The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Feb. 04, 1997
Filed:
Sep. 25, 1995
Jerome Stafford, Great Falls, MT (US);
Charles Bock, Great Falls, MT (US);
Other;
Abstract
The present invention provides a simple, relatively inexpensive improved portable patient monitoring system that alerts a nurses station as well as the patient when the patient attempts to exit the hospital bed but that has no electronic components attached to the hospital bed. The portable patient monitoring system of the present invention comprises a portable master unit having an infrared emitter which emits an infrared beam and infrared detector which detects the infrared beam. The portable patient monitoring system of the present invention further comprises a portable external reflector which reflects the infrared beam emitted from the infrared emitter back to the infrared detector. The portable patient monitoring system further comprises comparing a signal from the infrared detector to a reference, outputting a signal from said comparison, sensing when the infrared beam has been broken and activating a local light on the portable master unit, a switch to a nurses station and a speech synthesis component to play a pre-recorded message. The infrared emitter and infrared detector photo transistor are both contained in a single portable master unit which is placed adjacent to one end of the hospital bed. A portable external deflector is placed adjacent the other end of the hospital bed such that the infrared beam from the portable infrared emitter runs to the portable external deflector and back to the infrared detector photo transistor on a path parallel to the side of the hospital bed a predetermined distance away from the side of the hospital bed.