Patent Application
20200027541
Any and all applications for which a foreign or domestic priority claim is identified in the Application Data Sheet as filed with the present application are hereby incorporated by reference under 37 CFR 1.57.
This disclosure relates to the field of clinical messaging, and particularly to techniques for facilitating clinical messaging within and across various network environments.
Modern medical care often involves the use of medical infusion pumps to deliver fluids and/or fluid medicine to patients. Infusion pumps permit the controlled delivery of fluids to a patient and provide flexible yet controlled delivery schedules. Drug libraries within the infusion pumps provide some limits pertaining to the delivery of fluids. Infusion pumps can communicate with a server configured to manage drug library updates and operational software updates of the individual infusion pumps.
Various techniques for facilitating communication with and across a clinical environment and a cloud environment are described herein. These techniques may include converting pump messages into standardized dataset messages (also referred to herein simply as “messages”), updating drug libraries, updating pump operational software, detecting health status parameters, sending health status parameters, among others. These and other embodiments are described in greater detail below with reference to
A distributed system can include a server outside of a clinical environment and a connectivity adapter and a plurality of infusion pumps within the clinical environment. The connectivity adapter can receive from the server a location of an update, such as a drug library update or an operational software update, to be delivered to the infusion pumps. The location can be received over a first messaging communication channel of a network, and the update data can be received over a second, data communication channel of the network. The update data can be stored at the connectivity adapter such that it can be sent to the infusion pumps.
A system can include a plurality of infusion pumps and a connectivity adapter in a clinical environment. The connectivity adapter can receive update data, such as a drug library update or an operational software update, and can store the update data within the clinical environment. The connectivity adapter can send the update data to a predetermined number of infusion pumps that have requested the update. At least two subsets of the infusion pumps can receive different blocks of the update data at about the same time. Further, the same or different update data can be provided to the infusion pumps at about the same time.
A distributed system can include a server outside of a clinical environment and a connectivity adapter and a plurality of infusion pumps within the clinical environment. The connectivity adapter can monitor microservices that measure the quality of connectivity adapter's performance. If the performance is below a threshold level, a message indicating poor performance can be sent to the server. The message can be sent when a prior message relating to poor performance has not already been sent within a predetermined time period.
The embodiments described herein are illustrated by way of example, and not by way of limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which like references indicate similar elements.
The components 202-208 illustrated in
The MCU 326 may generate and send pump messages to the CE 324 for storage and transmission to the connectivity adapter 206. In some cases, the messages are each associated with a message ID. A message ID can be a unique identifier or a sequence identifier. The pump messages may include clinical information. The CE 324 may send such pump messages to the connectivity adapter 206. Pump messages sent to the connectivity adapter 206 via the CE 324 and generated by the MCU 326 may be transformed by the transformation worker 336 into a standardized dataset message (e.g., message format used by the connectivity adapter 206 to communicate with the cloud environment 106, sometimes referred herein as simply a message).
The CE 324 may also receive messages from the connectivity adapter 206 indicating that updates, such as updates to the drug library or updates to the operational software are available and may send messages to the connectivity adapter 206 requesting the updates (e.g., update data). The CE 324 may also receive the update data from the connectivity adapter 206 for storage in the memory 322. The update data may be drug library update data or may be operational software update data. The operational software update may include one or more of a device configuration, a network configuration, certificate(s), language pack(s), software update images, software update patches, security updates, and the like. The update data may be provided over a different communication channel than the communication channel(s) used to send or receive messages.
As also shown in
The microservices 308 include one or more programs (e.g., MS1, MS2, MS3 . . . ) that perform specific service functions within the operation of the connectivity adapter 206. For example, a microservice 308 may send the message to the outbound queue 334, while another microservice 308 may receive messages and place them into the inbound queue 332. In addition to performing service functions, one or more microservices 308 may monitor the characteristics of the service functions. For example, the microservice 308 may monitor parameters related to the execution of a service function, such as, for example, the size of a queue 332, 334 or other queue, latency, memory usage, CPU time, and the like. The connectivity adapter 206 may provide the parameters to the cloud environment 106 when one or more parameters exceed a threshold, or the connectivity adapter 206 may provide the parameters upon request from the cloud environment 106.
The inbound queue 332 receives and stores messages from the cloud environment 106 for processing by the connectivity adapter 206. For example, the inbound queue 332 may receive one or more of a health request message 326, a drug library update message 310, and an infusion pump software update message from the cloud environment 106. The health request message 326 may be a request for the health or the status of the connectivity adapter 206. The drug library update message 310 may be notification that a drug library update is available for a least a portion of the infusion pumps 204 associated with the connectivity adapter 206. An infusion pump software update message 312 may be a notification that an update to the operational software for at least a portion of the infusion pumps 204 associated with the connectivity adapter 206 is available. The connectivity adapter 206 may comprise more than one inbound queue such that, for example, there is at least an inbound queue 332 for messages received from the cloud environment 106 over the network 104 and at least another inbound queue for messages received from one or more infusion pumps 204 over the local network. The messages stored in the inbound queue 332 may be associated with one or more message identifiers (IDs). A message ID can be a unique identifier or a sequence identifier. The messages received from the cloud environment 106 may be sent over a message channel associated with the network 104.
The outbound queue 334 receives and stores messages to be sent from the connectivity adapter 206. For example, the outbound queue 334 may receive a health status message 328 to be sent to the cloud environment 106 over the network 104. The outbound queue 334 may also receive a drug library update message 314 and a software update message 316 to be sent to one more infusion pumps over the local network. The health status message 328 may be a message indicating the health of the connectivity adapter 206 and may include one or more parameters from the microservices 308. The drug library update message 314 may be a notification to one or more infusion pumps 204 that a drug library update is available. The software update message 316 may be a notification to one or more infusion pumps 204 that an update to the operational software is available. The connectivity adapter 206 may comprise more than one outbound queue such that, for example, there is at least an outbound queue 334 for messages to be sent to the cloud environment 106 over the network 104 and at least another outbound queue for messages to be sent to one or more infusion pumps 204 over the local network. The messages stored in the outbound queue 334 may be associated with one or more message identifiers (IDs). A message identifier can be a unique identifier or a sequence identifier. The messages sent from the connectivity adapter 206 to the infusion pumps 204 may be sent over a message channel associated with the local network.
The device status manager 330 receives the drug library and operational software updates from the cloud environment 106 and caches blocks of the update data in the cache 302. The device status manager 330 processes the received messages from the inbound queue 332 and sends messages to the outbound queue 334 for transmission to the cloud environment 106 or to the infusion pumps 204. The data received from the cloud environment 106 may be sent over a data channel associated with the network 104 and separate from the message channel of the network 104. Because the data channel in the cloud environment is separate from the message channel in the cloud environment, the data transfer does not interfere with the clinical messaging from the connectivity adapter to the cloud environment. The data sent from the cache 302 to the infusion pumps 204 may be sent over a data channel associated with the local network and separate from the message channel associated with the local network. Because the data channel in the local network is separate from the message channel in the local network, the data transfer does not interfere with the clinical messaging from infusion pumps to the connectivity adapter. Thus, congestion on both the message channel of the cloud environment and the message channel of the local network is reduced.
The device status manager 330 also processes transformed messages provided by the transformation worker 336 and merges the data included in the transformed messages into the cache 302 to update the current state of the infusion pump 204 stored in the cache 302. Additional details regarding the messaging in the clinical environment 102 are provided below.
The DLM 402 may provide a set of features and functions involved in the creation and management of drug libraries for use with infusion pumps. These drug libraries may provide user-defined settings for pump configuration and drug error reduction (DERS).
The report manager 404 may provide various reporting capabilities for clinically relevant infusion data which users can choose to use for further analysis, such as tracking and trending of clinical practices.
The device manager 406 may oversee and manage the maintenance of infusion pumps, providing users the capability to view and manage asset and operational data. For example, the device manager 406 may schedule drug library and software updates for infusion pumps.
The DFM 408 may facilitate storing, caching, and routing of data between compatible infusion pumps, Navajo software, and compatible external systems. For example, the DFM may store infusion and operational data received from infusion pumps, store and cache infusion pump drug libraries and software images, convert and route network messaging between the cloud environment 106 and the clinical environment 102, convert and route medication order information from a hospital information system to an infusion pump (e.g., auto-programming or smart-pump programming), and/or convert and route alert information and infusion events from infusion pumps to hospital information systems (e.g., alarm/alert forwarding, and auto-documentation, or infusion documentation).
The CM 410 may serve as a general-purpose computing platform for the other modules illustrated in
The DA 412 may provide data analytics tools for generating user interfaces and reports based on the data generated and/or received by the other modules illustrated in
Operational software update database 414 may store operational software and/or updates to the operational software for one or more infusion pumps 204. Drug library update database 416 may store one or more drug libraries and/or updates to the one or more drug libraries that are used by the infusion pumps 204 to regulate aspects of drug delivery.
The databases 414, 416 may also store data generated and/or received by the modules 402-412 of the cloud environment 106. Although not illustrated in
The cloud environment 106 can be implemented using a commercial cloud services provider (e.g., Amazon Web Services®, Microsoft Azure®, Google Cloud®, and the like). The cloud environment 106 can be implemented using network infrastructure managed by the provider and/or developer of the modules 402-412 shown in
The inbound queue 512 may include messages received from the clinical environment 102. In the example of
The cache 502 may store the current state of the infusion pump 204. In some cases, the current state stored in the cache 502 can be identical to the current state stored in the cache 302. In other cases, the current state stored in the cache 502 includes additional information not stored in the cache 302, or vice versa.
The process of reducing the transfer of drug library and operational software files from the cloud environment 106 to infusion pumps 204 is described in greater detail below with reference to
Hospitals can have thousands of infusion pumps for infusing drugs to patients. Each infusion pump follows rules contained in drug libraries when delivering the drugs to patients. The rules provide boundaries and guidelines for infusion, such as for example, hard dosing limits, soft dosing limits, rates of infusion, etc., for a plurality of infusible drugs. Drug libraries are often updated with new drugs, drugs being infused in new areas of the facility (e.g., neonatal, ICU, NICU), new infusion treatments, and the like. It is desirable that the infusion pumps include drug library updates in order to maintain the highest level of care for patients.
Further, infusion pumps include operational software that controls pump operations. With a hospital or health care system, there may be many different types of infusion pumps, and each type of infusion pump may have different operational software. As with drug libraries, operational software is often updated. The updates may change software functionality or add additional features. It is also desirable that the infusion pumps run the latest software versions in order to maintain the highest level of care for patients.
In a historical infusion pump network and system, each infusion pump may need to access a hospital server and storage where the updates are stored and download drug library and operational software updates. This is time consuming and the volume of network traffic created by potentially thousands of infusion pumps receiving updates can significantly slow down the hospital network, or significantly impact clinical workflows.
However, in an example pump network and system described herein, a connectivity adapter can download the drug library and operational software updates once from cloud based storage and can distribute the updates to infusion pumps when the infusion pumps are available to receive the updates. This relieves network traffic to the server and to the storage storing the updates and reduces the computing time needed to update the infusion pumps over the historical infusion pump networks and systems.
The connectivity adapter can communicate with a plurality of infusion pumps. To reduce local network congestion between the plurality of infusion pumps and the connectivity adapter, the connectivity adapter can stagger blocks of the updates to the infusion pumps.
The connectivity adapter and the cloud environment can communicate over a first network. The first network is the network connection established between the connectivity adapter and the cloud, the first network has two channels: a first channel to receive the update command and a second channel to obtain the update data. The connectivity adapter and each of the plurality of infusion pumps communicate over a second network. The second network is a network connection established between an infusion pump and the connectivity adapter. The second network has two channels: a first channel to receive the update command and a second channel to obtain the update data (e.g., files). This pattern applies to each infusion pump attached to the connected adapter; therefore, there are multiple second network connections for the connectivity adapter.
The update data can be operational software only; drug library data only; or both operational software and drug library information. The user can initiate the update from the cloud environment. A message can be sent from the server in the cloud environment with the update URL that the connectivity adapter can then update to the local URL for use by the infusion pumps as described in greater detail below. Alternatively, the infusion pump can request if there is an update available. The message is routed to the server in the cloud environment. If an update exists, a message can be sent from the cloud environment with the update URL that the connectivity adapter can update to the local URL, in the same manner as when the update is initiated from the cloud environment.
So as to not flood the hospital network, the connectivity adapter can stagger the updates between the connectivity adapter and its connected devices, which can be infusion pumps, medication compounding devices, and the like. For example, connectivity adapter 1 and connectivity adapter 2 can each have 500 connected devices that need to have the update. Each connectivity adapter can schedule the update for a subset of the connected devices, such as for example, 100 devices at a time. The connectivity adapters can be within separate hospital networks.
In another example, connectivity adapter 1 and connectivity adapter 2 can each have 500 connected devices that need to have the update. Connectivity adapter 1 can notify the cloud environment that it can process up to 100 updates and connectivity adapter 2 is too busy to process any updates. The cloud server then schedules updates for 100 of the devices that are connected to connectivity adapter 1. Additionally, connectivity adapter 1 could opt to stagger the update with a subset of the 100 devices as described above.
In another example, connectivity adapter 1 and connectivity adapter 2 can each have 500 connected devices that need to have the update. Both connectivity adapters can exist on the same hospital network. So as to not flood the hospital network, the cloud server will limit the number of updates each connectivity adapter can service concurrently. For example, the cloud server can limit the number of concurrent updates to 100 connected devices, it can then schedule 60 updates for connectivity adapter 1 and 40 updates for connectivity adapter 2. As the updates complete, additional devices can be added such that there are no more than 100 connected devices being updates at a time on the hospital network.
The user, via a user interface, can specific a predetermined number of infusion pumps or connected devices to update. The system can specify a predetermined number of pumps based on network traffic. The system may portion this group into smaller portions. For example, the user may schedules an update for 1000 connected devices. The system can redistribute the predetermined number of connected devices to update in chunks of 100 connected devices. Example methods of staggering updates to the connected devices can be independently responding to requesting devices, staggering groups of connected devices to receive the updates, and staggering the blocks of update data.
The connectivity adapter can determine specific connected devices to receive a different subset of cached blocks during the download of the update data. In another example, each connected device to receive an update can be provided with a local URL which is the location of where to obtain the update data. The connected device then connects to the connectivity adapter independently of any other connected devices and streams the update data. Since each connected device can stream the update data independently, a first connected device in communication with the connectivity adapter could be block 100 while a second connected device could be streaming block 50 of the update. In another example the connectivity adapter can delay the start of the streaming to subsets of the requesting connected devices to reduce the network load. The connectivity adapter can request to deliver an update to the connected devices and each connected device can confirm to the connectivity adapter that it is ready or is not ready to receive an update.
With reference to
The process of reducing the transfer of drug library and operational software update files to a plurality of infusion pumps (IPs) 204 performed by the system 600 illustrates example algorithm(s) that may be programmed, using any suitable programming environment or language, to create machine code capable of execution by a CPU or microcontroller. Various embodiments may be coded using assembly, C, OBJECTIVE-C, C++, JAVA, or other human-readable languages and then compiled, assembled, or otherwise transformed into machine code that can be loaded into read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), or other recordable memory that is coupled to the CPU or microcontroller and then then executed by the CPU or microcontroller. For example, when the process of reducing the transfer of drug library and operational software update files to a plurality of infusion pumps (IPs) 204 is initiated, a set of executable program instructions stored on one or more non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., hard drive, flash memory, removable media, etc.) may be loaded into memory (e.g., random access memory or “RAM”) of a computing device of the clinical environment 102 and/or the cloud environment 106. The executable instructions may then be executed by a hardware-based computer processor (e.g., a central processing unit or “CPU”) of the computing device. The process of reducing the transfer of drug library and operational software update files to a plurality of infusion pumps (IPs) 204 or portions thereof may be implemented on multiple processors, serially or in parallel.
At block 602, the device manager 406 can receive a message from the cloud user interface 208 that the user has scheduled an update.
At block 604, the device manager 406 can send the scheduled update information to the DFM 408. The DFM 408 can generate a unique key to identify the scheduled event, as scheduled by the user, for one or more pumps. The update information can include information pertaining to the type of update (e.g., drug library update 416 or operational software update 414), the scheduled availability of the update, the infusion pumps 204 to receive the update, the type of infusion pump 204 to receive the update, facility identifiers, and other associated identifiers. The DFM 408 can wait until the scheduled time to notify the connectivity adapter 206 that the update is available. The DFM 408 can notify the connectivity adapter 206 of the scheduled update and the connectivity adapter 206 can wait until the scheduled time to notify the infusion pumps 204 that the update is available.
The DFM 408 can receive the update information from the device manager 406. At block 608, the DFM 408 can send a message to one or more connectivity adapters 206 indicating that an update is available. The message can be one of the drug library (DL) update message 508 or the infusion pump (IP) software (SW) update message 510. The message can be send over the cloud message channel.
At block 610, the DFM 408 can request a cloud URL from the CM 410. The cloud URL can be the location within the cloud environment 106 storing the update 414, 416. The cloud URL can be a temporary URL having a defined lifetime. At block 612, the CM 410 can send the cloud URL to the DFM 408. At block 614, the DFM 408 can send the cloud URL to the connectivity adapter 206. The cloud URL can be sent over the cloud data channel.
The connectivity adapter 206 can receive the message indicating that an update is available and the cloud URL from the DFM 408. The received message can be one of the DL update message 310 or the IP SW update message 312.
At block 630, the connectivity adapter 206 can send a message to the selected infusion pumps 204 that an update is available. The connectivity adapter 206 can stagger the update notifications to the selected infusion pumps 204. For example, if 100 infusion pumps 204 are scheduled to receive an update, the connectivity adapter 206 may only notify 50 infusion pumps 204 and as individual update downloads complete new updates are scheduled for the remaining infusion pumps 204. The message can be one of the DL update message 314 or the IP SW update message 316. The message can be sent over the local message channel. The selected infusion pumps 204 can be the infusion pumps intended to receive the drug library or operational software update.
At block 616, the connectivity adapter 206 can create a local URL and maps the cloud URL to the local URL. The local URL can be a URL identifying a location in the connectivity adapter 206 within the clinical environment 102. At block 618, the connectivity adapter 206 can send the local URL to the infusion pumps 204 identified in the update available message. The local URL can be sent over the local data channel.
At block 620, the connectivity adapter 206 can open a cloud URL stream to receive the update data stored at the cloud URL. The update data can be streamed from storage 414, 416 at the cloud URL over the cloud data channel. The messaging between the connectivity adapter 206 and the DFM 408 can occur on the cloud message channel that is separate from the cloud data channel. Thus, the cloud data channel can solve the problem of data packet prioritization because the data streaming, which is occurring on a separate channel, does not interfere with the infusion pump clinical messaging. Further, the cloud data channel can strengthen and simplify the security of the network by allowing the infusion pumps 204 to receive data over a secured isolated virtual local network (VLAN) that is not exposed to public networks. Advantageously, the infusion pumps 204 can request and receive the update data from the connectivity adapter 206 should the network connection between the connectivity adapter 206 and cloud environment 106 become unavailable because the updates are stored at the connectivity adapter 206.
The connectivity adapter 206 can be pre-notified of an available update, stream the update data before the scheduled update time, and notify the infusion pumps 204 of the available update at the scheduled time. This can also provide the advantage of being able to update the infusion pumps 204 at the scheduled update time should the network connection with the cloud environment 106 become unavailable at the scheduled update time.
At block 622, the connectivity adapter 206 can cache blocks of the streaming update data in the cache 302. The connectivity adapter 206 can associate data in the cache 302 with the local URL. Once the update is stored in the cache 302 at the connectivity adapter 206, the cloud data channel between the connectivity adapter 206 and the DFM 408 may no longer be needed. This can reduce network activity as the cloud environment 106 does not need to be accessed to individually update each infusion pump 204.
At block 632, the selected infusion pumps 204 can receive the message 314, 316 from the connectivity adapter 206 that an update is available. At block 634, the infusion pumps 204 can receive the local URL from the connectivity adapter 206.
At block 636, the selected infusion pumps 204 can request the update data at the local URL from the connectivity adapter 206. The request can include an HTTP multi-part GET request. Each infusion pump 204 can request the update data when it is available to receive the update data.
The update data from the connectivity adapter 206 to the infusion pump 204 can be streamed over the local data channel within the local network. The messaging between the connectivity adapter 206 and the infusion pumps 204 can occur over the local message channel that is separate from the local data channel. Thus, the local data channel within the local or hospital network can also solve the problem of data packet prioritization because the data streaming, which is occurring on a separate channel does not interfere with the clinical infusion pump messaging on the local message channel. Another advantage of separating the messages and the data onto a local message channel and a local data channel, respectively, can be allowing the infusion pump CE 324 to actively download into its storage 322 large files, which can be, for example, 300 MBs or more, without interrupting the infusion pump MCU 326 which is performing clinical functions. Once the clinical functions are complete, the user can initiate the update without waiting for the update data to be downloaded.
At block 624, the connectivity adapter 206 can open the local URL stream. At block 626, the connectivity adapter 206 can stagger streaming of the blocks of update data via the local URL. The connectivity adapter 206 can stagger the update data in blocks by independently responding to requests from the group of infusion pumps 204. For example, infusion pump 204A can be downloading block five and infusion pump 204B can be downloading block seven from the local URL cache 302, while the connectivity adapter 206 can be downloading block ten from the cloud URL.
As described above at block 630, the connectivity adapter 206 can stagger update notifications to the infusion pumps 204. For example, if 100 infusion pumps 204 are scheduled to receive an update, the connectivity adapter 206 may only notify 50 infusion pumps 204 and as individual update downloads complete new updates are scheduled for the remaining infusion pumps 204.
The infusion pumps 204 can also include functionality to avoid network slowdowns. The infusion pumps 204 can check within its memory 322 to determine whether the available update is already there. If the update is available, the infusion pump 204 may not request the update. The infusion pump 204 can check within its communication engine 204, for example, to determine whether another update is already pending. If another update is pending, the infusion pump 204 may not request the update. The system 600 may not permit a drug library update and an operational software update to occur at the same or near to the same time.
The infusion pump 204 can utilize an exponential backoff procedure when requesting the update data from the connectivity adapter 206. For example, when the request from the infusion pump 204 for the update data is unfilled or ignored, the infusion pump 204 can re-request the update data according to a process, such as an exponential backoff process to prevent network congestion. In an exponential backoff process, the rate at which the infusion pump 204 sends the re-requests can be decreased gradually in order to find an acceptable request rate. The infusion pump 204 can re-request the update data randomly to prevent network congestion.
At block 628, the infusion pump 204 can receive and store the blocks of update data in the memory 322. As discussed above, the update data can be an updated or new drug library, updated operational software for the infusion pump 204, which may include one or more of application software, language packs, security updates, and device configuration, digital certificates, and/or the like.
The infusion pump 204 can initiate the request to the connectivity adapter 206 for update data, such as an updated drug library, without being notified of an available update. For example, the infusion pump 204 can send a request to the connectivity adapter 206 for a known missing drug library, or to ask if an update is available. The connectivity adapter 206 can store a plurality of drug libraries, including historical versions of drug libraries.
With reference to
At block 702, the connectivity adapter 206 can receive the drug library update message 310 or the infusion pump operational software update message 312.
The connectivity adapter 206 can notify the infusion pumps 204 that an update is available at the local URL. The connectivity adapter 206 can send a drug library update message 314 or a software update message 316 over the local message channel associated with the local network. The connectivity adapter 206 can stagger notifying the infusion pumps 204 by notifying a portion of the selected infusion pumps 204 and notifying subsequent portion of the selected infusion pumps 204 as individual update downloads complete.
At block 704, the connectivity adapter 206 can receive request(s) from the infusion pump(s) 204 for the update data at the local URL.
At block 706, the connectivity adapter 206 can receive the cloud URL from the DFM 408. The cloud URL can have an expiration time.
At block 708, the connectivity adapter 206 can assign a local URL. The connectivity adapter 206 can create the local URL. At block 710, the connectivity adapter 206 can map the cloud URL to the local URL.
At block 712, the connectivity adapter 206 can determine whether the cloud URL has expired. If the cloud URL is active, the process 700 can move to block 716.
If the cloud URL has expired, the process can move to block 714. At block 714, the connectivity adapter 206 can request that the DFM 408 rebuild the cloud URL. The DFM can determine a new cloud URL and can send the new cloud URL to the connectivity adapter 206. The process 700 can move to block 704 and repeat blocks 704-712 for the new cloud URL.
At block 716, the connectivity adapter 206 can open the cloud URL stream and at block 718, can cache the blocks of update data from the URL stream over the cloud data channel associated with the network 104.
At block 720, in response to receiving requests for the update data from the infusion pumps 204, the connectivity adapter 206 can open the local URL stream. At block 722, the connectivity adapter 206 can stream blocks of update data to staggered groups of infusion pumps 204. The blocks of update data can be streamed over the local data channel to the infusion pumps 204. Staggering can be performed in a variety of ways. For example, the connectivity adapter 206 can stream blocks of data in parallel to a small group of infusion pumps 204. If the infusion pump's initial request for data is rejected or ignored, the infusion pumps 204 can re-request the update data at a rate as determined by an exponential backoff process.
As described above, the updates can include operational software updates or drug library updates. The receiving and storing of the blocks of update data can occur in the background when the infusion pump 204 is operating. However, the installation and running of the updates can occur under controlled conditions, such as when the infusion pump 204 is not being used to infuse medication to patients.
With reference to
At block 802, the infusion pump 204 can receive an update message 314, 316 from the connectivity adapter 206. At block 804, the infusion pump 204 can receive the local URL from the connectivity adapter 206. At block 806, the infusion pump 204 can request the update data at the local URL from the connectivity adapter 206. At block 810, the infusion pump 204 can receive blocks of the update data over the local data channel and can store in the memory 322 the blocks of update data received from the connectivity adapter 206.
At block 812, the infusion pump 204 can determine whether the update comprises a drug library update or an operational software update. The update available message received from the connectivity adapter 206 can include information as to the type of update, such as an operational software update or a data library update.
When the update is a drug library update, the process 800 can move to block 814. At block 814, the infusion pump 204 can display on its display a message to the user that a drug library update is available. Upon power down, the infusion pump 204 can displays the message that a drug library is available and can provide a user prompt (yes/no) to accept or decline the drug library update. The user may decline updating the drug library for a predetermined number of attempts. The drug library update can occur automatically upon power down of the infusion pump 204.
At block 816, the infusion pump 204 can receive the user input to install the drug library and at block 818, the infusion pump can install the drug library. The drug library may be available after a reboot of the infusion pump 204.
When the update is an operational software update, the process 800 can move to block 820. At block 820, the infusion pump 204 can display on its display a message to the user that an operational software update is available. Upon power down, the infusion pump 204 can display the message that operational software update is available and can provide a user prompt to request the update. The user may decline updating the operational software for a predetermined number of attempts. The operational software update can occur automatically upon power down of the infusion pump 204. The user can initiate the operational software update when the infusion pump 204 is operating in a clinical mode. The infusion pump 204 can enter a non-clinical operational mode before the user can initiate an operational software update. The infusion pump 204 can enter a non-clinical operational mode before the user can initiate an operational software update. The non-clinical operational mode can be referred to as the Biomed mode.
It may be desirable that the infusion pump 204 not be in clinical use when the operational software is updated. At block 822, the infusion pump 204 can receive the user performed action(s). For example, the user can enter “Biomed” mode using proper credentials before performing the software update operation.
At block 824, the infusion pump 204 can install the operational software update and at block 828, the infusion pump 204 can reboot.
Connectivity adapters that are responding too slowly can affect the overall performance of the system 100. Further, the communication between the connectivity adapter 206 and the infusion pumps 204 can be important to provide the infusion pumps 204 with revised operating software and updated drug libraries. Improperly operating connectivity adapters 206 can over fill queues and utilize additional computing time. It can be important to monitor the health of the connectivity adapters 206 and correct any problems to reduce computing time and memory usage.
With reference to
Each microservice 308 can perform a function or service associated with the operation of the connectivity adapter 206 and can monitor the performance of that function or service. For example, a microservice 308 can operate and monitor the outbound message queue 334 of the connectivity adapter 206. The microservice 308 associated with the outbound message queue 334 can receive the outbound message, write the message to the outbound message queue 334, set up the communication with the DFM 408 or the infusion pump 204, and send the message. The microservice 308 associated with the outbound message queue 334 may also monitor the latency, determine, based on a received acknowledgement, how long the outgoing message took to be received, keep track of the size of the outbound message queue 334, and the like.
Other examples of microservices 308 associated with the operation of the connectivity adapter 206 can be, but not limited to, resource manager to manage the connectivity adapter resources, device status service to manage the connectivity adapter status, drug library service to manage the drug libraries stored at the connectivity adapter 206, and configuration manager to manage the configuration of the connectivity adapter. The microservices 308 can also monitor parameters associated with their functionality, such as, but not limited to the average message rate, the spike message rate, the response rate for messages from the DFM 408, the response rate for messages from the infusion pumps 204, the length of message queues 332, 334, latency, CPU load, disk space, available memory, the amount of memory used, bandwidth, error levels, and the like.
The request-driven system 900 illustrated in
The process of checking the status or health of connectivity adapters 206 performed by the system 900 illustrates example algorithm(s) that may be programmed, using any suitable programming environment or language, to create machine code capable of execution by a CPU or microcontroller. Various embodiments may be coded using assembly, C, OBJECTIVE-C, C++, JAVA, or other human-readable languages and then compiled, assembled, or otherwise transformed into machine code that can be loaded into read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), or other recordable memory that is coupled to the CPU or microcontroller and then then executed by the CPU or microcontroller. For example, when the process of checking the status or health of connectivity adapters 206 is initiated, a set of executable program instructions stored on one or more non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., hard drive, flash memory, removable media, etc.) may be loaded into memory (e.g., random access memory or “RAM”) of a computing device of the clinical environment 102 and/or the cloud environment 106. The executable instructions may then be executed by a hardware-based computer processor (e.g., a central processing unit or “CPU”) of the computing device. The process of checking the status or health of connectivity adapters 206 or portions thereof may be implemented on multiple processors, serially or in parallel.
At block 902, the CM 410 can receive an indication of the user's request for the current status of the connectivity adapters 206. At block 904, the CM 410 can send the request for the current status of the connectivity adapters to the DFM 408. At block 906, the DFM 408 can receive the request from the CM 410 and can send a request for the monitored parameters, such as the health request message 506 to the connectivity adapters 206. The DFM 408 can send the health request message 506 to each of the connectivity adapters 204 within the clinical environment 102. The DFM 408 can send the health request message 506 to a subset of connectivity adapters 206 that are specified in the user request.
At block 908, the DSM 330 of the connectivity adapter 206 can receive the request for the parameters, such as the health request message 326, and can internally request the monitored parameters from the microservices 308 operating within the connectivity adapter 206. At block 910, each of the microservices 308 can receive the parameter request and can send the parameter information to the DSM 330.
At block 912, the DSM 330 can receive the parameter information from the microservices 308 and can send one or more status messages with the parameter information, such as the health status message 328 to the DFM 408. The DSM 330 can receive the parameter information from the microservices 308 and can combine the parameter information into a single status message 328. The DSM 330 can use the general data set message format and can format the parameter information into a general data set message. The DSM 330 can send multiple status messages 328 to the DFM 408, where each of the multiple status messages 328 can include information from one or more parameters.
At block 914, the DFM 408 can receive the one or more status messages from the connectivity adapters 206 and can send the status messages to the CM 410. At block 916, the CM 410 can receive the status messages. At block 910, the cloud environment 106 can analyze and report the status of the connectivity adapters 206 to the user. The user can receive an email, a SMS message, or the like, from the cloud environment 106.
The CM 410 can report the parameters to the user. The CM 410 can analyze the parameters and report the status of the connectivity adapters 206 to the user. For example, if the parameters are within a threshold, the CM 410 can report the status as “healthy”, and if one or more parameters are greater than a threshold, the CM 410 can report the status as “not healthy”. The threshold can be a numerical value for the monitored parameter or the threshold can be an event threshold indicating a number of events occurring for the monitored parameter.
With reference to
The self-reporting system illustrated in
At block 952, the microservices 308 can be monitoring their associated parameters and one or more of the monitored parameters can exceed a threshold. At block 954, the microservices 308 associated with the one or more parameters that have exceeded the threshold can send the parameter information for the one or more parameters to the DSM 330. At block 956, the DSM 330 can determine the status of the connectivity adapter 206 based at least in part on the monitored parameters. At block 958, the DSM 330 can send a status message, such as the health status message 328, with the parameter information of the one or more the microservices 308.
For example, the connectivity adapter 206 can include a configuration file with the thresholds for the monitored parameters. The microservices 308 can query the configuration file. When the threshold for a monitored parameter is met, the DSM 330 can be notified to send a status message to the DFM 408.
The DSM 408 can receive the parameter information from the microservices 308 and combine the parameter information into a single status message 328. The DSM 330 can use the general data set message format and formats the parameter information into a general data set message. The DSM can send individual status messages 328 when an event threshold is triggered.
To control sending status messages when the parameter is fluctuating around the threshold, the DSM 330 can monitor the status messages 328 and discard status messages 328 if a recently sent message is being repeated. This can avoid sending a plurality of messages for the same error in a short time, which can slow the network down. For example, if the threshold is 79 and the parameter is fluctuating between 78 and 80, the DSM 330 can wait an amount of time before sending another status message 328 for that parameter. The DSM 330 can wait until a number of status messages for the same parameter occur before sending the message 328 to the DFM 408.
The DSM 330 can reset the microservice 308 that has reported parameters meeting or exceeding a threshold. This can occur before sending the status message 328 to the DFM 408 or after sending the status message 328 to the DFM 408. The connectivity adapter 206 can reset itself when the parameter information indicates that one or more parameter thresholds are met or exceeded.
At block 960, the DFM 408 can receive the status message from the DSM 330 of the connectivity adapter 206 and can send a status message with the status of the connectivity adapter 206 to the CM 410. At block 962, the CM 410 can receive the status message. At block 964, the CM 410 can report the parameter information to the user. The CM 410 can analyze and report the parameter information to the user. The user can receive an email, a SMS message, or the like, from the CM 410.
Once poor performance of the connectivity adapter is detected, the connectivity adapter or the cloud server, or both the connectivity adapter and the cloud server can automatically perform tasks in response to the detected parameters exceeding a threshold. For example, the connectivity adapter can reset itself, the cloud server can cause the connectivity adapter to reset. The cloud server can include an algorithm that when tripped by detected poor performance of the connectivity adapter, can send a signal or message to the connectivity adapter to reboot, which may correct the issue. Another automated task may be to send an email when disk space is running low. Additionally, the CA could reset itself when certain thresholds are triggered. Once the number of connected devices exceeds a threshold, the connectivity adapter can send a notification to the cloud server and the connectivity adapter can begin to reject connections from new devices. In another example, if the queue size exceeds a threshold, the system begins to disconnect connected devices until the queue is restored to a level below the threshold.
A system can be configured to provide update data to a plurality of infusion pumps within a clinical environment. The system can comprise a plurality of infusion pumps configured to deliver medication to one or more patients, where each respective infusion pump of the plurality of infusion pumps can comprise a memory configured to store operational software and one or more drug libraries; an asset lifecycle manager comprising computer hardware and can be configured to receive user input comprising update information that includes at least a location of update data, the update data being one of an operational software update and a drug library update; a data flow manager comprising computer hardware and configured to receive an update notification and a cloud URL associated with the location of the update data from the asset lifecycle manager; and a connectivity adapter comprising computer hardware and memory configured to store at least the update data.
The connectivity adapter can in communication with the plurality of infusion pumps over a first network within a clinical environment and the connectivity adapter can be further in communication with the data flow manager over a second network outside of the clinical environment. The connectivity adapter can be configured to receive the update notification and the cloud URL from the data flow manager over a first communication channel of the second network; map the cloud URL to a local URL; open a stream to receive the update data stored at the cloud URL, the update data can be received over a second communication channel of the second network; cache blocks of the update data in the connectivity adapter memory that is associated with the local URL; receive a request from at least one infusion pump of the plurality of infusion pumps over a first communication channel of the first network for the update data at the local URL; and stagger streaming blocks of the update data to the at least one infusion pump over a second communication channel of the first network.
The connectivity adapter can be further configured to send the update notification and the local URL associated with the location of the update data to at least a portion of the plurality of infusion pumps. The update information can further include a schedule indicating when the update data is available. The cloud URL can be accessible for a duration of time.
Staggering streaming blocks of update data can comprise streaming blocks of update data in parallel to staggered groups of the one or more infusion pumps. The one or more infusion pumps can be further configured to re-request the update data until the update data is sent, a frequency of re-requests occurring according to an exponential backoff process. The one or more infusion pumps can be further configured to determine whether the memory associated with the respective infusion pump of the one or more infusion pumps includes the update data prior to requesting the update data. For example, if the infusion pump 204 has the operational software update stored in memory 322, the infusion pump 204 does not need to download the update from the connectivity adapter 204. The CE 324 can update the MCU 326 with the update data stored in the memory 322.
The connectivity adapter can be further configured to send status parameters associated with microservices operating within the connectivity adapter. The connectivity adapter can be further configured to receive a request for status, and in response to the request for status, can send status parameters associated with microservices operating within the connectivity adapter. The connectivity adapter can be further configured to send status parameters associated with microservices operating within the connectivity adapter when at least one status parameter exceeds a threshold.
A method can provide update data to a plurality of infusion pumps within a clinical environment. The method can comprise receiving user input comprising update information that includes at least a location of update data in a cloud environment, where the update data being one of an operational software update and a drug library update, and where the location of the update data in the cloud environment associated with a cloud URL; receiving an update notification responsive to the user input and receiving the cloud URL over a first communication channel of a network associated with the cloud environment; and mapping the cloud URL to a local URL; opening a stream to receive the update data stored at the cloud URL, where the update data received over a second communication channel of the network associated with the cloud environment;
The method can further comprise caching blocks of the update data in memory that is associated with the local URL; receiving a request for the update data at the local URL from at least one infusion pump of a plurality of infusion pumps over a first communication channel of a network associated with a clinical environment. The plurality of infusion pumps can be configured to deliver medication to one or more patients. Each respective infusion pump of the plurality of infusion pumps can comprise a memory configured to store operational software and one or more drug libraries. The method can further comprise staggering streaming blocks of the update data to the at least one infusion pump over a second communication channel of network associated with the clinical environment.
Embodiments of the present disclosure can be defined by the following non-limiting clauses:
Clause 1. A system configured to provide update data to a plurality of infusion pumps configured to deliver medication to one or more patients within a clinical environment, each infusion pump of the plurality of infusion pumps comprising memory configured to store operational software and one or more drug libraries, the system comprising:
Clause 2. The system of Clause 1 wherein the stored blocks of data are stored in cache memory.
Clause 3. The system of Clause 1 wherein the update data is at least one of an operational software update and a drug library update.
Clause 4. The system of Clause 1 wherein the first location corresponds to a cloud URL and the second location corresponds to a local URL, the apparatus further configured to map the cloud URL to the local URL.
Clause 5. The system of Clause 4 wherein the cloud URL is a temporary URL having a defined lifetime.
Clause 6. The system of Clause 4 wherein the plurality of infusion pumps do not have network access to the cloud URL, the local URL providing access to the update data.
Clause 7. The system of Clause 1 wherein the first location is a temporary location having a defined lifetime.
Clause 8. The system of Clause 1 wherein the apparatus is further configured to, in response to receiving a request for the update data, open a local URL stream.
Clause 9. The system of Clause 1 wherein the apparatus is further configured to notify at least a portion of the one or more infusion pumps that the update data is available.
Clause 10. The system of Clause 8 wherein the user input further includes filter information, and wherein the apparatus is further configured to determine at least a portion of the one or more infusion pumps based at least in part of the filter information.
Clause 11. The system of Clause 9 wherein the filter information includes at least one of an indication of a specific infusion pump, an indication of a specific version of an infusion pump, or an indication of a specific facility.
Clause 12. The system of Clause 1 wherein the user input further includes a schedule indicating when the update data is available.
Clause 13. A method to provide update data to a plurality of infusion pumps that are configured to deliver medication to one or more patients within a clinical environment, each infusion pump of the plurality of infusion pumps comprising memory configured to store operational software and one or more drug libraries, the method comprising:
Clause 14. The method of Clause 13 wherein the user input further includes a schedule indicating when the update data is available.
Clause 15. The method of Clause 12 wherein the apparatus is further configured to notify at least a portion of the one or more infusion pumps that the update data is available.
Clause 16. The method of Clause 15 wherein the user input further includes filter information, and wherein the apparatus is further configured to determine at least a portion of the one or more infusion pumps based at least in part of the filter information.
Clause 17. The method of Clause 16 wherein the filter information includes at least one of an indication of a specific infusion pump, an indication of a specific version of an infusion pump, or an indication of a specific facility.
Clause 18. A method to provide update data to a plurality of infusion pumps that are configured to deliver medication to one or more patients within a clinical environment, each infusion pump of the plurality of infusion pumps comprising memory configured to store operational software and one or more drug libraries, the method comprising:
Clause 19. The method of Clause 18 wherein the first location corresponds to a cloud URL and the second location corresponds to a local URL, the apparatus further configured to map the cloud URL to the local URL.
Clause 20. The system of Clause 19 wherein the cloud URL is a temporary URL having a defined lifetime.
Clause 21. The system of Clause 10 wherein the plurality of infusion pumps do not have network access to the cloud URL, the local URL providing access to the update data.
Clause 22. The system of Clause 18 wherein the first location is a temporary location having a defined lifetime.
Clause 23. An apparatus to provide update data to a plurality of infusion pumps that are configured to deliver medication to one or more patients within a clinical environment, each infusion pump of the plurality of infusion pumps comprising memory configured to store operational software and one or more drug libraries, the apparatus comprising:
Clause 24. The apparatus of Clause 23 wherein the stored blocks of data are stored in cache memory.
Clause 25. The apparatus of Clause 23 wherein the update data is at least one of an operational software update and a drug library update.
Clause 26. A system configured to provide update data to a plurality of infusion pumps within a clinical environment, the system comprising:
Clause 27. The system of Clause 26 wherein the stored blocks of data are stored in cache memory.
Clause 28. The system of Clause 26 wherein the update data is at least one of an operational software update and a drug library update.
Clause 29. The system of Clause 26 wherein the apparatus is further configured to, in response to receiving the request for the update data, open a local URL stream.
Clause 30. The system of Clause 26 wherein the apparatus is further configured to notify the one or more infusion pumps that the update data is available.
Clause 31. The system of Clause 30 wherein the apparatus is further configured to determine the one or more infusion pumps based at least in part on filter information.
Clause 32. The system of Clause 31 wherein the filter information includes at least one of an indication of a specific infusion pump, an indication of a specific version of an infusion pump, or an indication of a specific facility.
Clause 33. The system of Clause 26 wherein said streaming the stored blocks of update data to the portion of requesting infusion pumps comprises staggering the streaming of blocks of update data to the portion of requesting infusion pumps.
Clause 34. The system of Clause 33 wherein staggering the streaming of blocks of update data to the portion of requesting infusion pumps comprises streaming blocks of update data in parallel to staggered groups of the portion of requesting infusion pumps.
Clause 35. The system of Clause 26 wherein the one or more infusion pumps are further configured to re-request the update data until the update data is sent, a frequency of re-requests occurring according to an exponential backoff process.
Clause 36. The system of Clause 26 wherein the one or more infusion pumps are configured to determine whether the memory associated with the respective infusion pump of the one or more infusion pumps includes the update data prior to requesting the update data.
Clause 37. A method to provide update data to a plurality of infusion pumps configured to deliver medication to one or more patients within a clinical environment, each infusion pump of the plurality of infusion pumps comprising memory configured to store operational software and one or more drug libraries, the method comprising:
Clause 38. The method of Clause 37 wherein the stored blocks of data are stored in cache memory.
Clause 39. The system of Clause 37 wherein the update data is at least one of an operational software update and a drug library update.
Clause 40. An apparatus to provide update data to a plurality of infusion pumps configured to deliver medication to one or more patients within a clinical environment, each infusion pump of the plurality of infusion pumps comprising memory configured to store operational software and one or more drug libraries, the apparatus comprising:
Clause 41. The apparatus of Clause 40 wherein the apparatus is further configured to, in response to receiving the request for the update data, open a local URL stream.
Clause 42. The apparatus of Clause 40 wherein the apparatus is further configured to notify the one or more infusion pumps that the update data is available.
Clause 43. The apparatus of Clause 42 wherein the apparatus is further configured to determine the one or more infusion pumps based at least in part on filter information.
Clause 44. The apparatus of Clause 43 wherein the filter information includes at least one of an indication of a specific infusion pump, an indication of a specific version of an infusion pump, or an indication of a specific facility.
Clause 45. An apparatus configured to receive operational software updates and drug library updates from a server and to communicate the operational software updates and drug library updates to a plurality of infusion pumps that deliver medication to one or more patients within a clinical environment, the apparatus further configured to determine communication performance quality of the apparatus, the apparatus comprising:
Clause 46. The apparatus of Clause 45 wherein the instructions further configure the apparatus to transmit the formatted message to the server only after a predetermined number parameters exceed their respective thresholds.
Clause 47. The apparatus of Clause 45 wherein the plurality of parameters include at least one of a queue size, latency, memory size, disk space, an indication of a number of connected devices, or CPU time.
Clause 48. The apparatus of Clause 45 wherein each microservice of the one or more microservices is configured to create containers of unstructured data associated with a monitored parameter of the plurality of parameters.
Clause 49. The apparatus of Clause 45 wherein the server is configured to receive a request from a user for a status of the apparatus.
Clause 50. The apparatus of Clause 45 wherein the server is configured to receive a request from a user for a status of the apparatus, and in response to receiving the request, transmit over the network to the apparatus, a request for status of at least one parameter of the plurality of parameters.
Clause 51. The apparatus of Clause 45 wherein the server is configured to receive and analyze the transmitted message.
Clause 52. The apparatus of Clause 51 wherein the server is further configured to report the analysis to a user.
Clause 53. The apparatus of Clause 51 wherein the server is further configured to automatically cause a reboot based on the analysis.
Clause 54. The apparatus of Clause 45 wherein the server is configured to cause the at least one respective microservice to reset.
Clause 55. A method to verify performance quality of an apparatus configured to communicate operational software updates and drug library updates from a server to a plurality of infusion pumps that deliver medication to one or more patients within a clinical environment, the method comprising:
Clause 56. The method of Clause 55 wherein the plurality of parameters include at least one of a queue size, latency, memory size, disk space, an indication of a number of connected devices, or CPU time.
Clause 57. The method of Clause 55 wherein each microservice of the one or more microservices is configured to create containers of unstructured data associated with a monitored parameter of the plurality of parameters.
Clause 58. The method of Clause 55 wherein the server is configured to receive a request from a user for a status of the apparatus.
Clause 59. The method of Clause 55 wherein the server is configured to receive a request from a user for a status of the apparatus, and in response to receiving the request, transmit over the network to the apparatus, a request for status of at least one parameter of the plurality of parameters.
Clause 60. The method of Clause 55 wherein the server is configured to receive and analyze the transmitted message.
Clause 61. The method of Clause 60 wherein the server is further configured to report the analysis to a user.
Clause 62. The method of Clause 60 wherein the server is further configured to automatically cause a reboot based on the analysis.
Clause 63. The method of Clause 55 wherein the server is configured to cause the at least one respective microservice to reset.
Clause 64. The method of claim 55 wherein the apparatus is configured to cause the at least one respective microservice to reset.
It is to be understood that not necessarily all objects or advantages may be achieved in accordance with any particular embodiment described herein. Thus, for example, those skilled in the art will recognize that certain embodiments may be configured to operate in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving other objects or advantages as may be taught or suggested herein.
Many other variations than those described herein will be apparent from this disclosure. For example, depending on the embodiment, certain acts, events, or functions of any of the algorithms described herein can be performed in a different sequence, can be added, merged, or left out altogether (e.g., not all described acts or events are necessary for the practice of the algorithms). Moreover, in certain embodiments, acts or events can be performed concurrently, e.g., through multi-threaded processing, interrupt processing, or multiple processors or processor cores or on other parallel architectures, rather than sequentially. In addition, different tasks or processes can be performed by different machines and/or computing systems that can function together.
The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, and algorithm elements described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinations of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, and elements have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. The described functionality can be implemented in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the disclosure.
The various illustrative logical blocks and modules described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented or performed by a machine, such as a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor can be a controller, microcontroller, or state machine, combinations of the same, or the like. A processor can include electrical circuitry configured to process computer-executable instructions. In another embodiment, a processor includes an FPGA or other programmable device that performs logic operations without processing computer-executable instructions. A processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration. Although described herein primarily with respect to digital technology, a processor may also include primarily analog components. For example, some or all of the signal processing algorithms described herein may be implemented in analog circuitry or mixed analog and digital circuitry. A computing environment can include any type of computer system, including, but not limited to, a computer system based on a microprocessor, a mainframe computer, a digital signal processor, a portable computing device, a device controller, or a computational engine within an appliance, to name a few.
The elements of a method, process, or algorithm described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module stored in one or more memory devices and executed by one or more processors, or in a combination of the two. A software module can reside in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, media, or physical computer storage known in the art. An example storage medium can be coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium can be integral to the processor. The storage medium can be volatile or nonvolatile. The processor and the storage medium can reside in an ASIC. The ASIC can reside in a user terminal. In the alternative, the processor and the storage medium can reside as discrete components in a user terminal.
Conditional language used herein, such as, among others, “can,” “might,” “may,” “e.g.,” and the like, unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certain embodiments include, while other embodiments do not include, certain features, elements, and/or states. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements and/or states are in any way required for one or more embodiments or that one or more embodiments necessarily include logic for deciding, with or without author input or prompting, whether these features, elements and/or states are included or are to be performed in any particular embodiment. The terms “comprising,” “including,” “having,” and the like are synonymous and are used inclusively, in an open-ended fashion, and do not exclude additional elements, features, acts, operations, and so forth. Also, the term “or” is used in its inclusive sense (and not in its exclusive sense) so that when used, for example, to connect a list of elements, the term “or” means one, some, or all of the elements in the list. Further, the term “each,” as used herein, in addition to having its ordinary meaning, can mean any subset of a set of elements to which the term “each” is applied.
Disjunctive language such as the phrase “at least one of X, Y, or Z,” unless specifically stated otherwise, is otherwise understood with the context as used in general to present that an item, term, etc., may be either X, Y, or Z, or any combination thereof (e.g., X, Y, and/or Z). Thus, such disjunctive language is not generally intended to, and should not, imply that certain embodiments require at least one of X, at least one of Y, or at least one of Z to each be present.
Unless otherwise explicitly stated, articles such as “a”, “an”, or “the” should generally be interpreted to include one or more described items. Accordingly, phrases such as “a device configured to” are intended to include one or more recited devices. Such one or more recited devices can also be collectively configured to carry out the stated recitations. For example, “a processor configured to carry out recitations A, B, and C” can include a first processor configured to carry out recitation A working in conjunction with a second processor configured to carry out recitations B and C.
While the above detailed description has shown, described, and pointed out novel features as applied to various embodiments, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form and details of the devices or algorithms illustrated can be made without departing from the spirit of the disclosure. As will be recognized, certain embodiments described herein can be implemented within a form that does not provide all of the features and benefits set forth herein, as some features can be used or practiced separately from others. All such modifications and variations are intended to be included herein within the scope of this disclosure. Further, additional embodiments created by combining any two or more features or techniques of one or more embodiments described herein are also intended to be included herein within the scope of this disclosure.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62699454 | Jul 2018 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | PCT/US2019/041705 | Jul 2019 | US |
| Child | 16512090 | US |
