EEG Electrode Kit With Unique Connectors and Color Coding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current electrode placement methods for consciousness and seizure monitoring are prone to errors due to identical electrode designs, leading to misplacement and incorrect signal acquisition, which can compromise study results and patient safety.
Innovation Solution
The development of an electrode kit with distinct features such as colored labels, alignment indicators, and non-standard connectors to facilitate accurate and fast deployment, preventing incorrect placement and ensuring proper signal acquisition.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If all electrodes are designed to be identical in appearance, then manufacturing simplicity and standardization are improved, but electrode placement accuracy and reliability deteriorate due to confusion and misplacement errors
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by making each electrode unique in specific local characteristics (connector shape, colored labels, alignment indicators) while maintaining the same basic electrode structure and function. This allows electrodes to be manufactured using standard processes while having distinct identifying features at specific locations that prevent misplacement.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs asymmetry by giving each electrode a unique connector shape and visual identifiers (colored labels, alignment indicators) that break the symmetry of identical electrodes. This asymmetric design makes it impossible to interchange electrodes incorrectly, thereby preventing placement errors while maintaining manufacturing feasibility through standardized base designs.
2Reliability
If extensive skin preparation is performed, then electrode placement reliability and signal quality are improved, but deployment time and operational complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service features where the electrodes themselves contain built-in guidance systems (alignment indicators, colored labels, shaped connectors) that automatically guide correct placement without requiring extensive external preparation or complex procedures. The electrodes essentially place themselves correctly through their intrinsic design features.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-marking electrodes with alignment indicators, colored labels, and specific connector shapes before deployment. These pre-configured features eliminate the need for extensive skin preparation and guidance during placement, as the electrodes come pre-prepared with all necessary placement information embedded in their design.
3Reliability
If non-standard connectors are used for each electrode, then electrode placement accuracy is improved through unique identification, but device complexity and connector variety increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the connector design into distinct segments or categories, where each electrode type has a specific connector variation. This segmented approach provides unique identification for each electrode while maintaining a manageable system of connector variations rather than requiring completely different connectors for every electrode.
Data Source
AI summary
Electrodes for use in electroencephalographic recording, including consciousness and seizure monitoring applications, have novel features that speed, facilitate or enforce proper placement of the electrodes, including aligning tabs and arrowed aligning juts, color coding, and an insulating bridge between reference and ground electrodes which ensures a safe application distance between the conductive regions of the two electrodes in the event of cardiac defibrillation or to prevent shorting between the adjacent electrodes by preventing the conductive path to be shared. A method of using a set of four such electrodes is also disclosed.