Acoustic Urination Parameter Estimation via Sound Signal Analysis
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional uroflowmetry methods are invasive, uncomfortable, and limited by requiring patients to visit a hospital, making it difficult to obtain accurate urination data, especially when patients cannot visit.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that use sound signals related to urination to calculate urination parameters such as effective value and spectral centroid, allowing for the estimation of urine flow rate, urination start and end points, and voided urine volume, regardless of the container material and enabling user self-assessment without hospital visits.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional uroflowmetry is performed in a hospital setting, then measurement equipment and professional supervision are available, but patients experience tension and discomfort that affect measurement accuracy
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical weighing system with an acoustic detection system. Instead of measuring weight change over time, the system uses microphones to capture sound signals generated by urine flow and analyzes acoustic parameters (effective value, spectral centroid) to estimate urine flow rate. This substitution eliminates the need for hospital-based weighing equipment and enables measurements in natural bathroom settings.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables patients to perform self-assessment of urination parameters at home without requiring hospital visits or professional supervision. The mobile device captures sound signals and processes them through algorithms to provide automated estimation of urine flow rate, start/end points, and voided volume, allowing patients to conduct measurements in their own comfortable environment.
2Reliability
If multiple uroflowmetry measurements are taken over a wide period for accurate diagnosis, then diagnostic reliability improves, but patient burden and time requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
By replacing the hospital-based mechanical weighing system with an acoustic measurement system using mobile devices, the patent enables patients to perform measurements quickly and conveniently at home. The acoustic analysis provides rapid estimation of urination parameters without requiring hospital visits, making it feasible to collect multiple measurements over time for improved diagnostic reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses a universal mobile device that can perform multiple functions: capturing sound signals, analyzing acoustic parameters, estimating urination metrics, and storing data for longitudinal assessment. This multi-functional approach consolidates what would otherwise require specialized hospital equipment into a device patients already possess, enabling repeated measurements without additional time burden.
3Reliability
If uroflowmetry requires hospital visits, then professional medical supervision is ensured, but accessibility and convenience for patients are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent substitutes the hospital-based measurement system with a decentralized acoustic measurement system using mobile devices. This allows patients to perform urination assessments in their own bathrooms without traveling to hospitals, dramatically improving accessibility while maintaining measurement capability through automated acoustic analysis algorithms.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a copy of the urination measurement function that can operate independently outside the hospital environment. By capturing and analyzing sound signals locally on mobile devices, the system replicates the essential measurement capability without requiring physical presence at medical facilities, enabling widespread patient access.
Data Source
AI summary
According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a method for calculating information on urination. The method includes the steps of acquiring a sound signal related to urination of a user, calculating a urination parameter related to an effective value (or urination parameters related to an effective value and a spectral centroid) from the acquired sound signal, and estimating a urine flow rate of the user with reference to the calculated urination parameter.