Medical support system including medical equipment case

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9846763-B2
Application number	US-201514752138-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 26, 2015
Priority date	Jun 28, 2013
Publication date	Dec 19, 2017
Grant date	Dec 19, 2017

Abstract

A medical equipment case is provided for containing and transporting at least one article of medical equipment and a two-way audio-visual system. Such equipment may be used, for example, for telemedicine applications by a patient discharged from a hospital, or other subject in need of remote health care monitoring. The medical equipment case may include features that provide for security and facilitate return of the medical equipment case and medical equipment and audio-visual system contained therein, such as machine-readable indicia encoding information for return of the case from a usage location. The medical equipment case and contained medical equipment and two-way audio visual system together form a medical support system that can be used by a patient discharged from a hospital. Methods of controlling the medical support system are also described.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of controlling a medical support system comprising:
receiving at least one status signal indicative of an authorization status with a receiving means in a medical equipment case, the medical equipment case including a shell, a movable cover, and an electrically controllable lock configured to lock the medical equipment case in a closed configuration;
generating an electrical lock control signal with electrical control circuitry in the medical equipment case responsive to the at least one status signal;
unlocking the electrically controllable lock mechanism responsive to the electrical lock control signal to allow access to at least one article of medical equipment within the medical equipment case responsive to the electrical lock control signal by allowing movement of the cover of the medical equipment case from the closed configuration to an open configuration;
receiving a signal from the at least one article of medical equipment with the electrical control circuitry;
wirelessly communicating information between the electrical control circuitry and a remote location via communication circuitry in the medical equipment case; and
providing return information for return of the medical equipment case from a usage location to a return location via machine readable indicia, wherein the machine readable indicia are accessible from outside the medical equipment case when the medical equipment case is in a closed configuration.

2. The method of claim 1 , including detecting with a sensor in the medical equipment case whether the at least one article of medical equipment is located within the medical equipment case.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein wirelessly communicating information between the electrical circuitry and the remote location includes wirelessly communicating audio-visual information from a two-way audio-visual system in the medical equipment case.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein wirelessly communicating information between the electrical circuitry and the remote location includes wirelessly communicating medical data acquired with the at least one article of medical equipment.

5. The method of claim 4 , including acquiring the medical data with the at least one article of medical equipment.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein wirelessly communicating information between the electrical circuitry and the remote location includes wirelessly communicating at least one instruction for controlling the at least one article of medical equipment.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein wirelessly communicating information between the electrical circuitry and the remote location includes wirelessly communicating information indicative of an identity of a user of the medical support system.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein wirelessly communicating information between the electrical circuitry and the remote location includes wirelessly communicating information indicative of an operational status of the medical support system.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein wirelessly communicating information between the electrical circuitry and the remote location includes wirelessly communicating information indicative of an unactivated operational status of the medical support system.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein wirelessly communicating information between the electrical circuitry and the remote location includes wirelessly communicating information indicative of an activated operational status of the medical support system.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein wirelessly communicating information between the electrical circuitry and the remote location includes wirelessly communicating information indicative of a completion-of-use operational status of the medical support system.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein wirelessly communicating information between the electrical circuitry and the remote location includes wirelessly communicating information indicative of a malfunctioning operational status of the medical support system.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein wirelessly communicating information between the electrical control circuitry and the remote location includes wirelessly communicating information with at least one of a clinic, a hospital, a medical care provider, an insurance company, an organization, or a service provider.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein providing return information via machine readable indicia includes providing return information via at least one of a bar code, a linear bar code, a two-dimensional bar code, a data tag, a radio frequency identification, and a magnetic strip.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein providing return information via machine readable indicia includes providing return information via at least one of optically, electrically or magnetically detectable code or text.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the remote location includes at least one of a hospital, a clinic, a doctor's office, a satellite office, and a part of a medical care network.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the usage location is a home.

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the usage location is a clinic.

19. The method of claim 1 , wherein the return location includes at least one of a clinic, a hospital, a medical care facility, a medical equipment supply business, and a service provider.

20. The method of claim 1 , wherein the return location includes a loan site.

21. The method of claim 1 , wherein the return location includes a rental site.

22. The method of claim 1 , wherein the user of the medical equipment case includes at least one of a patient, a family member of the patient, a caregiver of the patient, a medical care provider of the patient, a party authorized by a medical caregiver to use the medical equipment on behalf of the patient, and a party authorized by the patient to use the medical equipment on behalf of the patient.

23. The method of claim 1 , wherein the medical equipment case is controlled by at least one of clinic, hospital, medical care provider, insurance company, an organization, or a service provider.

24. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one status signal is a signal from a position sensing system, and wherein generating the electrical lock control signal responsive to the at least one status signal includes generating the electrical lock control signal to cause unlocking of the electrically controllable lock mechanism responsive to receiving a signal from the position sensing system indicative of the medical equipment case being in an authorized location.

25. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one status signal is an authorization signal from a remote location, and wherein generating the electrical lock control signal responsive to the at least one status signal includes generating the electrical lock control signal to cause unlocking of the electrically controllable lock mechanism responsive to receiving an authorization signal from a remote location.

26. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one status signal is a user-generated signal from a user input device, and wherein generating the electrical lock control signal responsive to the at least one status signal includes generating the electrical lock control signal to cause unlocking of the electrically controllable lock mechanism responsive to receiving a user-generated signal indicative of the medical equipment case being used by an auth

Assignees

• Elwha Llc

Inventors

• Hyde Roderick A
• Kare Jordin T
• Sweeney Elizabeth A
• Wood Jr Lowell L

Classifications

• G05B15/02

  electric · CPC title

• H04N7/142

  Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display · CPC title

• H04N7/14

  Systems for two-way working ({H04N7/12, } H04N7/173 take precedence) · CPC title

• G16H40/63

  for local operation · CPC title

• G16H40/67

  for remote operation · CPC title