Wireless ECG Monitoring System with Local Arrhythmia Detection

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing remote monitoring systems for ambulatory patients with cardiac arrhythmia face challenges in accurately analyzing ECG signals due to noise from patient movement and environmental sources, while also needing to manage power consumption and communication costs, and ensuring timely notification of serious arrhythmias.

Innovation Solution

A wireless full disclosure analysis and monitoring system that uses a body-worn sensor to acquire high-resolution ECG data, which is transmitted via local area wireless technology to a handheld device and then to a data center for analysis, allowing for real-time communication and reliable detection and transmission of arrhythmias, with features like muscle artifact rejection algorithms and alternative communication paths.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Speed

If wide area wireless transmission is used for real-time arrhythmia notification, then notification speed is improved, but power consumption and communication costs increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenotification speedVSAvoidpower consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

SpeedVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments the ECG data transmission by identifying and transmitting only arrhythmia episodes rather than continuous monitoring data. The arrhythmia detector identifies specific arrhythmia episodes, and only these segmented portions are transmitted via wireless communication, reducing overall power consumption while maintaining notification speed for critical events.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system uses periodic local wireless transmissions at optimized intervals rather than continuous wide area wireless transmission. By periodically assessing arrhythmia conditions and transmitting only when necessary, the system reduces power consumption while ensuring timely notification of serious arrhythmias.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #19Periodic action

2Use of energy by moving object

If transmission rate is reduced to manage power consumption and costs, then power efficiency is improved, but arrhythmia detection reliability deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepower efficiencyVSAvoidarrhythmia detection reliability

Core Design Contradiction:

Use of energy by moving objectVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system introduces an intermediary arrhythmia detector that processes ECG data locally before transmission. This intermediary component filters and identifies arrhythmia episodes, ensuring that only clinically relevant data is transmitted. This maintains detection reliability by using sophisticated local analysis while reducing transmission frequency to improve power efficiency.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The system replaces continuous mechanical transmission with intelligent event-driven transmission. Instead of continuously transmitting data or transmitting at fixed intervals, the system substitutes a smart transmission mechanism that activates only when arrhythmia episodes are detected, maintaining reliability while improving power efficiency.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Measurement precision

If algorithm sensitivity is increased to improve arrhythmia detection, then detection capability is improved, but false positive rate increases requiring more data transmission

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvearrhythmia detection capabilityVSAvoiddata transmission volume

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements feedback loops where transmission data is analyzed at the receiving end, and results are fed back to adjust local detection parameters. This allows the system to maintain high detection sensitivity while using feedback information to reduce false positives, thereby minimizing unnecessary data transmission while preserving detection capability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

4Reliability

If continuous wide area wireless transmission is used, then real-time monitoring capability is improved, but communication costs and power consumption increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvereal-time monitoring capabilityVSAvoidcommunication energy

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The system extracts only the essential arrhythmia episode data from continuous ECG monitoring for transmission. By taking out and transmitting only the critical arrhythmia portions rather than continuous data streams, the system maintains real-time monitoring capability for serious conditions while dramatically reducing communication energy requirements.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS9179851B2System and method for high resolution wireless full disclosure ECG episode monitoring and analysis

Publication Date: 2015.11.10 BRAEMAR MANUFACTURING LLC

AI summary

High resolution full disclosure ECG data is transferred from a body sensor device to a handheld device via a wireless protocol. The handheld device transfers the full disclosure ECG data via a network to a center for analysis.