communication 226 to user 220. Communication 226 is received from
the user of the patient medical support system (user 216, not shown
in FIG. 14) at patient location 204 via two-way communication link
246. Medical support monitoring system 228 also includes
communication circuitry 232, which forms a portion of the two-way
communication link 246 between medical support monitoring system
228 at remote monitoring location 224 and the patient medical
support system at patient location 204. As discussed herein above,
e.g., in connection with FIG. 2, a patient medical support system
202 includes telepresence system 208, article of medical equipment
206 and/or 274, and communication circuitry 212, which forms a
portion of a two-way communication link 246. Communication
circuitry 232 is adapted to receive at least one operational mode
data signal 262 indicative of at least one operational mode of the
patient medical support system, receive at least one usage data
signal 264 indicative of an amount of usage of the patient medical
support system in the at least one operational mode, receive via
the two-way communication link the communication from the user at
patient location 204 to user 220, and transmit via two-way
communication link 246 communication 230 from user 220 to the user
at patient location 204. Medical support monitoring system 228 also
includes a data storage device 236 and electrical control circuitry
234, which is configured to determine the identity of at least one
user of the patient medical support system and control storage of
information relating to at least one of the at least one
operational mode and the amount of usage of the patient medical
support system in the at least one operational mode in data storage
device 236, in association with the identification of the at least
one user of the patient medical support system.
[0102] In an aspect, communication circuitry 232 is adapted to
receive an identification data signal 266 from the patient medical
support system. In an aspect, electrical control circuitry 234 is
configured to determine the identity 1406 of at least one user of
the patient medical support system based at least in part on
identification data signal 266, e.g. through the use of identity
determination module 1404. In an aspect, identification data signal
266 is indicative of the identity of a user of the patient medical
support system, for example, a patient or caregiver. In another
aspect, the user identified by identity determination module 1404
is a user of the medical support monitoring system, e.g. user 220,
who may be, for example, a medical care provider. In an aspect,
identification data signal 266 is a device identification data
signal indicative of the device identity 1408 of at least a portion
of the patient medical support system, and electrical control
circuitry 234 is configured to determine the identity of the at
least one user of the patient medical support system by retrieving
a user identity associated with the device identity 1408 of the at
least a portion of the patient medical support system from data
storage device 236, wherein the user identity data is stored in
data storage device 236 in association with the device identity of
the at least a portion of the patient medical support system. This
approach is described in greater detail herein below, in connection
with FIG. 20A. In an aspect, data storage device 236 stores one or
more database 238, which may contain one or more of medical records
240 and billing records 242. In an aspect, electrical control
circuitry 234 includes usage determination module 1410, including
one or more of software and electronic circuitry configured to
determine usage of patient medical support system or components
thereof based on usage data signal 264. In an aspect, electrical
control circuitry 234 includes value determination module 1412,
including one or more of software and electronic circuitry
configured for determining a value (e.g., a monetary value) of
usage of the patient medical support system. Determination of value
of patient medical support system usage is described herein below,
in connection with FIG. 20B.
[0103] In an aspect, communication circuitry 232 is adapted to
transmit a query 272 addressed to at least a portion of the patient
medical support system, and receive the at least one operational
mode data signal 262 and at least one usage data signal 264 from
the patient medical support system in response to the query. In an
aspect, electrical control circuitry 234 is configured to determine
the identity of at least one user of the patient medical support
system based at least in part on identification data signal
266.
[0104] In an aspect, telepresence system 222 is substantially
similar to telepresence system 208 described in connection with
FIG. 3. For example, in an aspect, telepresence system 222 includes
a two-way audiovisual system. In various aspects, telepresence
system 222 includes at least one of a microphone, a speaker, a
video display, and a camera. In an aspect, user input device 1400
includes at least one of a camera, a video camera, a mouse, a
keyboard, a joystick, a touchpad, a touchscreen, a microphone, a
button, a switch, a motion-tracking device, an eye tracking device,
an EEG sensor, and EMG sensor, a brain-computer interface, and a
braille translation/transcription device. In various aspects, at
least one user output device 1402 includes at least one of a video
display, a speaker, a braille display, a haptic device. Electrical
control circuitry 234 may include at least one of hardware,
software, firmware, and a microprocessor, for example as described
in connection with electrical control circuitry 210 as shown in
FIG. 5. Communication circuitry 232 is adapted to provide at least
one of WiFi, cellular, wireless, radio frequency, satellite, and
BlueTooth communication. Establishment of communication link 246 is
generally as described in connection with FIG. 5.
[0105] In an aspect, communication 230 in medical support
monitoring system 228 is configured to communicate with
communication circuitry 1422 at a secondary monitoring location
252. Secondary monitoring location 252 may be an entity such as an
insurance company or other payor 1420. In an aspect, medical
support monitoring system 228 communicates with secondary
monitoring location 252 via communication link 250 established
between communication circuitry 232 and communication circuitry
1422, to provide for transmittal of information relating to medical
records 240 and billing records 242. Information may relate to
usage of patient medical support system, the value of the usage of
the patient medical support system, etc. A system at secondary
monitoring location 252 may include electrical control circuitry
1424 and one or more data storage device 1426.
[0106] FIG. 15 depicts a method 1500 of monitoring usage of a
patient medical support system. Method 1500 includes accepting a
first communication from a first user of a first telepresence
system at a first monitoring location via a user input device, as
indicated at 1502; transmitting the first communication to a second
telepresence system at a patient location remote from the first
monitoring location via a two-way communication link for delivery
to a second user at the patient location, the second user being a
user of the patient medical support system, the patient medical
support system including the second telepresence system and at
least one article of medical equipment, as indicated at 1504;
receiving a second communication from the second user at the first
monitoring location via the two-way communication link, as
indicated at 1506; delivering the second communication to the first
user via a user output device, the first telepresence system
including the user output device, as indicated at 1508; receiving a
telepresence system operational mode data signal at the first
monitoring location, the telepresence system operational mode data
signal indicative of an operational mode of the second telepresence
system, as indicated at 1510; receiving a telepresence system usage
data signal at the first monitoring location, the telepresence
system usage data signal indicative of usage of the second
telepresence system in the operational mode, as indicated at 1512;
receiving a medical equipment operational mode data signal at the
first monitoring location, the medical equipment operational mode
data signal indicative of an operational mode of the at least one
article of medical equipment, as indicated at 1514; and receiving a
medical equipment usage data signal at the first monitoring
location, the medical equipment usage data signal indicative of
usage of the at least one article of medical equipment in the
operational mode, as indicated at 1516. The steps of receiving a
telepresence system operational mode data signal at the first
monitoring location, the telepresence system operational mode data
signal indicative of an operational mode of the second telepresence
system, as indicated at 1510, and receiving a telepresence system
usage data signal at the first monitoring location, the
telepresence system usage data signal indicative of usage of the
second telepresence system in the operational mode, as indicated at
1512, are optional, as indicated by the dashed lines and in some
cases may be omitted.
[0107] FIGS. 16-19, 21-22 and 24 depict variations and expansions
of method 1500 as shown in FIG. 15. In the methods depicted in
FIGS. 16-19, 21-22 and 24, steps 1502-1516 are as described
generally in connection with FIG. 15.
[0108] As shown in FIG. 16, in an aspect a method 1600 includes
storing information in a data storage device at the first
monitoring location, wherein the stored information includes at
least one of the operational mode of the second telepresence
system, the usage of the second telepresence system, the
operational mode of the at least one article of medical equipment,
and the usage of the at least one article of medical equipment, as
indicated at 1602. In another aspect, a method 1600 includes
transmitting a signal to a third location for storage in a data
storage device at the third location, wherein the signal contains
information regarding at least one of the operational mode of the
second telepresence system, the usage of the second telepresence
system, the operational mode of the at least one article of medical
equipment, and the usage of the at least one article of medical
equipment, as indicated at 1604.
[0109] As shown in FIG. 17, in various aspects of a method 1700,
the telepresence system operational mode data signal is indicative
of one or more of a turned on operational mode (as indicated at
1702), a turned off operational mode (as indicated at 1704), a
standby operational mode (as indicated at 1706), a send
communication operational mode (as indicated at 1708), a receive
communication operational mode (as indicated at 1710), an audio
communication operational mode (as indicated at 1712), a video
communication operational mode (as indicated at 1714), a
user-initiated operational mode (as indicated at 1716), or a
medical care provider-initiated operational mode (as indicated at
1718) of the second telepresence system.
[0110] As shown in FIG. 18, in an aspect of a method 1800, the
telepresence system usage data signal is indicative of an amount of
usage of the second telepresence system in the operational mode, as
indicated at 1802; a duration of usage of the second telepresence
system in the operational mode, as indicated at 1804; a start of
usage of the second telepresence system in the operational mode, as
indicated at 1806; an end of usage of the second telepresence
system in the operational mode, as indicated at 1808; or a number
of usage events of the second telepresence system in the
operational mode, as indicated at 1810.
[0111] In another aspect of method 1800, the medical equipment
operational mode data signal is indicative of one or more of a
turned on operational mode of the at least one article of medical
equipment, as indicated at 1812; a turned off operational mode of
the at least one article of medical equipment, as indicated at
1814; a standby operational mode of the at least one article of
medical equipment, as indicated at 1816; a patient data gathering
operational mode of the at least one article of medical equipment,
as indicated at 1818; a treatment delivery operational mode of the
at least one article of medical equipment, as indicated at 1820; or
an error operational mode of the at least one article of medical
equipment, as indicated at 1822.
[0112] As shown in FIG. 19, in an aspect, a method 1900 includes
receiving at least one identification data signal at the first
monitoring location, as indicated at 1902. In a further aspect, the
at least one identification data signal is indicative of one or
more of an identity of a patient using the patient medical support
system in the operational mode, as indicated at 1904; an identity
of a caregiver using the patient medical support system in the
operational mode at the patient location, as indicated at 1906; or
an identity of a medical care provider at the first monitoring
location interacting remotely with the second user at the patient
location, as indicated at 1908. In an aspect, the at least one
identification data signal is indicative of a device identity of at
least a portion of the patient medical support system, as indicated
at 1910. If the at least one identification data signal is indicate
of a device identity of at least a portion of the patient medical
support system, in an aspect method 1900 includes determining the
identity of a user of the patient medical support system by
determining the device identity of the at least a portion of the
patient medical support system from the at least one identification
data signal and retrieving a user identity associated with the
device identity of the at least a portion of the patient medical
support system from a database containing the user identity stored
in association with the device identity, as indicated at 1912.
[0113] In various aspects, method 1900 includes determining the
identity of a user of the patient medical support system from the
at least one identification data signal, as indicated at 1914;
determining a value of the usage of the second telepresence system
based at least in part on the identification data signal, as
indicated at 1916; or determining a value of the usage of the at
least one article of medical equipment based at least in part on
the identification data signal, as indicated at 1918.
[0114] FIG. 20A illustrates an approach for determining the
identity of a user based upon the identity of a device associated
with the user. FIG. 20A depicts a database 2000, which may be
stored in a data storage device at a remote monitoring location,
for example. Database 2000 stores records of the identities of
particular users in association with particular devices. In an
aspect, user identity 2002a is the identity of a first user a, and
device identity 2004a is the identity of a device assigned to first
user a. For example, device identity 2004a may be the identity of a
patient medical support system that is issued to user a (a patient)
upon discharge from a hospital. User identity 2002a is stored in
database 2000 in association with the device identity 2004a at the
time the patient medical support system is issued to user a.
Similarly, user identities 2002b, 2002c, and 2002d are stored in
database 2000 in association with device identities 2004b, 2004c,
and 2004d, respectively. During monitoring of usage of the patient
medical support system, at the remote monitoring location, in an
aspect, electrical control circuitry at remote monitoring location
determines the identity of the patient medical support system based
on device identity information (device identity 2004a) contained in
the identification data signal received from the patient medical
support system. The electrical control circuitry at the remote
monitoring location then determines the identity of the patient by
retrieving user identity 2002a associated with the device identity
2004a from database 2000.
[0115] FIG. 20B illustrates determination of the value of usage of
a patient medical support system. In an aspect, such a
determination takes place at the remote monitoring location,
although in some aspects it may take place at the patient location.
FIG. 20B depicts a database 2010. Referring back to FIG. 2, such a
database may be stored, for example, in data storage device 236 in
medical support monitoring system 228, in data storage device 276
in patient medical support system 202, or in some other location.
Returning to FIG. 20B, in an aspect, database 2010 stores a
function 2012 which defines a value of a usage as a mathematical
function F of one or more user identities UI.sub.1, UI.sub.2, and
UI.sub.3, one or more device identities DI.sub.1, DI.sub.2, and one
or more operational modes OM.sub.1, OM.sub.2, and OM.sub.3. In
general, this relationship can be represented as Value=UI.sub.2,
UI.sub.3, DI.sub.1, DI.sub.2, DI.sub.3, OM.sub.1, OM.sub.2, and
OM.sub.3). Various functions may be used to determine the value of
the usage, depending on how the value information is intended to be
used, and the function depicted in FIG. 20B is an example and is
not intended to be limiting. Furthermore, the value of the usage
may be a function of a larger or smaller numbers of users, devices,
operational modes, and other variables. In the present example, the
specific function is Value=Base Rate+(Unit Rate.times.Usage
Amount), as indicated at 2014. In the present example, the value of
a usage of the patient medical support system is a function of nine
variables, which can be stored in database 2010. The nine variables
are represented in column 2060, and include first user identity (M)
2020, second user identity (UI.sub.2) 2022, third user identity
(UI.sub.3) 2024, first device identity (DI.sub.1) 2026, second
device identity (DI.sub.2) 2028, first operational mode (OM.sub.1)
2030, second operational mode (OM.sub.2) 2032, third operational
mode (OM.sub.3) 2034, and usage amount 2036. In the present
example, each variable has an associated constant unit rate, which
is the rate charged per unit of usage of the entity represented by
the variable. The unit rates are stored as an array of values 2016
in database 2010. In addition, in the present example, each
variable has an associated constant base rate, which is a one-time
charge that is made each time a usage of the entity represented by
the variable occurs. The base rates are stored as an array of
values 2018 in database 2010. In this example, the total value of
the usage is the some of the values of the usages relating to each
variable.
[0116] The specific variable types of the variables are indicated
in column 2062. The variable types may be selected to meet the
needs of the entity for which the value is determined. In the
present example, the variable types are as follows: the first user
identity is the identity of the patient 2040. The second user
identity is the identity of the caregiver 2042. The third user
identity is the identity of the medical care provider 2044. The
first device identity is the identity of telepresence system 2046.
The second device identity is the identity of medical equipment
2048. The first operational mode is telepresence mode 1 (2050), the
second operation mode is telepresence mode 2 (2052), and the third
operational mode is medical equipment mode 1 (2054). In the present
example, the usage amount is the number of minutes used (2056);
alternatively, the usage among could be indicated in number of
hours, number of days, instances of usage, etc., as discussed
elsewhere herein. Columns 2064, 2066, and 2068 represent examples
of particular usages of the medical support system, from which the
values of usages can be determined. In the examples of columns
2064, 2066, and 2068, for all usages the patient is a single
patient "X"; for example, the patient could be identified as "Joe
Smith," Patient ID No. 12345, or any other unique identifier. The
second user, the caregiver may not be the same for every usage. For
example, during the usage of column 2064, the caregiver is a nurse,
while during the usage of column 2066, the caregiver is a physical
therapist. During the usage of column 2068, no caregiver is
present, so the caregiver is indicated as "none." The medical care
provider 2044 may also be different for different usages. For
example, in the usage of column 2064, the caregiver is a surgeon. A
specific surgeon (e.g., Dr. Kim) may be indicated, if costs or if
the cost for all surgeons is the same, it may be necessary only to
indicate that the medical care provider was a surgeon. During the
usages of columns 2066 and 2068, the medical care provider is a
physician. Again, a specific physician may be indicated, if
appropriate. In the present example, a single telepresence system
("telepresence system Y") and a single article of medical equipment
("Blood Pressure Monitor") are used. The first and second
operational modes 2030 and 2032, respectively, pertain to the
telepresence system. It can be seen from the examples of columns
2064, 2066, and 2068 that the telepresence system can have two
different operational modes at the same time (receive communication
and user 3 initiated, send communication and user 2 initiated, and
send communication and user 1 initiated, respectively. Third
operational mode 2034 pertains to the article of medical equipment.
The examples of columns 2064, 2066, and 2068 show three different
operational modes of the article of medical equipment: standby,
patient data gathering, and turned off, respectively. Finally, the
usage amount for the usages of columns 2064, 2066, and 2068 are
indicated (e.g., 15 minutes, 30 minutes, and 20 minutes). Based on
the values stored in database 2010, the values of the usages of
columns 2064, 2066, and 2068 can be determined according to
function 2014.
[0117] Table 1 shows examples of base and unit rates for various
aspects of usage of the medical support system, as represented in
column 2064 of FIG. 20B, and calculation of the total value of the
usage, which is determined by multiplying the unit rate and usage
amount for each variable and adding this to the base rate for the
variable to determine the value for each variable, and then summing
the values for all the variables to determine the total value of
the usage. This example represents the circumstance in which the
patient has returned home after a surgery, and is having a
scheduled follow-up consultation with a surgeon. A nurse (e.g. a
home health nurse) is present at the patient's home to check the
patient's health and to consult with the surgeon as well. The
higher base rate for the nurse relative to the surgeon reflects the
need for the nurse to travel to the patient's home. The higher unit
rate for the surgeon than the nurse reflects the higher rate
charged by the surgeon per minute. It will be appreciated that the
various rates listed in the table are merely examples intended to
illustrate how the value calculation is performed, and are not
intended to reflect actual rates that are used by any particular
health care providing entity.
TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 (Usage Value Calculation for Example of Col.
2064, FIG. 20B) Usage Base Rate Unit Rate Amount Value Patient X
$0.00 $0.00/min 15 minutes $0.00 Nurse $30.00 $1.00/min 15 minutes
$45.00 Surgeon $25.00 $5.00/min 15 minutes $100.00 Telepresence
$15.00 $0.00/min 15 minutes $15.00 System Y Blood Pressure $5.00
$1.00/min 15 minutes $5.00 Monitor Receive $0.00 $1.00/min 15
minutes $15.00 Communication User 3 Initiated $5.00 $0.00/min 15
minutes $5.00 Standby $0.00 $0.50/min 15 minutes $7.50 Total Value
= Base Rate + $192.50 (Unit Rate .times. Usage Amount) =
[0118] As shown in FIG. 21, in an aspect, a method 2100 includes
determining a value of the usage of the second telepresence system
based at least in part on the telepresence system operational mode
data signal, as indicated at 2102. In an aspect, method 2100
includes determining a value of the usage of the second
telepresence system based at least in part on the telepresence
system usage data signal, as indicated at 2104. In another aspect,
method 2100 includes determining a value of the usage of the at
least one article of medical equipment based at least in part on
the medical equipment operational mode data signal, as indicated at
2106. In yet another aspect, method 2100 includes determining a
value of the usage of the at least one article of medical equipment
based at least in part on the medical equipment usage data signal,
as indicated at 2108. Method 2100 may also include billing a payor
for the value of the usage of at least one article of medical
equipment, as indicated at 2110, or storing the value of the usage
of the at least one article of medical equipment in a data storage
location in association with information identifying the patient,
as indicated at 2112.
[0119] As shown in FIG. 22, in an aspect a method 2200 include
determining an amount of usage of the at least one article of
medical equipment based at least in part on the medical equipment
usage data signal, dissociating information indicative of patient
identity from the determined amount of usage of the at least one
article of medical equipment, and combining the determined amount
of usage of the at least one article of medical equipment with
amount of usage values determined from a plurality of other
patients, as indicated at 2202.
[0120] FIG. 23 depicts in schematic form a data handling process
2300 used in anonymization of patient records pertaining to medical
equipment usage. Medical equipment usage data 2302, which may be
stored in a database at a medical support monitoring location such
as a hospital, for example, includes records including associated
patient identity 2304 and medical equipment usage 2306 data, for N
patients. It may be desired to combine the patient data for various
purposes, ranging from medical research population studies to data
analysis used for business purposes of e.g., a hospital or
insurance company. Therefore, medical equipment usage data 2302 may
be processed by an anonymization 2308 module and stored in database
2310, in which anonymized patient identifier data 2312a-2312d are
associated with medical equipment usage data 2314a-2314d.
[0121] Similarly, FIG. 23 depicts in schematic form data handling
process 2320 used in anonymization of patient records pertaining to
telepresence system usage. Telepresence system usage data 2322,
which may be stored in a database at a medical support monitoring
location such as a hospital, for example, includes records
including associated patient identity 2324 and telepresence system
usage 2326 data, for N patients. Telepresence system usage data
2322 may be processed by an anonymization module 2328 and stored in
database 2330, in which anonymized patient identifier data
2332a-2332d are associated with telepresence system usage data
2334a-2334d. As shown in FIG. 24, in an aspect a method 2400
includes determining an amount of usage of the first telepresence
system at 2402. In an aspect, method 2400 includes determining a
value of the usage of the first telepresence system based at least
in part on the amount of usage of the first telepresence system, as
indicated at 2404. In another aspect, method 2400 includes billing
a payor for the value of the usage of the first telepresence
system, as indicated at 2406. In an aspect, method 2400 includes
storing the value of the usage of the first telepresence system in
a data storage location in association with information identifying
the patient, as indicated at 2408. Once anonymized, data pertaining
to medical equipment or telepresence system usage may be analyzed
in various ways without compromising the privacy of the patients
with whom the data was originally associated.
[0122] FIG. 25 depicts a method 2500 of monitoring usage of a
patient medical support system. Method 2500 may be performed at a
hospital, in part with a medical support monitoring system 228 as
depicted in FIG. 14, for example. Method 2500 includes providing a
patient with a patient medical support system, as indicated at
2502, where the patient medical support system includes at least
one article of medical equipment; electrical control circuitry
configured to determine two or more different operational modes of
the at least one article of medical equipment and determine a first
usage data signal indicative of an amount of usage of the at least
one article of medical equipment in a first operational mode, the
first operational mode being one of the two or more different
operational modes; and communication circuitry for transmitting the
first usage data signal and an identification data signal from a
patient location remote from a monitoring location to the
monitoring location. Method 2500 further includes receiving the
first usage data signal at the monitoring location, as indicated at
2504; receiving the identification data signal at the monitoring
location, as indicated at 2506; determining at least one user
identification associated with a user of the patient medical
support system based at least in part on the identification data
signal, as indicated at 2508; and determining an amount of usage of
the at least one article of medical equipment based at least in
part on the first usage data signal, as indicated at 2510.
[0123] FIGS. 26-30 depict variations and expansions of method 2500
as shown in FIG. 25. In the methods depicted in FIGS. 26-30, steps
2502-2510 are as described generally in connection with FIG.
25.
[0124] In an aspect of method 2600 shown in FIG. 26, the
identification data signal contains a user identification of a user
of the patient medical support system, as indicated at 2602. In
another aspect, the identification data signal contains a device
identification of at least a portion of the patient medical support
system, as indicated at 2604. For example, the device
identification may be associated with a user identification of a
user of the patient medical system in a database, as indicated at
2606, and in connection therewith, method 2600 may further include
determining the user identification by retrieving the user
identification associated with the device identification, as
indicated at 2608. In an aspect, determining the amount of usage of
the at least one article of medical equipment includes determining
the amount of usage of the at least one article of medical
equipment during a first time period, as indicated at 2610. In
another aspect, method 2600 includes associating the amount of
usage of the at least one article of medical equipment with the
patient based at least in part on the user identification, as
indicated at 2612.
[0125] FIG. 27 depicts further aspects of a method 2700. For
example, in various aspects, the first usage data signal is
indicative of a duration of usage of the at least one article of
medical equipment in the first operational mode, as indicated at
2702; a start of usage of the at least one article of medical
equipment in the first operational mode, as indicated at 2704; an
end of usage of the at least one article of medical equipment in
the first operational mode, as indicated at 2706; or a number of
usage events of the at least one article of medical equipment in
the first operational mode, as indicated at 2708. In a further
aspect, method 2700 includes determining a value of the usage of
the at least one article of medical equipment based at least in
part on the amount of usage of the at least one article of medical
equipment, as indicated at 2710. Furthermore, method 2710 may then
include one or more of billing a payor for the value of the usage
of at least one article of medical equipment during the first time
period, as indicated at 2712, or storing the value of the usage of
the at least one article of medical equipment in a data storage
location in association with information identifying the patient,
as indicated at 2714.
[0126] As shown in FIG. 28, in another aspect, a method 2800
includes dissociating information identifying the patient from the
determined amount of usage of the at least one article of medical
equipment; and combining the determined amount of usage of the at
least one article of medical equipment with amount of usage values
determined from a plurality of other patients, as indicated at
2802, e.g. as described in connection with FIG. 23.
[0127] As shown in FIG. 29, in an aspect a method 2900 includes
receiving a telepresence system usage data signal indicative of an
amount usage of a telepresence system at the patient location, as
indicated at 2902. In connection therewith, method 2900 may include
determining the amount of usage of the telepresence system based at
least in part on the telepresence system usage data signal, as
indicated at 2904. Method 2900 may then additionally include
dissociating information identifying the patient from the
determined amount of usage of the telepresence system and combining
the determined amount of usage of the telepresence system with
amount of usage values determined from a plurality of other
patients, as indicated at 2906. In various aspects, the
telepresence system usage data signal is indicative of one or more
of a duration of usage of the telepresence system, as indicated at
2908; a start of usage of the telepresence system, as indicated at
2910; an end of usage of the telepresence system, as indicated at
2912; or a number of usage events of the telepresence system, as
indicated at 2914. In a further aspect, method 2900 includes
associating the amount of usage of the telepresence system with the
patient based at least in part on the at least one user
identification, as indicated at 2916. In another aspect, method
2900 includes determining a value of the usage of the telepresence
system based at least in part on the amount of usage of the
telepresence system, as indicated at 2918. Method 2900 may then
also includes one or more of billing a payor for the value of the
usage of telepresence system, as indicated at 2920 or storing the
value of the usage of the telepresence system in a data storage
location in association with information identifying the patient,
as indicated at 2922, as described in connection with FIG. 23.
[0128] FIG. 30 depicts a method 3000, which includes receiving a
second usage data signal indicative of an amount of usage of the at
least one article of medical equipment in a second operational mode
from the patient location at the monitoring location, the second
operational mode being one of the two or more different operational
modes; and determining the amount of usage of the at least one
article of medical equipment during a second time period based at
least in part on the second usage data signal, as indicated at
3002. In an aspect, the second operational mode is different than
the first operational mode, as indicated at 3004. In an aspect, the
second time period is different than the first time period, as
indicated at 3006. In an aspect, method 3000 includes determining a
value of the usage of the at least one article of medical equipment
based at least in part on the amount of usage of the at least one
article of medical equipment in the first operational mode during
the first time period and the amount of usage of the at least one
article of medical equipment in the second operational mode during
the second time period, as indicated at 3008.
[0129] FIG. 31 is a flow diagram of a method 3100 of monitoring
usage of a patient medical support system including an article of
medical equipment and a telepresence system. Method 3100 may be
performed with the use of a medical support monitoring system as
shown in FIG. 14, for example. Method 3100 includes receiving a
medical equipment operational mode data signal at a first
monitoring location from the patient medical support system located
remote from the first monitoring location at a patient location,
the medical equipment operational mode data signal indicative of a
medical equipment operational mode of at least two operational
modes of the article of medical equipment, as indicated at 3102;
receiving a medical equipment usage data signal at the first
monitoring location from the patient medical support system, the
medical equipment usage data signal indicative of usage of the
article of medical equipment in the medical equipment operational
mode, as indicated at 3104; receiving a first telepresence system
operational mode data signal at the first monitoring location from
the patient medical support system, the first telepresence system
operational mode data signal indicative of a first telepresence
system operational mode of at least two operational modes of the
telepresence system, as indicated at 3106; receiving a first
telepresence system usage data signal at the first monitoring
location from the patient medical support system, the first
telepresence system usage data signal indicative of usage of the
telepresence system in the first telepresence system operational
mode, as indicated at 3108; determining at least one user
identification associated with a user of the patient medical
support system, as indicated at 3110; and storing information to a
data storage device, the information regarding at least one of the
medical equipment operational mode, the usage of the article of the
medical equipment, the first telepresence system operational mode
and the usage of the telepresence system, in association with the
at least one user identification, as indicated at 3112. The steps
of receiving a first telepresence system operational mode data
signal at the first monitoring location from the patient medical
support system, the first telepresence system operational mode data
signal indicative of a first telepresence system operational mode
of at least two operational modes of the telepresence system, as
indicated at 3106, and receiving a first telepresence system usage
data signal at the first monitoring location from the patient
medical support system, the first telepresence system usage data
signal indicative of usage of the telepresence system in the first
telepresence system operational mode, as indicated at 3108, are
optional and in some aspects may be omitted, as indicated by the
dashed lines.
[0130] FIGS. 32-35 depict variations and expansions of method 3100
as shown in FIG. 31. In the methods depicted in FIGS. 32-35, steps
3102-3112 are as described generally in connection with FIG.
31.
[0131] As shown in FIG. 32, in various aspects of a method 3200,
the first telepresence system operational mode data signal is
indicative of one or more of various operational modes of the
telepresence system. For example, in various aspects, the first
telepresence system operational mode data signal is indicative of a
turned on operational mode, as indicated at 3202; a turned off
operational mode, as indicated at 3204; a standby operational mode,
as indicated at 3206; a send communication operational mode, as
indicated at 3208; a receive communication operational mode, as
indicated at 3210; an audio communication operational mode, as
indicated at 3212; a video communication operational mode, as
indicated at 3214; a user-initiated operational mode, as indicated
at 3216; or a medical care provider-initiated operational mode of
the telepresence system, as indicated at 3218.
[0132] As shown in FIG. 33, in an aspect of method 3300 the data
storage device is located at the first monitoring location, as
indicated at 3302. In another aspect, the method includes
transmitting information to a second monitoring location remote
from the first monitoring location, wherein the data storage device
is located at the second monitoring location, the transmitted
information regarding at least one of the medical equipment
operational mode, the usage of the article of the medical
equipment, the first telepresence system operational mode and the
usage of the telepresence system, in association with the at least
one user identification, as indicated at 3304.
[0133] As shown in FIG. 34, in an aspect a method 3400 includes
determining an amount of usage of the article of medical equipment
based at least in part on the medical equipment usage data signal,
as indicated at 3402. In a further aspect, method 3400 may then
also include determining a value of the usage of the article of
medical equipment based at least in part on the amount of usage of
the article of medical equipment, as indicated at 3406. Method 3400
may also include one or more of billing a payor for the value of
the usage of article of medical equipment during the first time
period, as indicated at 3408, or comprising storing the value of
the usage of the article of medical equipment in a data storage
location in association with information identifying the patient,
as indicated at 3410. In another aspect, the method also includes
dissociating information identifying the patient from the
determined amount of usage of the article of medical equipment and
combining the determined amount of usage of the article of medical
equipment with amount of usage values determined from a plurality
of other patients, as indicated at 3412, and described, for
example, in connection with FIG. 23.
[0134] FIG. 35 illustrates further aspects of a method 3500, which
includes steps 3102-3112 as described in connection with FIG. 31.
In an aspect, method 3500 includes determining an amount of usage
of the telepresence system based at least in part on the first
telepresence system usage data signal, as indicated at 3502. In
connection therewith, in an aspect method 3500 includes associating
the amount of usage of the telepresence system with a patient based
at least in part on the at least one user identification, as
indicated at 3504. In another aspect, method 3500 includes
determining a value of the usage of the telepresence system based
at least in part on the amount of usage of the telepresence system,
as indicated at 3506. Method 3500 may then also include one or more
of billing a payor for the value of the usage of telepresence
system, as indicated at 3508, or storing the value of the usage of
the telepresence system in a data storage location in association
with information identifying the patient, as indicated at 3510. In
another aspect, method 3500 includes dissociating information
identifying the patient from the determined amount of usage of the
telepresence system; and combining the determined amount of usage
of the telepresence system with amount of usage values determined
from a plurality of other patients, as indicated at 3512, and
described in connection with FIG. 23.
[0135] Method 3500 may also include receiving a second telepresence
system usage data signal indicative of an amount of usage of the
telepresence system in a second telepresence system operational
mode from the patient location at the monitoring location, the
second telepresence system operational mode being one of the two or
more different telepresence system operational modes; and
determining the amount of usage of the telepresence system in the
second telepresence system operational mode based at least in part
on the second telepresence system usage data signal, as indicated
at 3514. The second operational mode is different than the first
operational mode, as indicated at 3516, or it may be the same. In
an aspect, the second telepresence usage data signal is indicative
of telepresence system usage occurring during a different time
period than usage indicated by the first telepresence system usage
data signal, as indicated at 3518. In an aspect, method 3500
includes determining a value of the usage of the telepresence
system based at least in part on the first telepresence usage data
signal and the second telepresence data signal, as indicated at
3520.
[0136] In various embodiments, methods as described herein may be
performed according to instructions implementable in hardware,
software, and/or firmware. Such instructions may be stored in
non-transitory machine-readable data storage media, for example.
Those having skill in the art will recognize that the state of the
art has progressed to the point where there is little distinction
left between hardware, software, and/or firmware implementations of
aspects of systems; the use of hardware, software, and/or firmware
is generally (but not always, in that in certain contexts the
choice between hardware and software can become significant) a
design choice representing cost vs. efficiency tradeoffs. Those
having skill in the art will appreciate that there are various
vehicles by which processes and/or systems and/or other
technologies described herein can be effected (e.g., hardware,
software, and/or firmware), and that the preferred vehicle will
vary with the context in which the processes and/or systems and/or
other technologies are deployed. For example, if an implementer
determines that speed and accuracy are paramount, the implementer
may opt for a mainly hardware and/or firmware vehicle;
alternatively, if flexibility is paramount, the implementer may opt
for a mainly software implementation; or, yet again alternatively,
the implementer may opt for some combination of hardware, software,
and/or firmware in one or more machines, compositions of matter,
and articles of manufacture. Hence, there are several possible
vehicles by which the processes and/or devices and/or other
technologies described herein may be effected, none of which is
inherently superior to the other in that any vehicle to be utilized
is a choice dependent upon the context in which the vehicle will be
deployed and the specific concerns (e.g., speed, flexibility, or
predictability) of the implementer, any of which may vary. Those
skilled in the art will recognize that optical aspects of
implementations will typically employ optically-oriented hardware,
software, and or firmware.
[0137] In some implementations described herein, logic and similar
implementations may include software or other control structures.
Electrical circuitry, for example, may have one or more paths of
electrical current constructed and arranged to implement various
functions as described herein. In some implementations, one or more
media may be configured to bear a device-detectable implementation
when such media hold or transmit device detectable instructions
operable to perform as described herein. In some variants, for
example, implementations may include an update or modification of
existing software or firmware, or of gate arrays or programmable
hardware, such as by performing a reception of or a transmission of
one or more instructions in relation to one or more operations
described herein. Alternatively or additionally, in some variants,
an implementation may include special-purpose hardware, software,
firmware components, and/or general-purpose components executing or
otherwise invoking special-purpose components.
[0138] Implementations may include executing a special-purpose
instruction sequence or invoking circuitry for enabling,
triggering, coordinating, requesting, or otherwise causing one or
more occurrences of virtually any functional operations described
herein. In some variants, operational or other logical descriptions
herein may be expressed as source code and compiled or otherwise
invoked as an executable instruction sequence. In some contexts,
for example, implementations may be provided, in whole or in part,
by source code, such as C++, or other code sequences. In other
implementations, source or other code implementation, using
commercially available and/or techniques in the art, may be
compiled//implemented/translated/converted into a high-level
descriptor language (e.g., initially implementing described
technologies in C or C++ programming language and thereafter
converting the programming language implementation into a
logic-synthesizable language implementation, a hardware description
language implementation, a hardware design simulation
implementation, and/or other such similar mode(s) of expression).
For example, some or all of a logical expression (e.g., computer
programming language implementation) may be manifested as a
Verilog-type hardware description (e.g., via Hardware Description
Language (HDL) and/or Very High Speed Integrated Circuit Hardware
Descriptor Language (VHDL)) or other circuitry model which may then
be used to create a physical implementation having hardware (e.g.,
an Application Specific Integrated Circuit). Those skilled in the
art will recognize how to obtain, configure, and optimize suitable
transmission or computational elements, material supplies,
actuators, or other structures in light of these teachings.
[0139] The foregoing detailed description has set forth various
embodiments of the devices and/or processes via the use of block
diagrams, flowcharts, and/or examples. Insofar as such block
diagrams, flowcharts, and/or examples contain one or more functions
and/or operations, it will be understood by those within the art
that each function and/or operation within such block diagrams,
flowcharts, or examples can be implemented, individually and/or
collectively, by a wide range of hardware, software, firmware, or
virtually any combination thereof. In an embodiment, several
portions of the subject matter described herein may be implemented
via Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field
Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), digital signal processors (DSPs),
or other integrated formats. However, those skilled in the art will
recognize that some aspects of the embodiments disclosed herein, in
whole or in part, can be equivalently implemented in integrated
circuits, as one or more computer programs running on one or more
computers (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more
computer systems), as one or more programs running on one or more
processors (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more
microprocessors), as firmware, or as virtually any combination
thereof, and that designing the circuitry and/or writing the code
for the software and or firmware would be well within the skill of
one of skill in the art in light of this disclosure. In addition,
those skilled in the art will appreciate that the mechanisms of the
subject matter described herein are capable of being distributed as
a program product in a variety of forms, and that an illustrative
embodiment of the subject matter described herein applies
regardless of the particular type of signal bearing medium used to
actually carry out the distribution. Examples of a signal bearing
medium include, but are not limited to non-transitory
machine-readable data storage media such as a recordable type
medium such as a floppy disk, a hard disk drive, a Compact Disc
(CD), a Digital Video Disk (DVD), a digital tape, a computer
memory, etc. . . . . A signal bearing medium may also include
transmission type medium such as a digital and/or an analog
communication medium (e.g., a fiber optic cable, a waveguide, a
wired communications link, a wireless communication link (e.g.,
transmitter, receiver, transmission logic, reception logic, etc.)
and so forth).
[0140] FIG. 36 depicts an article of manufacture 3600 that includes
one or more non-transitory machine-readable data storage media 3602
bearing one or more instructions 3604 for accepting a first
communication from a first user of a first telepresence system at a
patient location via a user input device, the patient medical
support system including the first telepresence system and an
article of medical equipment and the first user being a user of the
patient medical support system; transmitting the first
communication to a second telepresence system at a first monitoring
location via a two-way communication link for delivery to a second
user at the first monitoring location; receiving a second
communication from the second user of the second telepresence
system at the first telepresence system via the two-way
communication link; delivering the second communication to the
first user at the patient location; transmitting an operational
mode data signal indicative of an operational mode of the patient
medical support system to the first monitoring location; and
transmitting a usage data signal indicative of usage of the patient
medical support system in the at least one operational mode to the
first monitoring location. Instructions 3604 correspond to method
700 shown in FIG. 7. Other variants of methods as depicted in FIGS.
8-13 and as described herein can be implemented through the use of
non-transitory machine-readable data storage media bearing one or
more suitable instructions.
[0141] FIG. 37 depicts an article of manufacture 3700 that includes
one or more non-transitory machine-readable data storage media 3702
bearing one or more instructions 3704 for accepting a first
communication from a first user of a first telepresence system at a
first monitoring location via a user input device; transmitting the
first communication to a second telepresence system at a patient
location remote from the first monitoring location via a two-way
communication link for delivery to a second user at the patient
location, the second user being a user of the patient medical
support system, the patient medical support system including the
second telepresence system and at least one article of medical
equipment; receiving a second communication from the second user at
the first monitoring location via the two-way communication link;
delivering the second communication to the first user via a user
output device, the first telepresence system including the user
output device; receiving a telepresence system operational mode
data signal at the first monitoring location, the telepresence
system operational mode data signal indicative of an operational
mode of the second telepresence system; receiving a telepresence
system usage data signal at the first monitoring location, the
telepresence system usage data signal indicative of usage of the
second telepresence system in the operational mode; receiving a
medical equipment operational mode data signal at the first
monitoring location, the medical equipment operational mode data
signal indicative of an operational mode of the at least one
article of medical equipment; and receiving a medical equipment
usage data signal at the first monitoring location, the medical
equipment usage data signal indicative of usage of the at least one
article of medical equipment in the operational mode. Instructions
3704 correspond to method 1500 shown in FIG. 15. Other variants of
methods as depicted in FIGS. 16-19, 21-22 and 24 and as described
herein can be implemented through the use of non-transitory
machine-readable data storage media bearing one or more suitable
instructions.
[0142] FIG. 38 depicts an article of manufacture 3800 that includes
one or more non-transitory machine-readable data storage media 3802
bearing one or more instructions 3804 for receiving a medical
equipment operational mode data signal at a first monitoring
location from a patient medical support system located remote from
the first monitoring location at a patient location, the medical
equipment operational mode data signal indicative of a medical
equipment operational mode of at least two operational modes of the
article of medical equipment; receiving a medical equipment usage
data signal at the first monitoring location from the patient
medical support system, the medical equipment usage data signal
indicative of usage of the article of medical equipment in the
medical equipment operational mode; receiving a first telepresence
system operational mode data signal at the first monitoring
location from the patient medical support system, the first
telepresence system operational mode data signal indicative of a
first telepresence system operational mode of at least two
operational modes of the telepresence system; receiving a first
telepresence system usage data signal at the first monitoring
location from the patient medical support system, the first
telepresence system usage data signal indicative of usage of the
telepresence system in the first telepresence system operational
mode; determining at least one user identification associated with
a user of the patient medical support system; and storing
information to a data storage device, the stored information
regarding at least one of the medical equipment operational mode,
the usage of the article of the medical equipment, the first
telepresence system operational mode and the usage of the
telepresence system, in association with the at least one user
identification. Instructions 3804 correspond to method 3100 shown
in FIG. 31. Other variants of methods as depicted in FIGS. 32-35
and as described herein can be implemented through the use of
non-transitory machine-readable data storage media bearing one or
more suitable instructions.
[0143] The herein described subject matter sometimes illustrates
different components contained within, or connected with, different
other components. It is to be understood that such depicted
architectures are merely exemplary, and that in fact many other
architectures may be implemented which achieve the same
functionality. In a conceptual sense, any arrangement of components
to achieve the same functionality is effectively "associated" such
that the desired functionality is achieved. Hence, any two
components herein combined to achieve a particular functionality
can be seen as "associated with" each other such that the desired
functionality is achieved, irrespective of architectures or
intermedial components. Likewise, any two components so associated
can also be viewed as being "operably connected", or "operably
coupled," to each other to achieve the desired functionality, and
any two components capable of being so associated can also be
viewed as being "operably couplable," to each other to achieve the
desired functionality. Specific examples of operably couplable
include but are not limited to physically mateable and/or
physically interacting components, and/or wirelessly interactable,
and/or wirelessly interacting components, and/or logically
interacting, and/or logically interactable components.
[0144] In some instances, one or more components may be referred to
herein as "configured to," "configured by," "configurable to,"
"operable/operative to," "adapted/adaptable," "able to,"
"conformable/conformed to," etc. Those skilled in the art will
recognize that such terms (e.g. "configured to") generally
encompass active-state components and/or inactive-state components
and/or standby-state components, unless context requires
otherwise.
[0145] While particular aspects of the present subject matter
described herein have been shown and described, it will be apparent
to those skilled in the art that, based upon the teachings herein,
changes and modifications may be made without departing from the
subject matter described herein and its broader aspects and,
therefore, the appended claims are to encompass within their scope
all such changes and modifications as are within the true spirit
and scope of the subject matter described herein. It will be
understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used
herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the
appended claims) are generally intended as "open" terms (e.g., the
term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not
limited to," the term "having" should be interpreted as "having at
least," the term "includes" should be interpreted as "includes but
is not limited to," etc.). It will be further understood by those
within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim
recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited
in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent
is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following
appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases "at
least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations.
However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply
that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite
articles "a" or "an" limits any particular claim containing such
introduced claim recitation to claims containing only one such
recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory
phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and indefinite articles
such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and/or "an" should typically be
interpreted to mean "at least one" or "one or more"); the same
holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim
recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an
introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in
the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be
interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare
recitation of "two recitations," without other modifiers, typically
means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations).
Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to "at
least one of A, B, and C, etc." is used, in general such a
construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art
would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least
one of A, B, and C" would include but not be limited to systems
that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C
together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In
those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A,
B, or C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended
in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the
convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, or C"
would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B
alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C
together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further
understood by those within the art that typically a disjunctive
word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms,
whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be
understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the
terms, either of the terms, or both terms unless context dictates
otherwise. For example, the phrase "A or B" will be typically
understood to include the possibilities of "A" or "B" or "A and
B."
[0146] With respect to the appended claims, those skilled in the
art will appreciate that recited operations therein may generally
be performed in any order. Also, although various operational flows
are presented in a sequence(s), it should be understood that the
various operations may be performed in other orders than those
which are illustrated, or may be performed concurrently. Examples
of such alternate orderings may include overlapping, interleaved,
interrupted, reordered, incremental, preparatory, supplemental,
simultaneous, reverse, or other variant orderings, unless context
dictates otherwise. Furthermore, terms like "responsive to,"
"related to," or other past-tense adjectives are generally not
intended to exclude such variants, unless context dictates
otherwise.
[0147] While various aspects and embodiments have been disclosed
herein, other aspects and embodiments will be apparent to those
skilled in the art. The various aspects and embodiments disclosed
herein are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to be
limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the
following claims.
* * * * *