Adaptive alarm system and method

摘要

An adaptive-alarm system and its uses in the context of medical devices, such as patient monitors, are described. In one embodiment, the monitor has a processor configured to receive and analyze an input relating to ambient sounds. The monitor may generate an alarm signal in response to physiological data that meets a defined requirement, such as a physiological alarm condition. The alarm signal that is generated by the monitor is substantially free of masking by the ambient sounds.

主权项

1. A patient monitor, comprising:
a processor configured to generate a default alarm signal in response to patient physiological data indicative of an alarm condition, and configured to modify the default alarm signal to generate a new alarm signal in response to an ambient sounds input and patient physiological data indicative of the alarm condition, wherein the new alarm signal comprises a different frequency such that the new alarm signal has a different tone and/or pitch compared to the default alarm signal; and a user interface coupled to the processor and being operable to receive the new alarm signal generated by the processor and to provide a user-audible indication of the alarm condition, the user-audible indication being masked less by ambient sounds in an environment in which the patient monitor is located compared to the default alarm signal.