Surgery – Diagnostic testing
Reexamination Certificate
2000-11-17
2003-09-16
Winakur, Eric F. (Department: 3736)
Surgery
Diagnostic testing
C128S904000, C348S014060
Reexamination Certificate
active
06620099
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a home care system in which a center terminal and a patient terminal are detachably connected to each other through communication lines, such as a public telephone line, ISDN (integrated services digital network), CATV (cable television), radio and the like, and further to center terminals and patient terminals which constitute such a home care system.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, a home care service capable of practicing care such as rehabilitation at home is noticed in view of the fact that national medical expenses are reduced and patient's comfortability is advanced. There has been made such an attempt that patient's homes and a home care center such as a hospital and a door-to-door nurse station are connected through visual communication lines such as a video telephone line and CATV so that the patient's care is conducted communications between the home care center and the patients.
However, according to the conventional attempt, the general visual communication terminals are appropriated without any changes, and there are not almost considered a facility of the application of the home care center, a facility of the use of the patient terminals and the like. In order to push forward with the home care service utilizing the visual communication terminals, there is a need to construct a home care system sufficiently taking into consideration such application of the home care center, a facility of the use of the terminals and the like.
The conventional home care system involves, for example, the following problems.
(1) In the home care system utilizing the general visual communication terminals, even when a call occurs in an emergency from a patient, it is impossible to grasp the state of the patient, if the center is “busy” on another line.
(2) In the home care system utilizing the general visual communication terminals, it is impossible to automatically access to the patient terminal and to automatically upload data in the patient terminal.
(3) Hitherto, it is a current situation that newcomers learn measures in the care spot from a veteran public health nurse. Consequently, it would be difficult to efficiently educate competent persons who are available in the spot.
(4) In the home care system utilizing the general visual communication terminals, if a patient's room is dark, it would be difficult to clearly see the patient's expression. Further, in the patient terminal, even if it is desired to record an instruction from the home care center, there is frequent such a case that a patient is a person of advanced age or a patient is not familiar with the operation of the equipment, and thus it would be difficult for the patient to perform an operation for recording.
There are made some proposals to solve the above-mentioned problems on the conventional home care system (refer to, for example, Japanese patent application serial No. 144093/1993 and Japanese patent application serial No. 336435/1993). However, there is not yet proposed a satisfactory means of solving the above-mentioned problems.
In view of the foregoing, it is an object to provide a home care system taking into consideration the application of the system and a facility of the use of the terminals, and further center terminals and patient terminals which constitute such a home care system.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The first home care system according to the present invention, which attains the above-mentioned object, is characterized in that at least one center terminal and patient terminals are disconnectably connected to each other via a communication line through which communications of data including image data are performed. The patient terminal has an urgency transmitting unit transmitting a predetermined urgency code to said center terminal. The center terminal comprises an urgency receiving unit receiving, while connected to a first patient terminal, the urgency code transmitted from a second patient terminal, and an urgency alarm unit informing of the fact that the urgency code has been received.
It is characterized in that the patient terminal in the first home care system has the urgency transmitting unit transmitting a predetermined urgency code to the center terminal.
Further, it is characterized in that the center terminal in the first home care system comprises; urgency receiving unit receiving, while connected to a first patient terminal, the urgency code transmitted from a second patient terminal, and an urgency alarm unit informing of the fact that the urgency code has been received.
While the urgency alarm unit is to inform of the fact that the urgency code is received, typically through performing a predetermined display on a display screen, it is acceptable to inform of receipt of the urgency code by means of informing means other than the display on the screen, for example, a voice, turn-on of the lamp, turning on and off a light or the like.
Further, in the first home care system according to the present invention, it is preferable that the urgency transmitting unit and the urgency receiving unit transmit and receive an address code to identify the patient terminal together with a predetermined urgency code, respectively. In addition, the urgency alarm unit has a registration table in which there are registered the address code of the patient and a name for specifying the patient registered in association with the patient terminal in a corresponding relation, patient identification means for referring to the registration table to identify a name for specifying the patient associated with the address code transmitted, and a patient display unit displaying the name for specifying the patient, which is identified by the patient identification unit.
In this aspect, it is characterized in that in the patient terminal the urgency transmitting unit transmits an address code to identify the patient terminal together with a predetermined urgency code.
Further, in this aspect, it is characterized in that in the center terminal the urgency receiving unit receives an address code to identify the patient terminal together with a predetermined urgency code, and the urgency alarm unit has a registration table in which there are registered the address code of the patient and a name for specifying the patient registered in association with the patient terminal in a corresponding relation, patient identification unit for referring to the registration table to identify a name for specifying the patient associated with the address code transmitted, and a patient display unit displaying the name for specifying the patient, which is identified by said patient identification means.
While the term “address code” implies typically a telephone number, it is not restricted to the telephone number. The address code may also imply a subscriber's number in a communication line which couples only the specified subscribers with each other, or an Ib number in a communication line involved in a rural network.
Further, while the term “name for specifying the patient” implies typically the patient's name, it is not restricted to the patient's name. Such a name may also imply the patient' nickname, an ID number or the like.
In the first home care system according to the present invention, it is a preferable aspect to arrange the system in such a manner that said patient terminal has a predetermined urgency handler, and the urgency transmitting unit transmits to said center terminal, in response to an operation of said urgency handler, an urgency code representative of the most urgent situation among a plurality of urgency codes each representative of an associated urgency priority.
Further, in the first home care system according to the present invention, it is also an preferable aspect to arrange the system in such a manner that said patient terminal has an urgency priority deciding unit deciding through a question an urgency priority of connecting said patient terminal with sai
Iwata Minoru
Koike Junichi
Koshino Nagaaki
Mori Satoshi
Murakami Keiichi
McCrosky David J.
Staas & Halsey , LLP
Winakur Eric F.
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