Handheld Pet Diagnostics With Guided Sensor Placement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing diagnostic systems for pets are invasive, require trained professionals, and do not allow pet owners to perform medical examinations comfortably at home.
Innovation Solution
A hand-held diagnostic device with sensors and a silicone stencil that guides pet owners to accurately acquire medical data, including core body temperature, heart and lung auscultations, and pulse and oxygen saturation, providing feedback and connecting to veterinarians for interpretation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If invasive diagnostic devices are used to ensure accurate medical data acquisition, then measurement precision is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates as they require trained medical professionals
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a stencil as an intermediary tool that guides the placement of diagnostic devices on specific anatomical landmarks. This mediator enables untrained users to achieve accurate positioning without requiring medical expertise, thus resolving the contradiction between measurement precision and ease of operation
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables pet owners to perform self-examinations at home using guided instructions and visual feedback. The device provides real-time feedback to confirm correct placement, allowing users to independently obtain accurate medical data without professional intervention
2Measurement precision
If pet examinations are conducted at veterinary clinics to ensure proper diagnostic conditions, then measurement precision is improved, but loss of time increases due to travel and scheduling constraints
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables pet owners to conduct examinations at home using a portable device with guided instructions. This eliminates the need for travel to veterinary clinics while maintaining examination quality through standardized protocols and real-time feedback, thus reducing time loss without compromising measurement precision
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides pre-programmed examination protocols and step-by-step instructions that guide users through the diagnostic process in advance. This preliminary preparation ensures proper procedure execution at home, maintaining clinical-quality standards without requiring actual clinic visits
3Ease of operation
If multiple diagnostic functions are integrated into one device to enable comprehensive pet examinations at home, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates multiple diagnostic functions (acoustic sensing for heart/lung sounds, temperature sensing, pulse oximetry) into a single handheld device. This consolidation allows comprehensive pet examinations to be performed conveniently at home, though it does increase device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The device is designed as a multi-functional tool that can perform various veterinary examinations including auscultation, temperature measurement, and oxygen saturation monitoring. This universal design enables one device to replace multiple specialized tools, improving ease of operation for home use
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables non-invasive pet examinations at home, ensuring accurate data acquisition and real-time feedback, facilitating connection with veterinarians for diagnosis.
Implementation Method 1
the temperature sensors comprise one of infrared (IR) temperature sensors to calculate the body temperature of the pet
Implementation Method 2
The sound from heart and lung area of the pet is sensed by the acoustic sensors
Data Source
AI summary
Described herein is a pet health and wellness system for performing medical examination of an animal, such as a pet, by using a hand-held diagnostic device in a non-invasive manner from the comfort of their homes. A feedback system and a stencil are provided to ensure that the vitals, such as core body temperature, record heart and lung auscultations as well as measure pulse and oxygen saturation, acquired by the device are accurate. The system includes a portable examination device comprising one or more examination units for obtaining and recording essential vitals of the animal by a user and a processing unit for storing and managing data corresponding to the essential vitals and medical information of the animal.