Portable Medical Storage Device with Sensor-Triggered Alerts
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing portable non-volatile storage devices cannot provide a patient's medical records to a physician when the patient is unconscious or in a diminished state, posing a challenge in emergency situations where timely access to medical history is crucial.
Innovation Solution
A portable non-volatile storage device with a housing assembly and an electronics assembly that includes a memory module for storing patient data, a sound level meter, an accelerometer, a transducer, a light source, and a user interface, enabling the device to alert medical personnel and provide patient information regardless of the patient's level of consciousness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If a patient is unconscious or in a diminished state, then the patient cannot provide medical history or treatment desires to a physician, but the need for accurate medical information remains critical for proper treatment
Solution Approach 1:
The device performs preliminary action by automatically capturing and storing medical information (vital signs, patient demographics, medical history) in advance of the emergency event. The data is collected and saved in memory before the patient becomes unconscious, ensuring the information is available when needed without requiring patient action at the critical moment.
Solution Approach 2:
The portable storage device acts as an intermediary between the patient's medical information and the physician. Instead of relying on the patient to communicate their history directly to the physician, the device serves as a mediator that stores and transmits the information, bridging the communication gap when the patient cannot speak for themselves.
2Reliability
If portable storage devices only store data without alerting mechanisms, then medical personnel cannot be notified of the device's presence or the patient's condition, but adding alert mechanisms increases device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The device achieves multi-functionality by combining data storage, sensor monitoring, and alert notification capabilities in a single portable unit. The same processing unit that manages data storage also controls the alert mechanisms, and the sensor data serves both medical record purposes and trigger conditions for alerts, reducing overall system complexity despite the added functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The device performs self-service by automatically detecting when alert conditions are met through its integrated sensors and autonomously generating notifications to medical personnel without requiring manual intervention from the patient or caregivers. The system monitors its own data and self-initiates the alert function when predetermined criteria are satisfied.
3Productivity
If medical information is not readily accessible in emergency situations, then treatment accuracy and speed are compromised, but implementing immediate access systems increases device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The device extracts the essential medical information from the complex hospital record-keeping system and stores it in a simplified, portable format that can be immediately accessed outside the hospital environment. By taking out only the critical data elements needed for emergency decision-making and storing them in a simple memory structure with basic retrieval protocols, the system achieves rapid access without requiring complex access control systems.
Data Source
AI summary
A portable non-volatile storage device, including: (a) a housing assembly, wherein the housing assembly includes: at least one sidewall, a top wall, and a bottom wall; and wherein the at least one sidewall, the top wall, and the bottom wall are in a spaced-apart relationship to define an internal chamber therebetween; and (b) an electronics assembly positioned at least partially within the housing assembly, wherein the electronics assembly includes: an energy source, a printed circuit board, a memory module, a sound level meter, an accelerometer, a transducer, a light source, and a user interface.