Non-invasive respiration and/or heartbeat monitor or the like

Patent 4991585 Issued on February 12, 1991. Estimated Expiration Date:

March 13, 2010. Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.

Abstract Claims Description Full Text

Patent References

3483860

3562642

3796208

Heart and breathing alarm monitor
Patent #: 4738264
Issued on: 04/19/1988
Inventor: Orlando

Infant security system
Patent #: 4853692
Issued on: 08/01/1989
Inventor: Wolk , et al.

Method and apparatus for cardiac hemodynamic monitor Patent #: 4926868
Issued on: 05/22/1990
Inventor: Larsen

Inventor

Mawhinney, Daniel D.

Application

No. 492959 filed on 03/13/1990

US Classes:

600/430, With microwave carrier signal340/573.1, Human or animal343/700MS, Microstrip600/534Detecting body movement attending breathing

Examiners

Primary: Howell, Kyle L.
Assistant: Pfaffle, K. M.

Attorney, Agent or Firm

Seligsohn; George J.

International Classes

A61B 005/00
A61B 005/08

Abstract

A microwave carrier signal is transmitted into certain tissue (such as the thorax) of a patient from an outer one of three linearly-arranged independent elements of an antenna assembly. Back-scatter portions of the carrier signal are received by both the middle and the other outer ones of the elements of the antenna assembly. The back-scatter portion received by the middle element is phase-modulated by a modulation frequency and retransmitted into the tissue of the patient, and the other outer element also receives a back-scatter portion of this retransmitted phase-modulated signal. The total signal received by this other outer element is beat against the original microwave signal in a mixer and the output of the mixer is applied as an input to a bandpass filter, which passes only the phase-modulated signal. The envelope of the bandpass filter output is indicative of motion (e.g., breathing rate) of the patient.The detection of spurious motions of objects located outside of the target area of interest of the patient is minimized in the disclosed monitor.