Body-Worn Fall Prediction With Adaptive Physiological Context Modeling

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current fall prediction systems fail to account for dynamic, real-world changes in an individual's fall risk factors, which are highly individualized and time-varying, leading to inadequate preparation for falls and inability to prevent them effectively.

Innovation Solution

A predictive fall event management system that utilizes a body-worn device and controller to assess time-varying physiological and contextual factors, applying individualized learning and adaptive weightings to risk factors, enabling near-term fall prediction and automated interventions.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If traditional fall prediction systems are used, then fall detection capability is provided, but they fail to account for dynamic, real-world changes in individual fall risk factors, leading to inadequate prediction accuracy

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvefall risk prediction accuracyVSAvoidadaptability to individualized, time-varying risk factors
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements dynamic adaptation by continuously updating fall risk predictions based on time-varying physiological and contextual factors. The machine learning models are trained on longitudinal data to capture changes in risk profiles over time, allowing the system to adapt to individualized patterns rather than using static risk assessments.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The system incorporates feedback mechanisms where prediction outcomes and actual fall events are used to continuously refine the machine learning models. This closed-loop approach allows the system to learn from real-world performance and improve prediction accuracy for individual users over time through iterative model training and parameter optimization.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

2Measurement precision

If multiple physiological and contextual factors are monitored to improve prediction accuracy, then system complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvefall risk prediction accuracyVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments the complex monitoring task into distinct physiological and contextual factor categories. Each factor type is processed through specialized sub-models that extract relevant features, which are then integrated by the main prediction algorithm. This modular segmentation manages complexity by organizing multiple data streams into structured processing pipelines.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The machine learning framework implements a universal prediction model that handles multiple types of input factors (physiological, contextual, environmental) through a unified processing architecture. This multi-functional approach allows the same core system to process diverse data types without requiring separate specialized systems for each factor type.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentEP3903290B1Predictive fall event management system and method of using same
Publication Date: 2025.08.20 STARKEY LABORATORIES INC
  • EP3903290B1 patent drawingFigure 1A~1C
  • EP3903290B1 patent drawingFigure 2A~2C
  • EP3903290B1 patent drawingFigure 3A~3B

AI summary

Various embodiments of a predictive fall event management system and a method of using such system are disclosed. The system includes a body-worn device and a controller operatively connected to the body-worn device. The controller is adapted to receive physiological data representative of a physiological characteristic of a wearer of the body-worn device over a monitoring time period; receive contextual data representative of context information of the wearer over the monitoring time period; and determine one or more future physiological states or contextual states based at least in part on one or more of the physiological data and the contextual data. The controller is further adapted to determine, for a future time, whether a fall condition is satisfied based upon the one or more future physiological states or contextual states and generate a fall prevention output responsive to satisfaction of the fall condition.