Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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HEALTH METER
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Application No.
61/509,075, filed 18 JUL 2011, U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/527,730,
filed 26
AUG 2011, and U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/531,858, filed 07 SEP 2011,
all of
which are incorporated in their entirety by this reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] This invention relates generally to the health care field, and
more
specifically to a new and useful health meter in the health care field.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Blood glucose meters are commonly used, particularly by
individuals
diagnosed with diabetes, to monitor glucose levels in the blood stream.
Conventional
blood glucose meters typically measure blood glucose levels in users and
provide
analyses of blood samples to users, but conventionally blood glucose meters
fail to
convey such information in valuable ways that are tailored to the needs of
each user and
that promote health improvements rather than just health maintenance. Thus,
there is a
need in the health care field for a new and useful health meter for testing
the blood
glucose level of a user.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0004] FIGURE 1 is a schematic representation of a health meter of a
preferred
embodiment;
[0005] FIGURE 2 is a schematic representation of a variation of the
preferred
health meter;
[0006] FIGURE 3 is a flowchart representation of one variation in
accordance
with the preferred health meter;
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[0007] FIGURE 4 is a flowchart representation of one variation in
accordance
with the preferred health meter; and
[0008] FIGURE 5 is a schematic representation of a variation of the
preferred
health meter.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0009] The following description of the preferred embodiments of the
invention is
not intended to limit the invention to these preferred embodiments, but rather
to enable
any person skilled in the art to make and use this invention.
1. Health Meter
[0010] As shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, the health meter 100 of the preferred
embodiment for providing a health-related notification to a user includes: a
blood
glucose meter 110 that generates an output based upon the level of glucose in
the blood
of the user; a pedometer 120 that detects a footstep taken by the user and
generates an
output based upon the detected footstep; a heart rate monitor 130 that detects
the heart
rate of the user and generates an output based upon the heart rate of the
user; a data
link 140 that conveys the output of at least one of the blood glucose meter
110,
pedometer 120, and heart rate monitor 130 to a digital multimedia device 155;
a
software module 150 that evaluates the output of at least one of the blood
glucose meter
110, pedometer 120, and heart rate monitor 130 and generates a health report
of the
user based upon the evaluation; and a processor 160 that accesses the health
report and
controls the conveyance of the health-related notification 192, based upon the
health
report, to the user. The preferred health meter 100 may further include a clip
170 and a
housing 180. The preferred health meter 100 may also include a display 190
that
renders a form of the health-related notification 192. Finally, the preferred
health meter
100 may further include a data storage device that stores the health report
such that the
processor 160 may access the health report and convey the health-related
notification
192 to the user when the data link 140 is not in communication with the
digital
multimedia device 155.
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[001 1] The preferred health meter 100 preferably captures current
biological
and/or physiological metrics of the user to enable generation of directives
for the user to
improve the current and/or long-term health of the user. The preferred health
meter
100 preferably interfaces with a digital multimedia device 155, via the data
link 140, to
analyze user physiological data, to display the directive, and/or to track and
maintain
user physiological data over time. The digital multimedia device 155 is
preferably a
cellular phone, a smartphone, a tablet, a desktop computer, or a laptop
computer,
though the digital multimedia device 155 may be any other suitable external
electronic
device. The preferred health meter 100 may additionally or alternatively
communicate
with a remote server, such as through the digital multimedia device 155
connected via
the data link 140, to enable these or any additional functions.
[0012] The blood glucose meter 110 of the preferred health meter 100
functions to
analyze the blood of the user and to generate an output based upon the
analysis of the
blood. In a first example implementation, the blood glucose meter 110 includes
a glucose
test strip Mot configured to receive a test strip, as shown in FIGURE 1. In
this example
implementation, the user may dispense a blood sample onto the glucose test
strip, such
as by pricking a finger to induce the finger to bleed, then swiping blood from
the finger
onto the glucose test strip. The user may then insert the glucose test strip
into the
glucose test strip Mot of the blood glucose meter no, at which point the blood
glucose
meter 110 analyzes the blood sample, determines the glucose level in the blood
sample,
and then generates the output. In another example implementation, as shown in
FIGURE 2, the blood glucose meter includes a recess configured to receive a
finger of
the user and a spike configured to prick the finger. In this example
implementation, the
user may insert a finger into the recess, wherein the spike pierces the skin
of the finger
to obtain a blood sample. The blood glucose meter no may then analyze the
blood
sample. In this example implementation, the user may activate the spike, such
as by
engaging a button, switch, or lever. Alternatively, the processor 160 may
activate the
spike, such as by triggering a linear actuator or solenoid.
[0013] In another example implementation shown in FIGURE 2, the blood
glucose meter 110 is a bloodless glucose meter. For example, the blood glucose
meter
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110 may be an infrared glucose meter including an optical emitter and an
optical
receiver and implementing near-infrared spectroscopy to estimate the level of
glucose in
the blood of the user, such as disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 7,310,542, issued
18 DEC
2007 and which is incorporated herein in its entirety by this reference.
Alternatively, the
blood glucose meter 110 may use acoustic waves to analyze the glucose level in
the blood
under the skin. In this example implementation, the blood glucose meter 110
preferably
analyzes intracorporeal blood under the skin of the finger, though the blood
glucose
meter 100 may additionally or alternatively analyze intracorporeal or
intravascular
blood under the skin of the palm, forearm, neck, or any other part of the body
of the
user. In this example implementation, the blood glucose meter 100 preferably
measures
the glucose level of the user whenever the user contacts the blood glucose
meter for any
suitable period of time, such as when the user attaches the housing to an
article of
clothing. In a further example implementation, the blood glucose meter 110
includes a
first element that is a glucose sensor placed substantially beneath the skin
of the user
and in communication with a second element that analyzes the blood sensed by
the first
element. The communication link between the first and second elements of this
fourth
example may be a wired connection or a wireless connection, such as a
Bluetooth
connection. In this fourth example implementation, the blood glucose meter 110
may be
a continuous blood glucose meter that measures the glucose level in the blood
of the
user at specified intervals (i.e. every five minutes). However, the blood
glucose meter
110 may access a blood sample by any other method and estimate the glucose
level in the
blood of the user in any other way.
[0014] The blood glucose meter 110 may be activated directly by any
number of
inputs or actions. For example, insertion of a glucose test strip into a test
strip slot of the
blood glucose meter 110 may initiate the process of analyzing the blood sample
and
generating the output based upon the glucose in the blood sample. In this
example, the
insertion of the blood glucose test strip (or any other step of acquiring a
blood sample,
such as the first and second examples above) may activate the blood glucose
meter no
and may further activate one or more other elements of the heath meter, such
as the
data link 140 to transmit and/or receive data, the software module 150 to
analyze the
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output of the blood glucose meter 110, or the processor 160 to convey a
message to the
user. Alternatively, the blood glucose meter no may be a passive element or
indirectly
activated such that the function of the blood glucose meter 110 is initiated
by another
element of the preferred health meter 100, such as by the processor 160 when
the
processor 160 receives a notification from an digital multimedia device 155
(e.g., a
computer executing a native health maintenance application) indicating that
the user
should take test blood glucose. In this example, the processor 160 may control
the blood
glucose meter 110 such that the processor 160 sends commands to the blood
glucose
meter no and receives data from the blood glucose meter 110 based upon those
commands. The processor 160 may further analyze the data to generate the
directive
that is based upon the blood glucose level. The processor 160 may further
transmit the
directive to a digital multimedia device 155 when connected via the data link
140. The
directive is preferably related to the glucose level in the blood of the user
but may also
be related to additional information such as white blood cell count or
cholesterol level of
the user, any of which may be input by the user, received from the digital
multimedia
device 155, or measured by an additional biological or physiological sensor.
The blood
glucose meter no, however, may function in any other way and may be activated
by any
other device or element to measure glucose level in the blood of the user.
[0015] The pedometer 120 of the preferred health meter 100 preferably
detects a
footstep taken by the user and generates an output based upon the detected
footsteps. In
a first example implementation, the pedometer 120 includes an accelerometer,
such as a
mass-spring accelerometer, a piezoelectric accelerometer, a null-balance
accelerometer,
a shear mode accelerometer, or any other type of accelerometer, wherein the
pedometer
associates an output of the accelerometer with a footstep taken by the user.
In a second
example implementation, the pedometer includes a Global Positioning System
(GPS)
sensor, a near-field communication (NFC) tag, or any other type of sensor
and/or
communication device that communicates with an external electronic device or
transmitter to detect user motion or change of user location. For example, the
pedometer 120 may sense NFC tags arranged along a walkway and estimate, based
upon
the distance between a NFC tags, the number of step taken by the user as the
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traverses the walkway. Furthermore, the time taken by the user to pass from a
first to a
second NFC tag may be used to determine if the user is walking, jogging, or
running. A
demographic of the user (i.e. age, height, race, gender, etc., a combination
thereof) may
suggest an average step length of the user in this example implementation. In
another
example implementation, the pedometer 120 may interface with the digital
multimedia
device 155 to retrieve a signal from the digital multimedia device 155 and to
determine a
footstep taken by the user based upon the signal. The signal could include a
location
measurement, an accelerometer measurement, a distance calculation, or any
other
suitable measurement or calculation. The pedometer 120 preferably actively
monitors
for footsteps and may add the detected footstep to a log of footsteps taken by
the user.
Alternatively, the processer 160 and/or software module 150 may log or track
user
footsteps. Furthermore, the processor 160 and/or software module 150 may
activate the
pedometer 120 by indicating when the pedometer 120 should and should not
monitor
for footsteps. However, the pedometer 120 may function in any other way and
include
any other type of sensor.
[0016] The heart rate monitor 130 of the preferred health meter 100
functions to
detect the heart rate of the user. The heart rate monitor 130 preferably
includes two
conductive pads (or electrodes) that contact the skin of the patient and sense
electrical
signals within the body that control heart function, as shown in FIGURES 1, 2,
and 5.
The electrodes of the heart rate monitor 130 are preferably integrated into
opposing legs
of the clip 170, but may alternatively be located on the housing 180. In one
example
implementation, a first conductive pad is arranged on a surface of the clip
170 and a
second conductive pad is arranged on the housing 180 such that the heart rate
monitor
130 measures the heart rate of a user when the user contacts the first and
second
conductive pads to arrange the clip 140 on an article of clothing or to remove
the clip
140 from the article of clothing. In another example implementation, a first
conductive
pad is arranged on a first section of the clip 140 and a second conductive pad
is arranged
on a second section of the clip 140, wherein the data link 140 that extends
from an end
of the first section and the second section encases the data link 140 when the
first and
second sections are assembled. In this example implementation, the heart rate
monitor
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preferably measures the heart rate of a user when the user engages the clip to
separate
the first and second sections to access the data link 140. The heart rate
monitor 130 may
alternatively include an infrared or RF transmitter and receiver that
implement infrared
or acoustic energy to detect blood flow through blood vessels in a particular
region of
the body of the user. In another example implementation, the heart rate
monitor 130
includes a microphone that detects the sound of a mechanical disturbance in
the body of
the user consistent with a heartbeat. The heart rate monitor 130 may be active
and
consistently monitoring for heart beats of the user, such as whenever the user
touches
the heart rate monitor 130. The heart rate monitor may alternatively be
passive and
attempt to measure user heart rate only when instructed by the processor 160
or
initiated by the user.
[0017] The heart rate monitor preferably incorporates a timer such that
the heart
rate monitor 130 may determine the heart rate of the user based upon the
elapsed time
between two or more heartbeats or based upon the number of heartbeats in a
given
period of time. However, the heart rate monitor 130 may rather interface with
another
element of the health monitor that does include a timer, such as the processor
160, in
order to calculate the user heart rate. The heart rate monitor 130, however,
may
function in any other way and may be activated by any other device or element.
[0018] The data link 140 of the preferred health meter 100 functions to
transmit
the output of at least one of the blood glucose meter 110, the pedometer 120,
and the
heart rate monitor 130 to the digital multimedia device 155, as shown in
FIGURES 3 and
4. The data link 140 is preferably a wired connection, as shown in FIGURES 1
and 2,
wherein the data link includes a wired jack connector (e.g., a 1/8" headphone
jack) such
that the preferred health meter 100 may communicate with the digital
multimedia
device 155 through an audio jack of the digital multimedia device 155. In one
example
implementation of the data link 140 that is a wired jack, the data link 140 is
configured
only to transmit data (or outputs) from the blood glucose meter 110, the
pedometer 120,
the heart rate monitor 130, the processor 160, etc. In another example
implementation,
the data link 140 is configured to transmit data to and from at least one
element of the
preferred health meter 100 and the digital multimedia device 155. In this
example
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implementation, the data link 140 may transmit data into the digital
multimedia device
155 through the microphone input of the audio jack of the digital multimedia
device 151
and may retrieve data from the audio output of the audio jack of the digital
multimedia
device 151. In this example implementation, the data link 140 may communicate
with
the digital multimedia device 155 via inter-integrated circuit communication
(I2C), one-
wire, master-slave, or any other suitable communication protocol. However, the
data
link 140 may transmit data in any other way and may include any other type of
wired
connection (such as a USB wired connection) that supports data transfer
between the
preferred health meter loo and the digital multimedia device 155.
[0019] Alternatively, the data link 140 may be a wireless connection. For
example,
the data link 140 may include a Bluetooth module that interfaces with a second
Bluetooth module included in the digital multimedia device, wherein data
(e.g., sensor
outputs) are transmitted from the preferred health meter loo to the digital
multimedia
device over Bluetooth communications. The data link 140 may implement other
types of
wireless communications, such as 3G, 4G, radio, or Wi-Fi communication. In
this
example implementation, data is preferably encrypted before being transmitted
by the
data link 140. For example, cryptographic protocols such as Diffie¨Hellman key
exchange, Wireless Transport Layer Security (WTLS), or any other suitable type
of
protocol may be used. The data encryption may also comply with standards such
as the
Data Encryption Standard (DES), Triple Data Encryption Standard (3-DES), or
Advanced Encryption Standard (AES).
[0020] The data link 140 that is a wired connection may further serve as
a power
and/or charging connector for the preferred health meter loo. The data link
140 may
transmit the outputs of the blood glucose meter no, the pedometer 120, and the
heart
rate monitor 130 directly from these components to the digital multimedia
device, as
shown in FIGURE 4. Alternatively and as shown in FIGURE 3, the outputs of the
blood
glucose meter no, the pedometer 120, and the heart rate monitor 130 may first
pass to
the processor 160 (and be subsequently modified) and/or pass to the data
storage
module 200 before transmission by the data link 140. However, the data link
140 may
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include any other type of connector or connection, function via any other
method,
and/or complete any other function.
[0021] The software module 150 of the preferred health meter 100
functions to
evaluate the output of at least one of the blood glucose meter no, the
pedometer 120,
and the heart rate monitor 130 and to generate a health report of the user
based upon
the evaluation. Preferably, the software module 150 evaluates at least one of
the blood
glucose level, motion or activity, and heart rate of the user in order to
determine the
current health risk of the user. For example, the software module 150 may
determine
that the blood sugar of the user is too low or less than ideal (hypoglycemia),
which
increases short-term risk of diabetic crash. The software module 150 may
additionally or
alternatively determine that the blood sugar level of the user is within a
proper range
but recent activity (e.g., running) and a high heart rate indicate that the
blood sugar
level of the user will drop within a predicted period of time, which also
increases risk of
diabetic crash. The software module 150 may additionally or alternatively
determine
that the blood sugar level of the user is too high (hyperglycemia) and is not
associated
with an appropriate level of user activity, which increases long-term risk of
worsening
diabetic condition. The software module 150 preferably incorporates at least
one of user
goals, user health condition, user demographic, previous user activity, and
previous user
compliance in evaluating health risk and generating the health report for the
user. For
example, if the user, such as in consultation with a doctor, sets a specific
acceptable
blood glucose level range which is entered into the software module 150, the
software
module 150 may not only include short-term risks like diabetic crash or long-
term risks
like worsening diabetic condition in the health report, but may also include
risk of
moving outside of the acceptable glucose level range defined by the user as a
user goal.
In another example, the software module 150 may determine the user to be in
poor
health, such as suffering from a second disease, and therefore increase the
evaluated
health risk of certain measured biosignals. For example, the software module
150 may
note that the user has cancer or bronchitis and therefore associate a greater
health risk
for the user with a heart rate outside a narrower range of acceptable heart
rates.
Furthermore, the software module may notify a physician, hospital, paramedic,
etc. if
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the health risk of the user is substantially high or above a preset threshold.
For example,
the software module 150 may contact a 9-1-1 service, send an email to a
physician, or
alert a family member of the user via a SMS message. The software module 150
may
additionally or alternatively generate a health report that includes any other
health-
and/or user-related information that may be useful in treating, maintaining,
improving,
or generating a diagnosis of the user.
[0022] A shown in FIGURE 1, the software module 150 is preferably an
application (or 'app') that executes on the digital multimedia device 155. As
described
above, the digital multimedia device is preferably a smartphone but may also
be a tablet,
laptop computer, desktop computer, PDA, e-book reader, or any other digital
multimedia device. The software module 150 preferably includes an interface
that
accepts inputs from the user, such as user goals, user health condition, user
demographic, etc., and uses these inputs to evaluate the health risk of the
user. The
software module 150 also or alternatively accesses a remote network (or
database) that
contains health information (health records) of the user. The remote network
may be a
server associated with a hospital or a network of hospitals (such as where a
primary care
physician of the user is employed), a server associated with a health
insurance agency or
network of health insurance agencies (such as a health insurance company that
insures
the user), a server associated with a third party that manages health records,
or any
other user- or heath-related server or entity. Physicians and/or staff
associated with the
health care of the user may add to, update, or otherwise modify the user
health record
on the remote network such that the software module 150 may access current
user
health information and evaluate appropriate risk levels based upon the user
health
information, biosignals, and/or physiological data. The software module 150
may
further add the health report generated by the software module 150 to the user
health
records on the remote network. In the variation of the preferred health meter
100 in
which the software module 150 retrieves and/or transmits user health data from
and/or
to the remote network, the data is preferably encrypted with cryptographic
protocols
such as those described above. Alternatively, the user, physician, and/or
staff may add,
update, or otherwise modify user health information from directly within the
software
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module 150, such as by entering information into a user interface displayed on
a screen
of the digital multimedia device 155 that couples to the preferred health
meter loo via
the data link 140.
[0023] The software module 150 may also execute fully or in part on a
remote
server. For example, the software module 150 may be a cloud-computing-based
application that performs data analysis, calculations, and other actions
remotely from
the digital multimedia device 155. In this example, the digital multimedia
device 155
may receive an output of the preferred health meter loo via the data link 140
and then
transfer the output to the remote server upon which the software module 150
executes.
The data are preferably transferred via a wireless connection, such as a 3G or
4G cellular
connection or via a Wi-Fi internet connection. In this variation, the digital
multimedia
device 155 performs the primary function of transmitting data to and/or
receiving data
from the software module 150. The software module 155 may include a first
software
component that executes on the digital multimedia device 155, such as an app
that
manages the collection, transmission, retrieval, and/or display of data. The
software
module 150 may thus further include a second software component that executes
on the
remote server to retrieve the data, analyze the data, generate the health
report, and/or
manage the transmission of the health report back to the digital multimedia
device 155,
wherein the first software component manages retrieval of data sent from the
second
software component, transmits a form of the health report back to the
preferred health
meter loo through the data link 140, and/or renders of a form of the health
report on
the display of the digital multimedia device 155 and or display 190 of the
health meter
loo. However, the software module 150 may include any number of software
components that execute on any digital multimedia device 155, health meter, or
server
and that perform any other function or combination of functions.
[0024] The processor 160 of the preferred health meter loo functions to
access
the health report and to control conveyance of the health-related notification
192 (e.g.,
directive) to the user. The health-related notification 192 is preferably
based upon the
health report generated by the software module 150. In one example
implementation,
the processor 160 receives the health report and generates the health-related
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notification 192 based upon the health report. In this example implementation,
a form
of the health report is preferably transmitted from the digital multimedia
device 155 to
the processor 160 via the data link 140, wherein the digital multimedia device
155
accesses the health report either from the software module 150 executing on
the digital
multimedia device 155 or from the software module 150 executing on a remote
server
and in communication with the digital multimedia device 155. In another
example
implementation, the software module 150 generates both the health report and
the
health-related notification 192 based upon the health report. In this example
implementation, the health-related notification 192 is preferably transmitted
to the
processor 160 via the data link 140. The processor 160 preferably controls
conveyance of
the health-related notification 192 to the user, such as by triggering the
display 190 to
depict the directive or notification, by triggering a display of the digital
multimedia
device 155 to display the directive or notification, or by generating and/or
transmitting
an email, SMS, voicemail, Facebook or Twitter message, or any other message
accessible
by the user and which contains the health-related notification 192. The
processor 160
may also convey the health-related notification 192 by altering the state
(i.e. ON or OFF)
of one or more lamps (e.g. LEDs) that comprise the display 190. For example,
each of a
series of lamps may be labeled one of 'Eat', 'Walk', 'Run', 'Rest', 'Test',
'Medicate', etc.,
wherein the processor 160 toggles the state of each lamp to indicate which
action the
user should take to minimize health risk associated with at least one of the
blood glucose
level, heart rate, and activity of the user. However, the processor 160 may
manage the
conveyance of any other information and function in any other way.
[0025] The health-related notification 192 preferably contains
information
relevant to the health of the user and specifically to minimizing the health
risk of the
user based upon at least a portion of the health report, such as the blood
glucose level,
the heart rate, and/or the activity level of the user. The health-related
notification 192
preferably includes an explicit directive for the user to perform a certain
action, such as
to eat, rest, or exercise. Therefore, the health-related notification 192
preferably
systematically and repeatably analyzes a health condition of the user and
provides
medical consultation to manage and/or improve user health (or substantially
minimize
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user health risk) substantially in real time. For example, the health-related
notification
192 may indicate that the user should eat, walk, run, rest, test, or medicate.
The
notification may further include information related to what or how much to
eat, how
much protein or carbohydrate to consume, where and how long to run, level of
exertion,
how to rest and for how long, when to test blood glucose level or heart rate,
when to
schedule a future test, what and how much medication to consume or inject,
and/or any
other relevant information. The health-related notification 192 is preferably
displayed to
the user through the preferred health meter 100, such as with a series of
labeled idiot
lights or on the display 190. Alternatively, the health-related notification
may be
provided to the user through an email, voicemail, SMS, calendar, Facebook, or
Twitter
message, or any other message. Furthermore, the health-related notification
provided
through the digital multimedia device 155 or any other external electronic
device, such
as a phone, smartphone, tablet, PDA, e-book, MP3 player, laptop computer, or
desktop
computer. In one example, the processor 160 generates the health-related
notification
192 and the display 190 renders the health-related notification 192. The data
link 140
then manages an SMS message (or other type of message) that is sent to a
cellular phone
number associated with the user. The data link 140 may additionally or
alternatively add
to or modify a calendar of the user to include the directive of the health-
related
notification 192, such as by adding an exercise event to an opening in the
user's
schedule.
[0026] The preferred health meter 100 may further include an alarm or
buzzer
that alerts the user when a new health-related notification 192 is available.
Alternatively,
the preferred health meter 100 may communicate with the digital multimedia
device
that includes an alarm or buzzer to notify the user that a new health-related
notification
192 is available. However, the health-related notification 192 may include any
other
information and/or directive and may be conveyed to the user in any other way
or
combination of ways.
[0027] As shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, the preferred health meter 100 may
further
include a display 190 that functions to depict the health-related notification
192. The
display is preferably an e-ink display that requires power substantially only
when
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changing rendered content. However, the display 190 may include any other type
of
digital display, such as an LCD display with a LED, PDP, OLED, or SED
backlight, a
segment display, or any other type of display. The display may render content,
such as
the health-related notification 192, the number of steps taken by the user, or
the heart
rate of the user in black and white, in color, or in any other form, and the
display may
update at specific time intervals (such as every minute or every hour) or in
conjunction
with certain events. Such events may include a user request for updated
information, a
new blood glucose test, a certain heart rate of the user, a sufficient period
of user
inactivity, completion of the health-related notification 192 and/or health
report, or
immediacy of a health-related event scheduled in the user's calendar of the
user. The
processor 160 preferably controls the display 190, though the display 190 may
be
controlled by any other component of the preferred health meter 100 and in any
other
way.
[0028] One variation of the preferred health meter Dm further includes a
data
storage module 200 that retains health-related data such as the health report,
the
health-related notification, results of one or more blood glucose tests, one
or more heart
rates of the user, footsteps taken by the user, and/or any other output of any
other
physiological and/or biological sensor incorporated into the preferred health
meter 100.
The data storage module 200 is preferably arranged within the housing 180 and
is
preferably coupled to processor such that data stored on the data storage
module 200
remains accessible to the processor 160. Alternatively, the data storage
module 200 may
be integral with the digital multimedia device 155 or otherwise substantially
remote
from the processor 160, such as connected to the remote server or a remote
network.
Data generated by the blood glucose meter no, the pedometer 120, the heart
rate
monitor 130, or any other element connected to the data storage module 200,
are
preferably stored on the data storage module 200 when the data link 140 is not
in
communication with the digital multimedia device 155. Furthermore, data are
preferably transmitted to the digital multimedia device 155 when a
communication link
is established via the data link 140. However the data storage module 200 may
store
these or any other data.
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[0029] Another variation of the preferred health meter 100 further
includes a
housing 180 that substantially encases at least one of the blood glucose meter
110, the
pedometer 120, the heart rate monitor 130, the data link 140, the processor
150, the
display 190, and the data storage module 200. Generally, the housing 180 is
preferably
of a clamshell configuration, including a front element and a back element
that fasten
together to form a vessel that contains one or more components of the
preferred health
meter 100. The housing 180 preferably manufactured from medical-grade
materials
such as antimicrobial plastics, 316L stainless steel, or medical-grade
silicone rubbers.
Alternatively, the housing 180 may be manufactured of non-medical-grade
materials but
include a medical-grade coating, such as overmolded medical-grade silicone
rubber. The
housing 180 is also preferably waterproof and dustproof, such as with an
Ingress
Protection rating of 25 or greater. Implementation of medical-grade materials,
a
dustproof housing, and/or a waterproof housing may promote longevity of the
preferred
health meter 100 by reducing susceptibility to damage by cleaning agents,
bodily fluids,
misuse, etc. However, the housing 180 may be of any other form and may encase
any
other element.
[0030] Yet another variation of the preferred health meter 100 further
includes a
clip 170 that couples the housing to an article of clothing worn by the user,
such as a
belt, belt loop, purse, pocket, armband, or any other article of clothing,
accessory, or
wearable article worn by the user. Furthermore, the clip 170 may couple the
preferred
health meter 100 to other features or items proximal the user, such as to a
seat belt of a
car driven by the user or to the digital multimedia device 155 that is a
cellular phone
carried by the user. However, the clip 170 may couple the preferred health
meter 100 to
any other suitable object. In the variation of the preferred health meter 100
in which the
data link 140 includes a wired connection, the clip 170 is preferably
physically
coextensive with the data link 140, as shown in FIGURES 2 and 5. In one
example
implementation, the data link 140 includes a wired jack that is separable from
(i.e.
transiently or removably coupled to) the clip 170 such that the wired jack may
be
inserted into the digital multimedia device 155 to enable communication
therebetween.
In another example implementation shown in FIGURE 2 and 5, clip includes a
first
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section 170a and a second section 17013, wherein the data link 140 extends
from the
second section 17013 and the first section 170a transiently couples to the
second section
17013 to encase the wired jack and is separable from the second section 17013
to enable
access to the data link 140. In the foregoing example implementation, the
first section
170a of the clip 170 is preferably sprung (i.e. coupled to a spring) and the
second section
of the clip 170 that includes the data link 140 is preferably not sprung to
permit
substantially free manipulation of the data link 140, such as when the user
plugs the
data link 140 into a port of the digital multimedia device 155. Generally, the
data link
140 preferably slides out of the first section 170a of the clip 170, thus
freeing the second
section to pivot and to enable access to the wired jack of the data link 140.
[0031] As shown in FIGURES 2 and 5, the clip 170 preferably defines a
circular
cross-section swept along a U-shaped profile. Alternatively, the clip 170 may
be an
alligator-, carabineer-, snap-, French barrette-, plunger-type, or any other
type of clip.
The clip 170 is preferably arranged on the housing 180, such as glued, bonded,
or
fastened with one or more screws. However, a portion of the clip 170 may also
be
physically coextensive with the housing 180. For example, the housing 180 may
include
features that include one side or section of the clip 170. The clip 170 is
preferably sprung
against the housing 180 such that the clip 170 retains the housing 180 on an
article of
clothing by pinching (e.g., biasing against) a portion of the article of
clothing between
the housing 180 and a portion of the clip 170. At least one side or section of
the clip 170
may therefore be coupled to a return spring that provides a clamping force
between (at
least one section of) the clip 170 and the housing 180. However, the clip 170
and data
link 140 may be of any other physically coextensive or distinct configuration,
and the
clip 170 may be arranged within or on the preferred health meter 100 in any
other way.
[0032] One variation of the preferred health meter foo shown in FIGURE 1
includes: a housing 180 configured to be worn by a user; a glucose meter no
coupled to
the housing 180; a pedometer 120 coupled to the housing 180; a processor 160
arranged
within the housing 180 and configured to generate a directive for a user
action in
response to a measured glucose level and an output of the pedometer 120; and a
display
190 arranged within the housing 180 and configured to display the directive
for the user.
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[0033] As shown in FIGURE 5, another variation of the preferred health
meter
100 configured to be worn by a user includes: a physiological sensor 109; a
clip 170
coupled to the physiological sensor and including a sprung loop configured
bias against
(or pinch) an article of clothing worn by the user to couple the physiological
sensor to
the article of clothing; and a data link 140 comprising a wired jack
physically
coextensive with the clip 170 and configured to transmit a form of an output
of the
physiological sensor. In this variation, the wired jack of the data link 140
preferably
includes a stereo jack that communicates data to and from an external
electronic device
via inter-integrated circuit communication protocol. The physiological sensor
109 is
preferably a blood glucose meter no that analyzes intracorporeal blood of the
user (i.e. a
bloodless blood glucose meter). However, the physiological sensor 109 may be a
pedometer 120, a heart rate monitor 130, or any other type of biological
sensor. The
physiological sensor 109 preferably measures a biological status of the user
at a specified
interval and the data link 140 preferably transmits a form of a plurality of
outputs of the
physiological sensor 109 when coupled to an external electronic device. As
shown in
FIGURE 5, the clip 170 may further include a first section 170a and a second
section
17013, wherein the first section 170a transiently couples to the second
section 17013 to
encase the wired jack that extends from the second section 17013. For example,
the
second section 17013 of the clip 170 may translate linearly relative the first
section 170a
such that the wired jack may be exposed. Furthermore, the first section 170a
may be
sprung against the housing 180 while the second section 17013 is not sprung
but rather
pivotable relative the first section 170a when the datalink 140 is exposed.
[0034] As shown in FIGURE 5, a further variation of the preferred health
meter
100 includes: a housing 180; a clip 170 arranged on the housing 180 and
including a
sprung loop configured to bias against a portion of a wearable article to
couple the
housing 180 to the wearable article; and a heart rate monitor 130 comprising a
first
conductive pad 121 and a second conductive pad 122 configured to engage an
extremity
of a user, wherein the first conductive pad 121 is arranged on a surface of
the clip 170. In
this variation, the wearable article is preferably a shirt, a pair of pants, a
belt, a jacket, a
vest, a coat, a glove, a shoe, a hat, an armband, or any other suitable
article of clothing
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or accessory. However, the wearable article may be any other suitable item,
article, or
object, such as a seatbelt or medical diagnostic equipment or instrumentation.
The
second conductive pad 122 may be arranged on the housing 180 such that the
heart rate
monitor 120 measures the heart rate of a user when the user contacts the first
and
second conductive pads 121, 122 while arranging the clip 170 on an article of
clothing. As
shown in FIGURE 5, the clip 170 may define a circular cross-section swept
along a U-
shaped profile, though the clip 170 may be of any other cross section or
profile.
Furthermore, the clip 170 may include a first section 170a and a second
section 170b
separable from the first section 170a, wherein the first section is preferably
sprung
against the housing, as shown in FIGURE 5. The first conductive pad 121 is
preferably
arranged on the first section 170a and the second conductive pad 122 is
preferably
arranged on the second section 17013 of the clip 170. The preferred health
meter 100 may
further include a data link 140 including a wired jack extending from the
second section
170b, wherein the data link 140 transmits a form of an output of the heart
rate monitor
120. The first section 170a of the clip 170 may also be removably coupled to
the second
section 170b to encase the data link 140, as described above. This variation
of the
preferred health meter 100 may further include a switch that triggers the
heart rate
monitor to measures the heart rate of a user when the user moves the second
section
170b of the clip 170 relative to the first section 170a, such as to clip the
preferred health
meter 100 to the wearable article or to remove the preferred health meter 100
from the
wearable article. In this and the foregoing variations in which the
physiological sensor
109 and/or heart rate monitor 120 includes one or more conductive pads
arranged on
the clip 170, the clip is preferably electrically non-conductive such that the
first and
second conductive pads 121, 122 are electrically isolated via the clip 170.
For example,
the clip 170 may be nylon, polyethylene, ABS, or any other suitable type or
polymer or
plastic. However, the preferred health meter 100 can be of any other form or
configuration and can function in any other way.
2. Example Implementations
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[0035] In a first example implementation of the preferred health meter
100, the
preferred health meter 100 includes a housing 180 that substantially
encapsulates the
blood glucose meter 110, the pedometer 120, and the processor 160; the clip
170, the
heart rate monitor 130, and the display 190 are arranged on the housing 180.
The blood
glucose meter 110 includes a test strip slot into which the user inserts a
blood sample on
a glucose test strip. The pedometer 120 is a two-axis accelerometer and the
heart rate
monitor 130 includes two conductive pads, each arranged on separate sections
of the
clip 170. The data link 140 is a wired connection comprising 1/8" headphone
jack
connector and is physically coextensive with the clip 170 such that the data
link 140 may
separate from a portion of the clip 170 to enable insertion into a portion of
the digital
multimedia device 155. The digital multimedia device 155 is a smartphone with
a 1/8"
headphone jack 151 and the software module 150 is an application configured to
execute
on the smartphone. The software module 150: receives data from the blood
glucose
meter no, the pedometer 120 and heart rate monitor 130 through the data link
140;
assesses the data in conjunction with user goals, user health condition, user
demographic, previous user activity, and previous user compliance to generate
the
health report; dispatches the health report to a remote network configured to
store the
health record of the patient and wherein the health record of the patient is
available to a
primary-care physician of the user; transmits the health report to the
processor 160 via
the data link 140; and/or modifies a calendar of the user on the smartphone to
reflect
explicit directives relevant to the health of the user (such as scheduling a
walk). The
processor 160 accesses the health report; generates the health-related
notification 152 or
directive, and renders the health-related notification 152 on the display 190.
[0036] In a second example implementation of the preferred health meter
100,
the housing 180 encapsulates the blood glucose meter no and the data link 140
and is
implanted into the body of the user such that the data link transmits the
glucose level of
the blood, as measured by the implanted blood glucose meter no, to the digital
multimedia device. The data link 140 includes a low-power, short-range
wireless
communication module that transmits and receives data to and from the digital
multimedia device 155 that is a smartphone. The heart rate monitor 130 is a
microphone
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arranged on the smartphone and senses the heart rate of the user when the user
places a
finger over the microphone. The pedometer 120 is an accelerometer arranged
within the
smartphone and detects motion of the smartphone carried by the user. The
software
module 150 is a cloud-based application operating on a remote server that:
receives data
from the blood glucose meter 110, the pedometer 120 and heart rate monitor 130
through a wireless connection established with server by the smartphone;
assesses the
data in conjunction with user goals, user health condition, user demographic,
previous
user activity, and previous user compliance to generate the health report;
stores the
health report on a remote network configured to store the health record of the
patient
and wherein the health record of the patient is available to a primary-care
physician of
the user; and dispatches the health report to the smartphone via the wireless
connection
with the smartphone. The processor 160 is arranged within the smartphone and
receives
the health report from the software module 150 and renders a form of the
health report
(such as compliance with set user goals) on the display 190 integral with the
smartphone. The processor 160 further suggests specific directives to the
user, such as
to go for a run with a second user substantially proximal the user and who has
substantially similar heath-related goals and has a substantially similar
recent health
report as the user.
[0037] In a third example implementation, the preferred health meter 100
functions much as the first example implementation above, but in place of (or
in
addition to) a blood glucose meter 110, the preferred health meter 100
includes
elements of a polysomnography test kit, such as an lung airflow sensor, an eye
movement sensor, and a chest wall movement meter, wherein the polysomnography
sensors detect sleep patterns of the user. Data collected by the
polysomnography
sensors are preferably transmitted to the digital multimedia device 155 via
the data link
140 and then accessed by the software module 150. The software module 150 uses
the
data to detect sleep apnea in the patient and to generate a health report
incorporating a
diagnosis thereof. The health report is then used to provide directives to the
user for
improving sleep, and the processor 160 manages generation and distribution of
the
directives to alter and improve the user sleep, such as to change the position
of an
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adjustable bed in which the user sleeps, to increase the level of white noise
proximal to
the user at night, or to increase oxygen flow through a face mask worn by the
user.
[0038] In a fourth example implementation, the preferred health meter 100
functions much as the second example implementation above, aside from the
housing
180 that encapsulates the blood glucose meter 110 and data link 140, wherein
the data
link 140 is a proprietary connector configured to plug into a data port of a
digital
multimedia device 155 that is a smartphone, and wherein the blood glucose
meter no is
a bloodless glucose meter.
[0039] As a person skilled in the art will recognize from the previous
detailed
description and from the figures and claims, modifications and changes can be
made to
the preferred embodiments of the invention without departing from the scope of
this
invention as defined in the following claims.
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