Time Synchronization for Interoperable Medical Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for effective time synchronization between handheld diabetes management devices and insulin pumps to ensure accurate glucose monitoring and insulin administration, as existing methods do not adequately account for manual clock settings and clock drift, leading to potential discrepancies in timing that can affect treatment efficacy.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method that determines the time difference between the diabetes management device and the insulin pump, checks for manual clock settings, and synchronizes the clocks based on threshold values, prompting user input if necessary, to ensure accurate timekeeping and data consistency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If automated time synchronization is implemented between devices, then time alignment is improved, but reliability deteriorates when users manually adjust clocks
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by checking event logs to detect manual clock adjustments before attempting synchronization. This allows the system to prepare appropriate responses based on the detected state, preventing synchronization conflicts and ensuring reliable timekeeping even when users manually adjust clocks.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms by continuously monitoring event logs for manual adjustment events and using this information to modify synchronization behavior. The system adapts its synchronization strategy based on feedback from log analysis, improving both accuracy and reliability dynamically.
2Ease of operation
If simple time difference comparison is used, then ease of operation is improved, but measurement precision deteriorates due to clock drift and manual settings
Solution Approach 1:
Before comparing times, the system performs preliminary analysis of event logs to detect manual adjustments. This preliminary action enables the system to contextualize time differences, distinguishing between acceptable drift and manual changes, thereby maintaining precision without complicating the core comparison operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The event log serves as an intermediary that provides contextual information about clock adjustments. By analyzing this intermediate data source, the system can make more accurate determinations about time differences without requiring complex direct measurement protocols.
3Measurement precision
If frequent synchronization checks are performed, then time alignment is improved, but loss of time increases due to unnecessary synchronization operations
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs partial synchronization actions by checking event logs first and only executing full synchronization when necessary. This selective approach avoids excessive synchronization operations while maintaining adequate time alignment, reducing overhead without sacrificing necessary precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses its own event logs to determine whether synchronization is needed, making a self-service decision about whether to perform synchronization. This self-determination mechanism reduces unnecessary synchronization operations by having the system assess its own state before acting.
Data Source
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AI summary
A computer-implemented method is presented for synchronizing time between two handheld medical devices that interoperate with each other. The method includes: determining a first time as measured by a first clock residing in the first medical device; determining a second time as measured by a second clock residing in a second medical device; evaluating whether the first clock is synchronized with the second clock; determining whether at least one of the first clock and the second clock was set manually by a user; and setting time of the first clock in accordance with the second time when the second clock was set manually by the user.