Wireless Biopotential Sensor Assemblies Eliminate Wired Lead Constraints
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional EKG systems require multiple wired electrodes, leading to discomfort, errors in connection, reduced mobility, and lower signal quality due to the need for a common reference point, which also limits compatibility with defibrillators.
Innovation Solution
A wireless biopotential monitoring system with multiple electrically isolated sensor assemblies that measure and transmit biopotential signals wirelessly, using a synchronization beacon to create a virtual common mode rejection and eliminate the need for a common reference point, allowing for independent signal processing and reconstruction of biopotential vectors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If wired leads are used to connect electrodes to instrumentation amplifiers, then biopotential measurements can be obtained, but patient mobility is obstructed and discomfort increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical wired lead system with a wireless telemetry system. Each electrode contains an integrated transmitter that wirelessly transmits biopotential signals to a receiver, eliminating the need for physical wire connections and thereby restoring patient mobility while maintaining measurement capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent divides the measurement system into independent electrode units, each with its own transmitter. This segmentation allows each electrode to operate independently and transmit signals wirelessly, removing the need for a centralized wired connection system and enabling greater patient freedom of movement
2Measurement precision
If multiple electrodes with wired leads are used for EKG measurements, then differential voltage potential measurement can be performed, but connection errors increase and time consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
Each electrode is equipped with an integrated transmitter that automatically performs signal transmission without requiring manual connection to instrumentation amplifiers. The electrode system serves itself by incorporating the transmission function directly into each electrode unit, eliminating the time-consuming process of sorting and connecting leads
Solution Approach 2:
The system divides the measurement function into independent electrode-transmitter units. Each unit is self-contained and can independently transmit its signal, eliminating the need for centralized wiring and reducing the complexity and time of setup procedures
3Measurement precision
If wired leads are used to connect electrodes, then biopotential signals can be transmitted, but signal-to-noise ratio decreases due to lead movement during patient movement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical wired lead transmission system with wireless telemetry. Each electrode contains an integrated transmitter that wirelessly transmits biopotential signals, eliminating the physical leads that move during patient activity and cause signal degradation. This substitution maintains measurement capability while improving signal quality by removing the source of motion-induced noise
4Measurement precision
If a common reference point is used in wireless EKG systems, then measurements can be obtained, but the system becomes incompatible with defibrillators and requires an extra electrode
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the reference system into multiple distributed reference electrodes rather than using a single common reference point. Each electrode-transmitter unit operates independently with its own reference, eliminating the need for a shared reference that would require an additional electrode and create compatibility issues with defibrillators
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a single-point reference model to a distributed multi-point reference model. By spreading the reference function across multiple independent electrode units, the system achieves both measurement capability and compatibility with defibrillators without requiring an extra electrode
Data Source
AI summary
Multiple wireless sensor assemblies are individually attached to standard biopotential electrodes, which are placeable on a subject's body at locations for biopotential signal recording. The sensor assemblies, which are electrically isolated, simultaneously measure potential voltages from the body sites in accordance with a synchronization. The measured signals are amplified, digitized, and filtered, and then sent wirelessly to a monitoring system. The monitoring system receives multiple sensor signals and constructs biopotential vectors depending on the placement and number of the sensors. The sensor signals are referenced to a common virtual center bias to synthesize a common mode rejection.