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Patent · US11013846B2 · B2 · US

Controlling data output of a sensor clip assembly for an optical monitoring system

(11) Publication number
US11013846B2
(21) Application number
16/857,587
(22) Filing date
2020-04-24
(30) Priority date
2010-11-17
(43) Publication date
2021-05-25
(45) Date of grant
2021-05-25
(51) IPC
A61B 5/145; A61B 5/1455; A61M 1/36; F16B 2/22
(52) CPC
  • A61M Devices for introducing media into, or onto, the body; devices for transducing body media or for taking media from the body; devices for producing or ending sleep or stupor {}: 1/36, 1/3609, 1/367, 2205/3306, 2205/3313, 2230/207
  • A61B Diagnosis; surgery; identification: 2560/0406, 5/14535, 5/14557
  • F16B Devices for fastening or securing constructional elements or machine parts together, e.g. nails, bolts, circlips, clamps, clips or wedges; joints or jointing: 2/22
(73) Assignee
Fresenius Medical Care Holdings Inc
(72) Inventors
Louis LeeGrande Barrett; David W. Peterson; Matthew A. Stowell; Perry N. Law
(54) Title
Controlling data output of a sensor clip assembly for an optical monitoring system
(57) Abstract

Systems and sensor clip assemblies for optically monitoring blood flowing through a blood chamber are provided. A sensor clip assembly includes emitters and photodetectors positioned on opposing arms, a signal conditioning circuit for conditioning raw analog signals generated by the photodetectors while the sensor clip assembly is fastened to a blood chamber, and an analog-to-digital converter for converting the conditioned analog signals to raw digital data. The sensor clip assembly may include a microcontroller for calculating parameters of blood flowing through the blood chamber such as hematocrit, oxygen saturation, and change in blood volume from the raw digital data. The sensor clip assembly is in communication with a networked computer, and the networked computer is in communication with a remote computer configured to provide a user interface for monitoring and/or controlling the sensor clip assembly.

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Claims (16)

  1. A method for monitoring extracorporeal blood, the method comprising: emitting, by a sensor clip assembly, light towards a blood chamber, wherein extracorporeal blood of a patient flows through the blood chamber; detecting, by the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber; determining, by a processor disposed within a housing of the sensor clip assembly, based on detecting the intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber, one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; and outputting, by the sensor clip assembly, the determined one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; wherein emitting the light towards the blood chamber further comprises: emitting, by a first emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a first wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; emitting, by a second emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a second wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; and emitting, by a third emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a third wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; and wherein detecting the intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber further comprises: detecting, by a first detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the first wavelength; detecting, by the first detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the second wavelength; and detecting, by a second detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the third wavelength.
  2. The method according to claim 1, wherein operation of the first emitter is synchronized with operation of the first detector during a first time period, operation of the second emitter is synchronized with operation of the first detector during a second time period, and operation of the third emitter is synchronized with operation of the second detector during a third time period.
  3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the first, second and third time periods are separated from one another by respective guard bands.
  4. The method according to claim 3, wherein outputting the determined one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber is performed during the guard bands.
  5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first wavelength is sensitive to oxygen, the second wavelength is sensitive to hemoglobin, and the third wavelength is sensitive to water concentration.
  6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the determined one or more characteristics include an oxygen saturation value, a hematocrit value, and/or a percent blood volume change.
  7. The method according to claim 1, wherein outputting the determined one or more characteristics comprises outputting a data stream, wherein the data stream includes hematocrit and oxygen saturation information.
  8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the data stream further includes counter information, status bits, and/or cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits.
  9. A sensor clip assembly, comprising: a housing; a plurality of emitters disposed in the housing, wherein the plurality of emitters are configured to emit light towards extracorporeal blood of a patient flowing through a blood chamber; a plurality of detectors disposed in the housing, wherein the plurality of detectors are configured to detect intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber; a processor disposed within the housing, wherein the processor is configured to determine, based on the detected intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber, one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; and an output interface configured to output the determined one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; wherein the plurality of emitters comprises: a first emitter configured to emit a first wavelength of light; a second emitter configured to emit a second wavelength of light; and a third emitter configured to emit a third wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; wherein the plurality of detectors comprises: a first detector configured to detect intensity of light of the first wavelength and to detect intensity of light of the second wavelength; and a second detector configured to detect intensity of light of the third wavelength.
  10. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to synchronize operation of the first emitter with operation of the first detector during a first time period, operation of the second emitter with operation of the first detector during a second time period, and operation of the third emitter with operation of the second detector during a third time period.
  11. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 10, wherein the first, second and third time periods are separated from one another by respective guard bands.
  12. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to cause outputting of the determined one or more characteristics to occur via the output interface during the guard bands.
  13. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 9, wherein the first wavelength is sensitive to oxygen, the second wavelength is sensitive to hemoglobin, and the third wavelength is sensitive to water concentration; and wherein the determined one or more characteristics include an oxygen saturation value, a hematocrit value, and/or a percent blood volume change.
  14. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 9, wherein outputting the determined one or more characteristics comprises outputting a data stream, wherein the data stream includes hematocrit and oxygen saturation information.
  15. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 14, wherein the data stream further includes counter information, status bits, and/or cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits.
  16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having processor-executable instructions stored thereon, wherein the processor-executable instructions, when executed, facilitate: emitting, by a sensor clip assembly, light towards a blood chamber, wherein extracorporeal blood of a patient flows through the blood chamber; detecting, by the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber; determining, by a processor disposed within a housing of the sensor clip assembly, based on detecting the intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber, one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; and outputting, by the sensor clip assembly, the determined one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; wherein emitting the light towards the blood chamber further comprises: emitting, by a first emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a first wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; emitting, by a second emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a second wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; and emitting, by a third emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a third wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; and wherein detecting the intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber further comprises: detecting, by a first detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the first wavelength; detecting, by the first detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the second wavelength; and detecting, by a second detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the third wavelength.

Description

The invention relates to optical monitoring systems, and more specifically systems for monitoring the presence or concentration of constituents in blood. The invention is particularly useful for the real-time measurement of hematocrit and/or oxygen saturation levels when monitoring a patient during hemodialysis or other procedure involving extracorporeal blood flow.

Patients with kidney failure or partial kidney failure typically undergo hemodialysis treatment in order to remove toxins and excess fluids from their blood. To do this, blood is taken from a patient through an intake needle or catheter which draws blood from an artery or vein located in a specifically accepted access location - e.g., a shunt surgically placed in an arm, thigh, subclavian and the like. The needle or catheter is connected to extracorporeal tubing that is fed to a peristaltic pump and then to a dialyzer that cleans the blood and removes excess fluid. The cleaned blood is then returned to the patient through additional extracorporeal tubing and another needle or catheter. Sometimes, a heparin drip is located in the hemodialysis loop to prevent the blood from coagulating.

As the drawn blood passes through the dialyzer, it travels in straw-like tubes within the dialyzer that serve as semi-permeable passageways for the unclean blood. Fresh dialysate solution enters the dialyzer at its downstream end. The dialysate surrounds the straw-like tubes and flows through the dialyzer in the opposite direction of the blood flowing through the tubes.

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Record as JSON 
{
  "publication_number": "US11013846B2",
  "country": "US",
  "kind": "B2",
  "title": "Controlling data output of a sensor clip assembly for an optical monitoring system",
  "abstract": "Systems and sensor clip assemblies for optically monitoring blood flowing through a blood chamber are provided. A sensor clip assembly includes emitters and photodetectors positioned on opposing arms, a signal conditioning circuit for conditioning raw analog signals generated by the photodetectors while the sensor clip assembly is fastened to a blood chamber, and an analog-to-digital converter for converting the conditioned analog signals to raw digital data. The sensor clip assembly may include a microcontroller for calculating parameters of blood flowing through the blood chamber such as hematocrit, oxygen saturation, and change in blood volume from the raw digital data. The sensor clip assembly is in communication with a networked computer, and the networked computer is in communication with a remote computer configured to provide a user interface for monitoring and/or controlling the sensor clip assembly.",
  "claims": [
    "1. A method for monitoring extracorporeal blood, the method comprising: emitting, by a sensor clip assembly, light towards a blood chamber, wherein extracorporeal blood of a patient flows through the blood chamber; detecting, by the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber; determining, by a processor disposed within a housing of the sensor clip assembly, based on detecting the intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber, one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; and outputting, by the sensor clip assembly, the determined one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; wherein emitting the light towards the blood chamber further comprises: emitting, by a first emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a first wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; emitting, by a second emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a second wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; and emitting, by a third emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a third wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; and wherein detecting the intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber further comprises: detecting, by a first detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the first wavelength; detecting, by the first detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the second wavelength; and detecting, by a second detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the third wavelength.",
    "2. The method according to claim 1, wherein operation of the first emitter is synchronized with operation of the first detector during a first time period, operation of the second emitter is synchronized with operation of the first detector during a second time period, and operation of the third emitter is synchronized with operation of the second detector during a third time period.",
    "3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the first, second and third time periods are separated from one another by respective guard bands.",
    "4. The method according to claim 3, wherein outputting the determined one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber is performed during the guard bands.",
    "5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the first wavelength is sensitive to oxygen, the second wavelength is sensitive to hemoglobin, and the third wavelength is sensitive to water concentration.",
    "6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the determined one or more characteristics include an oxygen saturation value, a hematocrit value, and/or a percent blood volume change.",
    "7. The method according to claim 1, wherein outputting the determined one or more characteristics comprises outputting a data stream, wherein the data stream includes hematocrit and oxygen saturation information.",
    "8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the data stream further includes counter information, status bits, and/or cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits.",
    "9. A sensor clip assembly, comprising: a housing; a plurality of emitters disposed in the housing, wherein the plurality of emitters are configured to emit light towards extracorporeal blood of a patient flowing through a blood chamber; a plurality of detectors disposed in the housing, wherein the plurality of detectors are configured to detect intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber; a processor disposed within the housing, wherein the processor is configured to determine, based on the detected intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber, one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; and an output interface configured to output the determined one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; wherein the plurality of emitters comprises: a first emitter configured to emit a first wavelength of light; a second emitter configured to emit a second wavelength of light; and a third emitter configured to emit a third wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; wherein the plurality of detectors comprises: a first detector configured to detect intensity of light of the first wavelength and to detect intensity of light of the second wavelength; and a second detector configured to detect intensity of light of the third wavelength.",
    "10. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 9, wherein the processor is further configured to synchronize operation of the first emitter with operation of the first detector during a first time period, operation of the second emitter with operation of the first detector during a second time period, and operation of the third emitter with operation of the second detector during a third time period.",
    "11. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 10, wherein the first, second and third time periods are separated from one another by respective guard bands.",
    "12. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to cause outputting of the determined one or more characteristics to occur via the output interface during the guard bands.",
    "13. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 9, wherein the first wavelength is sensitive to oxygen, the second wavelength is sensitive to hemoglobin, and the third wavelength is sensitive to water concentration; and wherein the determined one or more characteristics include an oxygen saturation value, a hematocrit value, and/or a percent blood volume change.",
    "14. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 9, wherein outputting the determined one or more characteristics comprises outputting a data stream, wherein the data stream includes hematocrit and oxygen saturation information.",
    "15. The sensor clip assembly according to claim 14, wherein the data stream further includes counter information, status bits, and/or cyclic redundancy check (CRC) bits.",
    "16. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having processor-executable instructions stored thereon, wherein the processor-executable instructions, when executed, facilitate: emitting, by a sensor clip assembly, light towards a blood chamber, wherein extracorporeal blood of a patient flows through the blood chamber; detecting, by the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber; determining, by a processor disposed within a housing of the sensor clip assembly, based on detecting the intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber, one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; and outputting, by the sensor clip assembly, the determined one or more characteristics of the extracorporeal blood of the patient flowing through the blood chamber; wherein emitting the light towards the blood chamber further comprises: emitting, by a first emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a first wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; emitting, by a second emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a second wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; and emitting, by a third emitter of the sensor clip assembly, a third wavelength of light towards the blood chamber; and wherein detecting the intensity of light which has passed through the blood chamber further comprises: detecting, by a first detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the first wavelength; detecting, by the first detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the second wavelength; and detecting, by a second detector of the sensor clip assembly, intensity of light of the third wavelength."
  ],
  "description_excerpt": "The invention relates to optical monitoring systems, and more specifically systems for monitoring the presence or concentration of constituents in blood. The invention is particularly useful for the real-time measurement of hematocrit and/or oxygen saturation levels when monitoring a patient during hemodialysis or other procedure involving extracorporeal blood flow.\n\nPatients with kidney failure or partial kidney failure typically undergo hemodialysis treatment in order to remove toxins and excess fluids from their blood. To do this, blood is taken from a patient through an intake needle or catheter which draws blood from an artery or vein located in a specifically accepted access location - e.g., a shunt surgically placed in an arm, thigh, subclavian and the like. The needle or catheter is connected to extracorporeal tubing that is fed to a peristaltic pump and then to a dialyzer that cleans the blood and removes excess fluid. The cleaned blood is then returned to the patient through additional extracorporeal tubing and another needle or catheter. Sometimes, a heparin drip is located in the hemodialysis loop to prevent the blood from coagulating.\n\nAs the drawn blood passes through the dialyzer, it travels in straw-like tubes within the dialyzer that serve as semi-permeable passageways for the unclean blood. Fresh dialysate solution enters the dialyzer at its downstream end. The dialysate surrounds the straw-like tubes and flows through the dialyzer in the opposite direction of the blood flowing through the tubes.",
  "cpc": [
    "A61M 1/36",
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    "A61B 5/14535",
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    "A61M 1/3609",
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    "A61M 2205/3306",
    "A61M 2205/3313",
    "A61M 2230/207",
    "F16B 2/22"
  ],
  "ipc": [
    "A61B 5/145",
    "A61B 5/1455",
    "A61M 1/36",
    "F16B 2/22"
  ],
  "assignees": [
    "Fresenius Medical Care Holdings Inc"
  ],
  "inventors": [
    "Louis LeeGrande Barrett",
    "David W. Peterson",
    "Matthew A. Stowell",
    "Perry N. Law"
  ],
  "filing_date": "2020-04-24",
  "publication_date": "2021-05-25",
  "grant_date": "2021-05-25",
  "priority_date": "2010-11-17",
  "application_number": "US-202016857587-A",
  "family_id": "45406838",
  "cited_by_count": 0,
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