Patent Application
20230248986
This application is based on and claims priority under 35 USC § 119 from Japanese Patent Application No. 2022-016386, filed on Feb. 4, 2022, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
The present disclosure relates to a defibrillator.
Defibrillators have been rapidly spread recently. A defibrillator is configured to give a patient back the heart function by giving a strong electric shock to the heart having stopped beating suddenly due to ventricular fibrillation. Some defibrillators have a self-diagnosis function to self-diagnose whether there is failure or not regularly. For example, JP2016-500286A discloses a defibrillator configured to conduct self-diagnosis regularly at a first frequency or a second frequency, and JP2006-043270A discloses a defibrillator configured to conduct self-diagnosis to detect battery failure.
The defibrillator of JP2016-500286A can detect failure while holding down power consumption by dynamically controlling the frequency of the self-diagnosis. The defibrillator of JP2006-043270A is configured to notify an administrator of battery failure if it is detected during the self-diagnosis.
Suppose that first self-diagnosis, during which current supplied from a battery is low, is conducted and that second self-diagnosis, during which current supplied from the battery is high, is conducted less frequently than the first self-diagnosis. In this case, even if a battery failure in which internal impedance is too high is detected during a second self-diagnosis, there is a possibility that the following first self-diagnosis cannot detect the battery failure since a voltage drop is small as well as the current supplied from the battery during first self-diagnosis. Therefore, there is room for improvement in terms of recognizability of battery failure.
An object of the present disclosure is to provide a defibrillator that enables users or administrators to recognize battery failure easily even if current supplied from a battery is low during self-diagnosis.
A defibrillator according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes:
processing circuitry; and
a memory storing a program, in which,
when executed on the processing circuitry, the program causes the processing circuitry to:
The present disclosure can provide a defibrillator that enables users or administrators to recognize battery failure easily even if current supplied from a battery is low during self-diagnosis.
Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail based on the following figures, wherein:
In the following, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Descriptions of components having the same reference numerals as those of components already described will be omitted for the sake of simplicity. Dimensions of components shown in the drawings may be different from the actual dimensions for the sake of convenience.
Configuration of Defibrillator
The battery pack 11 can include a battery cell 11A (see
In response to a power button on the body 10 being pushed, the main power source of the defibrillator 1 is turned on. The defibrillator 1 may be an automated external defibrillator (AED) whose main power source is on when the lid 12 is open and off when the lid 12 is closed.
The cable 13 is configured to connect the electrode pads 14 and 15 to the body 10 electrically. The electrode pads 14 and 15 are attachable to a subject to enable electrocardiogram analysis and/or treatment using an electric shock for the subject.
The body 10 can include a display 100, a speaker 101, and an indicator 102 as user interfaces.
The display 100 is configured to display graphics and/or characters to visually provide rescuers with information on, for example, how to attach the electrode pads 14 and 15, how to administer an electric shock, and whether the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal or abnormal.
The speaker 101 is configured to reproduce sounds to aurally provides the rescuers with information on, for example, how to attach the electrode pads 14 and 15, how to administer the electric shock, warning that the body 10 is being charged with a high voltage, timing of the electric shock, and whether the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal or abnormal.
The indicator 102 can includes a light configured to be turned on or to blink to visually provide the rescuers with information on, for example, whether the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal or abnormal.
In response to the power button being pushed and the main power source of the defibrillator 1 being turned on, the processing circuitry 103 loads programs and data stored in the memory 104 and runs the programs to control the defibrillator 1.
The processing circuitry 103 loads graphic data that is stored in advance in the memory 104 and is related to the information on, for example, how to attach the electrode pads 14 and 15, how to administer the electric shock, and whether the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal or abnormal, and transmits the graphic data to the display 100. The display 100 receives and displays the graphic data.
The processing circuitry 103 transmits control signals to the indicator 102 to control the light of the indicator in order to notify the rescuers whether the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal or abnormal. The indicator 102 receives the control signals, and the light of the indicator 102 is turned on or blinks based on the control signals.
The processing circuitry 103 loads sound data that is stored in advance in the memory 104 and is related to the information on, for example, how to attach the electrode pads 14 and 15, how to administer the electric shock, warning that the body 10 is being charged with a high voltage, timing of the electric shock, and whether the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal or abnormal, and transmits the sound data to the speaker 101. The speaker 101 receives the sound data and reproduces sounds based on the sound data.
The processing circuitry 103 controls the battery cell 11A and an internal capacitor of the high-voltage power source 105 such that the internal capacitor is charged by the battery cell 11A or is discharged into the electrode pads 14 and 15. The ammeter 107 and the voltmeter 108 is configured to measure current Is and voltage Vs of power supplied from the battery cell 11A to the body 10.
The processing circuitry 103 determines whether the electrode pads 14 and 15 are attached to the subject and controls the electrode pads 14 and 15 and the electrocardiogram analyzer 106 to cause the electrocardiogram analyzer 106 to conduct electrocardiogram analysis.
The memory 104 stores programs and data for controlling the defibrillator 1. The electrocardiogram analyzer 106 conducts the electrocardiogram analysis on the subject using the electrode pads 14 and 15.
The processing circuitry 103 conducts self-diagnosis to diagnose whether the defibrillator 1 can operate normally, or whether the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal or abnormal. The processing circuitry 103 records results of the self-diagnosis on the memory 104 and transmits the results to an external server (management server) 110 via the external communication unit 109.
Self-Diagnosis
The self-diagnosis will be described in detail. The processing circuitry 103 is configured to conduct at least two types of self-diagnosis: one is first self-diagnosis, and another is second self-diagnosis.
In the first and the second self-diagnosis, at least remaining battery level and battery voltage of the battery cell 11A are checked. Based on results of the check of the remaining battery level and the battery voltage, it is comprehensively determined whether the state of the defibrillator is normal or abnormal.
Check of Remaining Battery Level
First, the processing circuitry 103 checks the remaining battery level at the start of the self-diagnosis. Specifically, the processing circuitry 103 loads the remaining battery level Ir and full battery level If of the battery cell 11A that are stored in the battery memory 11B. The full battery level If is, for example, 2000 mAh.
Next, the processing circuitry 103 calculates a remaining battery level ratio Irr of the remaining battery level Ir to the full battery level If and compares the remaining battery level ratio Irr with a predetermined threshold Ith. The predetermined threshold Ith is, for example, 5%. If the remaining battery level ratio Irr exceeds the predetermined threshold Ith, the processing circuitry 103 determines that the remaining battery level Ir is normal. If the remaining battery level ratio Irr is below the predetermined threshold Ith, the processing circuitry 103 determines that the remaining battery level Ir is abnormal. The processing circuitry 103 records results of the determination as to whether the remaining battery level Ir is normal or abnormal on the memory 104.
In addition, the processing circuitry 103 checks the remaining battery level at the end of the self-diagnosis. Specifically, the processing circuitry 103 measures the current Is supplied from the battery cell 11A to the body 10. The processing circuitry 103 calculates a fluctuation ΔIu in battery usage, based on the time integral of the current Is. The processing circuitry 103 calculates the remaining battery level Ir at the end of the self-diagnosis by subtracting the fluctuation ΔIu in the battery usage from the remaining battery level Ir at the start of the self-diagnosis. The processing circuitry 103 calculate the remaining battery level ratio Irr at the end of the self-diagnosis of the remaining battery level Ir to the full battery level If and compares the remaining battery level ratio Irr at the end of the self-diagnosis with the predetermined threshold Ith. If the remaining battery level ratio Irr exceeds the predetermined threshold Ith, the processing circuitry 103 determines that the remaining battery level Ir is normal. If the remaining battery level ratio Irr is below the predetermined threshold Ith, the processing circuitry 103 determines that the remaining battery level Ir is abnormal. The processing circuitry 103 records the remaining battery level Ir at the end of the self-diagnosis on the battery memory 11B and records results of the determination as to whether the remaining battery level Ir is normal or abnormal on the memory 104.
Instead of the remaining battery level Ir and the remaining battery level ratio Irr, battery usage Iu and a battery usage ratio Iur may be checked during the check of the remaining battery level, and the processing circuitry 103 may record both the remaining battery level ratio Irr and the battery usage ratio Iur on the battery memory 11B. In addition, the memory 104 may store identification information for a plurality of batteries and the full battery level If of each battery in association with each other, and the battery memory 11B may store the identification information for one of the batteries. In this case, the processing circuitry 103 may load the remaining battery level Ir of and the identification information for a battery from the battery memory 11B and acquire, from the memory 104, the full battery level If of the battery, based on the identification information for the battery.
By checking the remaining battery level in this manner, it becomes possible to detect a battery failure in which the battery cell 11A does not have enough power for operating the defibrillator 1.
Check of Battery Voltage
The processing circuitry 103 checks the battery voltage by comparing the voltage Vs with a predetermined threshold Vth. If the voltage Vs exceeds the predetermined threshold Vth, the processing circuitry 103 determines that the battery voltage is normal. If the voltage Vs is below the predetermined threshold Vth, the processing circuitry 103 determines that the battery voltage is abnormal. The processing circuitry 103 records results of the determination as to whether the battery voltage is normal or abnormal on the memory 104.
By checking the battery voltage in this manner, it becomes possible to detect a battery failure in which internal impedance of the battery cell 11A is too high.
Determination of State of Defibrillator
The processing circuitry 103 loads the results of the determination, which are recorded on the memory 104, as to whether the remaining battery level Ir is normal or abnormal and whether the battery voltage is normal or abnormal and comprehensively determines whether the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal or abnormal based on at least the determination results. If it is determined that the remaining battery level Ir and the battery voltage are normal, the processing circuitry 103 may determine that the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal. If it is determined that the remaining battery level Ir and/or the battery voltage is abnormal, the processing circuitry 103 may determine that the state of the defibrillator 1 is abnormal. The processing circuitry 103 records results of the determination as to whether the defibrillator is normal or abnormal on the memory 104.
The processing circuitry 103 causes the display 100, the speaker, and/or the indicator 102 to output the results of the determination as to whether the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal or abnormal and transmits the results to the external server 110 via the external communication unit 109.
By determining the state of the defibrillator 1 in this manner, it becomes possible for users or administrators of the defibrillator 1 to recognize whether the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal or abnormal.
First and Second Self-Diagnosis
In the first self-diagnosis, at least the remaining battery level Ir and the battery voltage of the battery cell 11A are checked regularly, for example, once a day. In the first self-diagnosis, when the remaining battery level Ir is checked, the current Is is measured with the processing circuitry 103 causing first current to be supplied from the battery cell 11A to the body 10.
In the second self-diagnosis, at least the remaining battery level Ir and the battery voltage of the battery cell 11A are checked regularly at intervals longer than that for the first self-diagnosis, for example, once a month. In the second self-diagnosis, when the remaining battery level Ir is checked, the current Is is measured with the processing circuitry 103 causing second current, which is higher than the first current, to be supplied from the battery cell 11A to the body 10.
The first and the second self-diagnosis differ each other in the current (first and second current) supplied from the battery cell 11A to the body 10 and the intervals.
In the second self-diagnosis, the high-voltage power source 105 is charged by the battery cell 11A to diagnose whether the high-voltage power source 105 can be charged normally. On the other hand, in the first self-diagnosis, the high-voltage power source 105 is not charged by the battery cell 11A. Therefore, the second current is higher than the first current, and the second self-diagnosis consumes much power of the battery cell 11A. The second self-diagnosis cannot be conducted frequently, and the intervals for the second self-diagnosis are longer than those for the first self-diagnosis.
Table 1 shows results of the self-diagnosis for the defibrillator 1 according to the present embodiment when the battery cell 11A is normal (when the internal impedance is small).
As shown in Table 1, if the first self-diagnosis is conducted when the battery cell 11A is normal, the first current, which is low, is supplied from the battery cell 11A to the body 10 without charging the high-voltage power source 105 by the battery cell 11A. Therefore, the battery usage ratio Iur and the remaining battery level ratio Irr (hereinafter, the battery usage ratio Iur and the remaining battery level ratio Irr are generically referred to as “battery information”) are normal value. In addition, since the first current and the voltage drop of the voltage Vs measured by the voltmeter 108 are small, the voltage Vs exceeds the predetermined threshold Vth. Therefore, it is determined that the battery voltage is normal and that the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal.
Based on the results of the self-diagnosis, information indicating that the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal is recorded on the memory 104, and battery information indicating that the battery cell 11A is normal (specifically, according to Table 1, the battery usage ratio Iur is 1-6%, and the remaining battery level ratio Irr is 94-99%) is recorded on the battery memory 11B.
If the second self-diagnosis is conducted when the battery cell 11A is normal, the high-voltage power source 105 is charged by the battery cell 11A, and the second current, which is high, is supplied from the battery cell 11A to the body 10. However, since the intervals for the second self-diagnosis are long (the frequency is low), the fluctuation ΔIu in the battery usage is small, and the battery usage ratio Iur and the remaining battery level ratio Irr are normal value. In addition, since the battery cell 11A is normal and has small internal impedance, the voltage drop of the voltage Vs measured by the voltmeter 108 is small, and the voltage Vs exceeds the predetermined threshold Vth. Therefore, it is determined that the battery voltage is normal and that the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal.
Based on the results of the self-diagnosis, information indicating that the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal is recorded on the memory 104, and battery information indicating that the battery cell 11A is normal (specifically, according to Table 1, the battery usage ratio Iur is 5%, and the remaining battery level ratio Irr is 95%) is recorded on the battery memory 11B.
In order to explain results of the self-diagnosis for the defibrillator 1 according to the present embodiment when the battery cell 11A is abnormal (when the internal impedance is large), first, results of self-diagnosis for conventional defibrillator when its battery cell is abnormal (when the internal impedance is large) are shown in Table 2 for comparison.
As shown in Table 2, if the first self-diagnosis for the second time is conducted when the battery cell is abnormal, the first current, which is low, is supplied from the battery cell to the body without charging the high-voltage power source by the battery cell. Therefore, the battery usage ratio Iur and the remaining battery level ratio Irr are normal value. In addition, since the first current and the voltage drop of the voltage Vs measured by the voltmeter are small, the voltage Vs exceeds the predetermined threshold Vth. Therefore, it is determined that the battery voltage is normal and that the state of the defibrillator is normal.
Based on the results of the self-diagnosis, information indicating that the state of the defibrillator is normal is recorded on the memory, and battery information indicating that the battery cell is normal (specifically, according to Table 2, the battery usage ratio Iur is 2%, and the remaining battery level ratio Irr is 98%) is recorded on the battery memory. Accordingly, even if the battery cell is abnormal, the first self-diagnosis cannot detect an abnormality in the battery voltage, and the information indicating that the state of the defibrillator is normal is recorded since the first current and the voltage drop of the voltage Vs are small.
If the second self-diagnosis is conducted, the high-voltage power source is charged by the battery cell, and the second current, which is high, is supplied from the battery cell to the body 10. However, since the intervals for the second self-diagnosis are long (the frequency is low), the fluctuation ΔIu in the battery usage is small, and the battery usage ratio Iur and the remaining battery level Irr are normal value. In addition, since the battery cell is abnormal and has large internal impedance, the voltage drop of the voltage Vs measured by the voltmeter is large, and the voltage Vs is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold Vth. Therefore, it is determined that the battery voltage is abnormal and that the state of the defibrillator is abnormal.
Based on the results of the self-diagnosis, information indicating that the state of the defibrillator is abnormal is recorded on the memory, and battery information indicating that the battery cell is abnormal (specifically, according to Table 2, the battery usage ratio Iur is 5%, and the remaining battery level ratio Irr is 95%) is recorded on the battery memory.
Since a large current is applied in the second self-diagnosis, the second self-diagnosis can detect an abnormality in the battery voltage that cannot be detected in the first self-diagnosis.
However, as shown in Table 2, if the first self-diagnosis is reconducted after the information indicating that the defibrillator is abnormal is recorded on the memory in the second self-diagnosis, the memory is overwritten with the information indicating that the state of the defibrillator is normal even though the battery cell is abnormal in fact. The memory is overwritten with the latest results since there is a possibility that the results of the second self-diagnosis may temporarily become abnormal due to an abnormality, for example, in peripheral temperature. However, this makes it difficult to detect an abnormality in the internal impedance of the battery cell.
The defibrillator 1 according to the present embodiment remedies such inconvenience. Table 3 shows results of the self-diagnosis for the defibrillator 1 according to the present embodiment when the battery cell 11A is abnormal (when the internal impedance is large).
As shown in Table 3, if the first self-diagnosis is conducted, the first current, which is low, is supplied from the battery cell 11A to the body 10 without charging the high-voltage power source 105 from the battery cell 11A. Therefore, the battery usage ratio Iur and the remaining battery level ratio Irr are normal value. In addition, since the first current and the voltage drop of the voltage Vs measured by the voltmeter 108 are small, the voltage Vs exceeds the predetermined threshold Vth. Therefore, it is determined that the battery voltage is normal and that the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal.
Based on the results of the self-diagnosis, information indicating that the state of the defibrillator 1 is normal is recorded on the memory 104, and battery information indicating that the battery cell 11A is normal is recorded on the battery memory 11B.
If the second self-diagnosis is conducted, the high-voltage power source 105 is charged by the battery cell 11A, and the second current, which is high, is supplied from the battery cell 11A to the body 10. However, since the intervals for the second self-diagnosis are long, the fluctuation ΔIu in the battery usage is small, and the battery usage ratio Iur and the remaining battery level ratio Irr are normal value. Also, since the battery cell 11A is abnormal and has large internal impedance, the voltage drop of the voltage Vs measured by the voltmeter 108 is large and is below the predetermined threshold Vth. Therefore, it is determined that the battery voltage is abnormal and that the state of the defibrillator 1 is abnormal.
In this case, instead of the battery usage ratio Iur and the remaining battery level ratio Irr calculated by the processing circuitry 103, a battery usage ratio Iur and a remaining battery level ratio Irr indicating that the battery cell 11A is abnormal (specifically, according to Table 3, the battery usage ratio Iur is 100%, and the remaining battery level ratio Irr is 0%) are recorded on the battery memory 11B. Therefore, information indicating that the state of the defibrillator 1 is abnormal is recorded on the memory 104, and battery information indicating that the battery cell 11A is abnormal is recorded on the battery memory 11B.
As shown in Table 3, in the self-diagnosis of the defibrillator 1 according to the present embodiment, the battery information indicating that the battery cell 11A is abnormal is recorded on the battery memory 11B in the second self-diagnosis (No. 3 in Table 3). Therefore, if the first self-diagnosis is reconducted thereafter (when the self-diagnosis No. 4 in Table 3 is conducted), it is determined that the remaining battery level Ir is abnormal since the remaining battery level ratio Irr is below the predetermined threshold Ith during the check of the remaining battery level Ir at the start of the self-diagnosis. As a result, the memory 104 is overwritten with information indicating that the state of the defibrillator 1 is abnormal.
Accordingly, even if the first self-diagnosis, in which a low current (first current) is supplied from the battery, is conducted, the users or the administrators can easily recognize information indicating that the state of the defibrillator 1 is abnormal. The self-diagnosis No. 4 is the first self-diagnosis, and the first current and the fluctuation ΔIu in the battery usage are small. However, since the battery information indicating that the battery cell 11A is abnormal has already been recorded on the battery memory 11B, battery information indicating that the battery cell 11A is abnormal is recorded on the battery memory 11B also in the self-diagnosis No. 4.
In the example above, if a voltage abnormality of the battery cell 11A is detected, the processing circuitry 103 records the battery usage ratio Iur and the remaining battery level ratio Irr indicating that the battery cell 11A is abnormal (specifically, according to Table 3, the battery usage ratio Iur is 100% and the remaining battery level ratio Irr is 0%) on the battery memory 11B, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, the processing circuitry 103 may record a flag having a specific value (for example, “1”) when the voltage is abnormal on the battery memory 11B. However, by recording a battery usage ratio Iur and/or a remaining battery level ratio Irr indicating an abnormality on the battery memory 11B, even if the battery pack 11 is used in a defibrillator having a different model number, the remaining battery level Ir becomes abnormal, and the abnormality in the battery pack 11 can be recognized. In other words, by recording a battery usage ratio Iur and/or a remaining battery level ratio Irr indicating an abnormality on the battery memory 11B, the abnormality can always be detected as long as the defibrillator is configured to check the remaining battery level Ir recorded in the battery memory 11B.
When the battery pack 11 is attached unsteadily, the internal impedance of the battery pack 11 may be temporarily abnormal even if the battery pack 11 itself is normal. Therefore, until a predetermined period of time has passed since the processing circuitry 103 detects that the battery pack 11 is attached to the defibrillator 1, the first and/or the second self-diagnosis may be conducted, but battery information does not have to be recorded on the battery memory 11B, and the voltage Vs does not have to be compared with the predetermined threshold Vth. Accordingly, even if the connection between the battery pack 11 and the defibrillator 1 is unstable when the battery pack 11 is attached to the defibrillator 1, it can be possible to prevent battery information indicating that the battery cell 11A is abnormal from being erroneously recorded on the battery memory 11B.
During the first and/or the second self-diagnosis, the processing circuitry 103 may transmit the battery information to an external server 110 via the external communication unit 109. Accordingly, the users or the administrators can easily recognize the battery usage ratio Iur and the remaining battery level ratio Irr of the battery cell 11A.
Although an embodiment of the present disclosure has been described above, it goes without saying that the technical scope of the present disclosure should not be limited to the present embodiment. It is to be understood by those skilled in the art that the present embodiment is merely an example and that various modifications can be made within the scope of the invention described in the claims. The technical scope of the present disclosure should be determined based on the scope of the inventions described in the claims or the equivalents thereof.
For example, in the above description, the defibrillator 1 is an automated external defibrillator (AED) that is fully automated, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. The defibrillator 1 may be, for example, an AED that is semi-automated.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-016386 | Feb 2022 | JP | national |
