Cherne Industries Incorporated

Mark W Kroll

Dan Hanson

Mark R Pommrehn

The unitary flexible and disposable electrode belt and method is for receiving and transmitting electric current or voltage for use on the body of a patient. The belt has a unitary layered body structure that is releasably secured to the patient. The belt device body structure has a terminal end that is connectable for communication with medical therapeutic and diagnostic apparatus. The layered body structure further includes a plurality of flexible non-conductive and conductive layers, a conductive network having electrode contact areas at predetermined positions and conductive adhesive members to removably hold the device to a patient and to, thereby, transfer electrical signals between predetermined patient body locations and the medical therapeutic and diagnostic apparatus.

Flexible and disposable electrode belt device

A heart sound sensing device for placement on the body of a patient and for the detection of low frequency sound waves. The device is for use with medical diagnostic devices, and comprises a cylindrical housing structure for retaining the remaining elements of the device, a strap for holding the device to the body of the patient, a fluid ingress/egress aperture, an open end for receiving sound waves, and a hydrophone assembly centrally fixed within the housing structure for producing electrical signals in response to transmitted heart sound waves. The device of this invention is further provided with a flexible diaphragm which is vibratingly sensitive to sound waves generated by the patient's heart and being for placement in direct contact with the patient body surface to conform to the body contours. A bubble free fluid medium is provided to fill the remaining interior volume of the housing structure to transmit sound waves from the diaphragm to the hydrophone assembly. The device further includes a cable means communicatively connected to the hydrophone assembly for transmitting electrical output signals to medical diagnostic devices. The sound sensing device is further used in a method for sensing heart sound waves.

Heart sound sensor

A method and apparatus for deriving weak cardiac sounds by automatically cancelling lung sounds. The process is accomplished by providing a pair of acoustic sensors about the thorax of a patient, the first being disposed on the precordial region, adjacent to the sternum, and the second on the axillary region; obtaining sound signals from each sensor; amplifying the axillary signal by a predetermined factor; and subtracting the amplified signal from the precordial signal. An acoustic transmitter is placed on the axillary region opposite the axillary sensor. Sound waves of predetermined frequencies are emitted from the axillary transmitter to determine and compensate for phase shifts due to the electronic circuitry and the patient body. The apparatus of the present invention comprises a first acoustic sensor, a second acoustic sensor, an acoustic transmitter, a strap, transmitting cables, a processor, a cathode-ray tube, a printer, and headphones.

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Rogers, MN, United States of America

Mark W Kroll