Cardiovascular test station pressurometer interface system

Claim 2

A pressurometer interface circuit operative to provide patient diastolic and systolic pressure data from a pressurometer of the type having a cyclically inflatable cuff and a plurality of bilevel signals, each associated with a particular cuff pressure, and being in one of the two levels in response to the presence of Korotkoff sounds at the corresponding cuff pressure and in the second of the two levels in response to the absence of Korotkoff sounds at the corresponding pressure, said interface circuit comprising: means for receiving said plurality of bilevel signals; means for sequentially sampling the level of each of said received bilevel signals to provide a sequence of sampled signals each representing a corresponding bilevel signal; said sampling means including means for providing an indication of which of said bilevel signals is sampled; means for detecting a difference in signal level of adjacent signals in said sequence of sampled signals; and means responsive to detection of a difference in signal level for generating an address signal in serial bit form to represent the sampled, adjacent bilevel signals detected as different, thereby to provide output indicia of said patient diastolic and systolic pressure data.

Claim 3

The pressurometer interface circuit of claim 1 further comprising: means for adjusting the signal level of said received plurality of bilevel signals to a predetermined range of levels compatible with said interface circuit.

Claim 4

The pressurometer interface circuit of claim 1 further including: means responsive to deflation of the pressurometer cuff for generating pulses coincident with patient Korotkoff sounds; and means responsive to cuff exhaustion for inhibiting the generation of said pulses and for enabling sampling by said sampling means of said plurality of bilevel signals.

Claim 5

In combination with a pressurometer interface circuit of the type claimed in claim 1 further apparatus including: means for transmitting said generated serial bit form address signal; a test station console for receiving said address signal; and a central computation facility in communication with said console for data processing of said address signal as received by said console to provide diastolic and systolic pressure data; said console, in association with said central computation facility, having means responsive to said diastolic and systolic pressure data from said central computation facility for displaying said data at said console; said console further having means for causing said central computation facility to record said diastolic and said systolic pressure data in response to activation thereof.

Claim 6

The apparatus and pressurometer interface circuit of claim 4 further including means for causing recycling of said interface and pressurometer for additional testing in response to activation thereof.

Claim 7

The pressurometer interface circuit of claim 1 wherein said sampling means further includes: a multiplexer system receiving said plurality of adjusted, bilevel signals at parallel inputs thereof; and a counter operating at a predetermined frequency to count through a predetermined number of steps; said multiplexer system operating in response to the counting of said counter to provide at an output of said multiplexer system said sequence of sampled signals; each step in the count of said counter causing said multiplexer to provide at the output thereof one signal of said sequence of sampled signals in correspondence with that step in the count.

Claim 8

The pressurometer interface circuit of claim 1 wherein said address signal generating means includes means for providing an indication in said address signal of the level of one said adjacent, different bilevel signals.

Claim 9

The pressurometer interface circuit of claim 1 wherein said sampling means includes means for providing a signal of a predetermined level in said sequence to indicate the end of said sequence.

Claim 10

An interface circuit operative in association with a blood pressurometer of the type having a blood flow restricting inflatable cuff cyclable through an inflate and deflate sequence and adapted to sense the Korotkoff sounds during at least a portion of the sequence, said pressurometer further including a plurality of two display state elements each associated with a particular pressure in a range of pressures for said cuff, said pressurometer adapted to cause each of said two state elements to change from a first display state to a second display state in response to the existence of said Korotkoff sounds at the corresponding pressure level of each said element during deflation of said cuff, said interface circuit comprising: means for sensing the state of each of said plurality of two state elements; means for developing a plurality of bilevel signals, each representative of the sensed state of a corresponding two state element; means for adjusting each said bilevel signal in signal level to a predetermined data logic scheme; multiplexer means for receiving each of said plurality of bilevel signals on one of a plurality of parallel inputs; a binary counter operative to count at a predetermined rate through a predetermined number of binary steps; said multiplexer means being operative in response to the count of said counter to provide as an output signal, a signal representative of the level of an input to said receiving means corresponding to the count of said counter in order to provide at the output of said multiplexer means a sequence of signals representative of the signal level at each of said plurality of parallel inputs to said multiplexer means; means for sampling and retaining for approximately one step of said coUnter each signal in said sequence of signals at the output of said multiplexer means; means for comparing each signal in the sequence of signals from said multiplexer means with the signal retained by said sampling and retaining means; said comparing means providing an indication of a difference between adjacent signals at the output of said multiplexer means; and means for generating a signal representative of the count of said binary counter coincidental with the indication by said comparing means of different adjacent signals in said sequence.

Claim 11

An interface circuit operative in association with a blood pressurometer of the type having a blood flow restricting inflatable cuff cyclable through an inflate and deflate sequence and adapted to sense the Korotkoff sounds during at least a portion of the sequence, said pressurometer further including a plurality of two display state elements each associated with a particular pressure in a range of pressures for said cuff, said pressurometer adapted to cause each of said two state elements to change from a first display state to a second display state in response to the existence of said Korotkoff sounds at the corresponding pressure level of each said element during deflation of said cuff, said interface circuit comprising: means for sensing the state of each of said plurality of two state elements; means for developing a plurality of bilevel signals, each representative of the sensed state of a corresponding two state element; means for adjusting each said bilevel signal in signal level to a predetermined data logic scheme; multiplexer means for receiving each of said plurality of bilevel signals on one of a plurality of parallel inputs; a binary counter operative to count at a predetermined rate through a predetermined number of binary steps; said multiplexer means being operative in response to the count of said counter to provide as an output signal, a signal representative of the level of an input to said receiving means corresponding to the count of said counter in order to provide at the output of said multiplexer means a sequence of signals representative of the signal level at each of said plurality of parallel inputs to said multiplexer means; means for sampling and retaining for approximately one step of said coUnter each signal in said sequence of signals at the output of said multiplexer means; means for comparing each signal in the sequence of signals from said multiplexer means with the signal retained by said sampling and retaining means; said comparing means providing an indication of a difference between adjacent signals at the output of said multiplexer means; and means for generating a signal representative of the count of said binary counter coincidental with the indication by said comparing means of different adjacent signals in said sequence.

Claim 12

The interface circuit of claim 9 further including: means for sensing Korotkoff sound signals from said pressurometer; means for producing a signal representative of said sensed Korotkoff sound signals; means for sensing the state of inflation of said cuff by said pressurometer; means for enabling the production of said signals representative of Korotkoff sound signals only during relatively noise free portions of an inflate-deflate cycle; and means for inhibiting said counter whenever said sensed cuff status indicates partial or complete cuff inflation; said counter being operative in response to said sensed cuff status to commence counting at a predetermined count whenever said cuff status signal indicates cuff exhaustion after an inflate-deflate cycle.

Claim 13

The interface circuit of claim 10 further including: means for indicating the inflation status of said cuff; means responsive to the indicated deflation of said cuff and the sensed Korotkoff sounds for producing patient pulse signals in serial bit form; and means for alternatively transmitting said generated and said produced signals.

Claim 14

The interface circuit of claim 9 wherein said generating means further includes: second multiplexer means for receiving the binary states of said counter; a second counter counting at a predetermined higher rate than the first mentioned counter; said second multiplexer means including means responsive to the count sequence of said second counter for providing as an output a sequence of signals representative of the binary states of said first counter as applied to said second multiplexer means.

Claim 15

The interface circuit of claim 9 further including means for causing said generating means to generate an end of sequence signal when said binary counter has counted through said predetermined number of binary steps.

Claim 16

The interface circuit of claim 9 having apparatus associated therewith including: a serial bit data link means for applying said generated signal to said data link; control means for recovering said generated signal from said data link and for applying a supervisory signal to said data link; said interface circuit including means for recovering said supervisory signal from said data link and for applying said recovered supervisory signal to control said binary counter; said control means having means for determining and displaying patient cardiovascular data in response to said recovered generated signal and further including means having first and second states to record said data in said first state and to enable, with said supervisory signal, said interface circuit to generate further signals in said second state.

Claim 17

The interface circuit and apparatus of claim 14 further including: a tonometer test unit; and an electrocardiograph test unit; means for interconnecting said units with said control means for processing received test information.