Information processing system for counting coughs or evaluating other

Abstract

A system using audio and visual information to count coughs or evaluate other discrete information, including respiration and heart rate, relating to a patient in a fixed location such as a bed is disclosed. The system provides movement- and sound-based information derived from the patient's activities to a storage device and subsequently to a signal processing apparatus. One embodiment of the invention includes a pressure transducer, a video camera, a directional microphone, and a videocassette recorder (VCR) having two audio channels. Signals obtained from the transducer and microphone are transmitted to the two audio channel inputs of the VCR, while movement of the patient is recorded using the video camera connected to the video channel input of the VCR. Part or all of the information stored using the VCR may be transmitted to signal processing equipment and frequency filtered to determine the presence and number of coughs, and any remaining information (e.g. the video data) may be used to confirm the count. Because various conditions manifest themselves in movements having different frequency characteristics, the present system, as appropriately modified, also can be used to determine the presence of symptoms such as restlessness and thereby evaluate the effectiveness of medicines such as sedatives and hypnotics.