JP2010086054A - Device monitoring system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To restore clock time data for a communication terminal without data communication with a server or through minimal data communication with the server even when the communication terminal has lost the clock time data. <P>SOLUTION: A device monitoring system includes: a monitored device; a slave communication terminal for holding clock time data and receiving operation data of the monitored device, with external power supply; and a master communication terminal for holding the clock time data and transmitting the operation data received from the slave communication terminal to a server through a public communication network at predetermined upload time, with external power supply. Either the slave communication terminal or the master communication terminal acquires and holds the clock time data held by the other one, when the external power supply is shut off, the master communication terminal loses its own clock time data, and then the external power supply is restored. Thereby, the clock time data can be restored without communication with the server. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a device monitoring system having a communication terminal that holds time data by externally supplied power and transmits operation data of a monitored device to a server via a public communication network at a predetermined upload time. The present invention relates to a technique for restoring time data of a terminal when it is lost.

  In recent years, the number of patients suffering from respiratory organ diseases such as asthma, emphysema, and chronic bronchitis has been increasing. One of the most effective treatment methods is oxygen inhalation therapy. Oxygen inhalation therapy is a method in which a patient is inhaled with oxygen gas or oxygen-enriched air. Oxygen concentrators, liquid oxygen, oxygen gas cylinders, etc. are known as sources of oxygen gas or oxygen-enriched air. However, because of convenience during use and ease of maintenance, oxygen concentration for medical use is at home. Machines (hereinafter simply referred to as oxygen concentrators) are used in the mainstream.

  This oxygen concentrator is widely used in homes as well as hospitals. In home oxygen therapy, unlike when an oxygen concentrator is used in a hospital under the supervision of a doctor or nurse, the condition of the oxygen concentrator cannot be grasped and the patient is as prescribed by the doctor. It is difficult to confirm whether the device is used with the correct settings and whether the correct usage method as described in the instruction manual is being executed.

Various methods have been proposed for this problem, and the following examples are given. That is, a function of collecting the operation data is added to the oxygen concentrator at the patient's home, and a communication terminal that can be connected to a public communication network such as a telephone line is installed at the patient's home. On the other hand, a remote service center is installed with a database for storing oxygen concentrator installation information and patient information and a server for collectively managing the operation state of the oxygen concentrator. Then, by collecting the operation data of the oxygen concentrator at each patient's home on the server via the public communication network, it is confirmed whether it is being used as prescribed by the doctor, the operation of the oxygen concentrator is abnormal, Early detection of condition deterioration. Patent Documents 1 to 3 describe examples of medical device monitoring systems that implement such methods.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-143451 JP-A-6-54910 JP 2005-245735 A

  In the medical device monitoring system as described above, in general, the oxygen concentrator is in a steady state except in the case of an emergency such as when an operation state that indicates abnormal operation of the oxygen concentrator or a deterioration of the patient's condition is detected. Operation data is transmitted to the server at an upload time preset in the communication terminal. Such upload time is set, for example, in the midnight time zone. This is because the data transmission from the patient's home to the server is performed via the public communication network, especially the telephone line, avoiding the daytime hours when the patient is likely to use the telephone line, and using the telephone line. This is so as not to disturb.

  Since the operation data from a large number of patient homes is transmitted to the server, individual upload times are assigned to the communication terminals at each patient home so that smooth data reception can be avoided while avoiding congestion of the line.

  For this reason, in order to transmit operation data at a predetermined upload time, the communication terminal is provided with an internal clock that operates with externally supplied power, thereby constantly holding time data. However, if the external power supply is cut off due to a sudden power failure, erroneous operation of the start switch, or disconnection of the outlet, the internal clock stops and the time data is lost. Then, even if the external power supply is restored, there is a problem that the time data is distorted and the operation data cannot be transmitted at the upload time.

  In this respect, since the server is configured to be able to always hold time data using a power supply with high fault tolerance, it is also possible to acquire time data from the server. However, for example, if a telephone line is used for data communication in the daytime, there is a risk that the patient's use of the telephone line may be hindered. It is also possible to provide a battery in the communication terminal to prepare for unexpected interruption of externally supplied power, but this is not preferable because it increases the number of parts and the cost for maintenance.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention made in view of the above is to provide a communication terminal without performing data communication with a server or by performing data communication with a minimum server even when the communication terminal loses time data. It is an object of the present invention to provide a device monitoring system capable of restoring time data of a machine and transmitting operation data of a monitored device to a server at a predetermined upload time.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to a first aspect of the present invention, a monitored device, a communication terminal slave unit that holds time data by externally supplied power and receives operation data of the monitored device, In a device monitoring system having a communication terminal master unit that holds time data by externally supplied power and transmits the operation data received from the communication terminal slave unit to a server via a public communication network at a predetermined upload time Any one of the communication terminal slave unit and the communication terminal master unit acquires and holds the time data held by the other when the external supply power is restored after the external supply power is cut off and the own time data is lost. It is characterized by doing.

  According to a preferred aspect of the first aspect, the monitored device has a backup battery and holds time data by the power supplied from the backup battery. When the external power supply is restored after losing the time data, the time data held by the monitored device is further acquired and held.

  According to a further preferred aspect of the first aspect, when the communication terminal master cannot acquire time data from the communication terminal slave, the communication terminal master acquires standard time data held by the server via the public communication network. The communication terminal slave unit further acquires the standard time data from the communication terminal master unit.

  According to another preferable aspect of the first aspect, when the communication terminal base unit transmits the operation data to the server at the upload time, the communication terminal base unit acquires the standard time data held by the server and itself The communication terminal slave unit and the monitored device hold the standard time data acquired from the server as their own time data.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the second aspect of the present invention, a monitored device having a backup battery and holding time data by power supplied from the backup battery, and holding time data by external power supply In addition, in a device monitoring system having a communication terminal that transmits operation data of the monitored device to a server via a public communication network at a predetermined upload time, the communication terminal is disconnected from external power supply. When the external power supply is restored after losing its own time data, the time data held by the monitored device is acquired and held.

  According to a preferable aspect of the second aspect, when the communication terminal cannot acquire time data from the monitored device, the communication terminal acquires standard time data held by the server via the public communication network. Features.

  According to another preferable aspect of the second aspect, when the communication terminal transmits the operation data to the server at the upload time, the communication terminal acquires the standard time data held by the server and It is held as time data, and the monitored device holds the standard time data acquired from the server as its own time data.

  According to the present invention, the communication terminal can recover the time data without performing communication with the server even when the external power supply is cut off and the time data is lost. Can be sent to the server. Furthermore, by acquiring the standard time data held by the server and holding it as its own time data, the operation data can be transmitted to the server more accurately at the upload time.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to these embodiments, but extends to the matters described in the claims and equivalents thereof.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a configuration when the device monitoring system according to the first embodiment is applied to a medical device monitoring system. In the patient's home 1, an oxygen concentrator 2, a communication terminal main unit 4, and a communication terminal sub unit 6 as “monitored devices” are installed, and a server 81 that collects the operation data of the oxygen concentrator 2 is remote. It is installed in the service center 80. The oxygen concentrator 2 and the communication terminal slave 6 are connected via a cable so that data communication is possible. The communication terminal slave unit 6 and the communication terminal master unit 4 are connected so as to be capable of data communication by wireless communication. The communication terminal base unit 4 is connected to a public communication network 10 such as a telephone line by a modular jack, and is connected to a server 81 in a remote data center via the public communication network 10 so that data communication is possible.

  In this configuration, for example, when the patient's room and the modular jack are separated to some extent, the oxygen concentrator 2 and the communication terminal slave 6 are installed in the room, and the communication terminal 4 is installed in the vicinity of the modular jack. This is suitable when wireless communication is performed between the machine 4 and the communication terminal 6. In addition to the patient's individual patient's house, this configuration can also be applied when the patient himself receives treatment using the oxygen concentrator 2 at a nursing home, a child welfare facility, or a medical institution. Therefore, a patient's home, a nursing home, a child welfare facility, or a medical institution corresponds to the “site”.

  The oxygen concentrator 2 includes an internal clock 26 that holds time data, a communication circuit 22 that controls communication with the communication terminal slave unit 6, and a CPU that controls the overall operation of the oxygen concentrator 2 according to a preset program ( It has a control unit 24 composed of a Central Processing Unit). Each of these units is configured to operate with external power supplied from a power supply outlet in the patient's home 1. However, the oxygen concentrator 2 further has a backup battery 28 that can always supply power to the internal clock 26. Therefore, the internal clock 26 is configured to be able to always hold time data.

  The oxygen concentrator 2 having such a configuration stores the operation data as a log in an internal storage device and transmits the operation data to the communication terminal slave unit 6 before the upload time set in advance based on the time data in a steady state. To do. The operation data of the oxygen concentrator 2 includes the concentration of oxygen supplied to the patient, the oxygen flow rate, the oxygen supply time, and the like. The operation data is totaled by the server 81, periodically transferred to a medical institution, and used for checking a patient's prescription history by a doctor.

  The communication terminal slave unit 6 is an internal clock 66 that holds time data, a communication circuit 62 that controls communication with the oxygen concentrator 2 and the communication terminal master unit 4, and a program that predetermines the operation of the communication terminal slave unit 6 as a whole. The control unit 64 is configured by a CPU that performs control according to the above. When the operation data is transmitted from the oxygen concentrator 2, the communication terminal slave 6 transmits this to the communication terminal master 4.

  The communication terminal master 4 controls the operation of the internal clock 46 that holds time data, the communication circuit 42 that controls communication with the communication terminal slave 6 and the server 81, and the operation of the communication terminal master 4 as a whole according to a predetermined program. It has the control part 44 comprised with CPU which performs. The communication terminal master 4 stores the operation data of the oxygen concentrator 2 transmitted from the communication terminal slave 6 in an internal storage device, and also stores the operation data at the upload time set in advance based on the time data. Send to.

  The communication terminal slave unit 6 and the communication terminal master unit 4 both acquire external supply power from the power supply outlet of the patient house 1 and operate with the external supply power. Therefore, the communication terminal slave unit 6 and the communication terminal master unit 4 hold time data while externally supplied power is supplied. As described above, the communication terminal slave unit 6 and the communication terminal master unit 4 are configured not to incorporate the backup battery, thereby enabling reduction in the number of parts and cost reduction.

  The server 81 is a known personal computer that collectively manages a communication circuit 82 that controls data communication with the public communication network 10, a database that stores installation information and patient information of the oxygen concentrator 2, and an operating state of the oxygen concentrator 2. It has a control unit 84 constituted by an information processing device such as a computer, and an internal clock 86 that holds time data. The server 81 is constantly supplied with power from a highly fault-tolerant power source in the service center 80, and each part including the internal clock 86 is configured to be always operable. Therefore, the server 81 can always hold time data. Therefore, in this medical device monitoring system, the time data of the server 81 is used as standard time data (“standard time data”).

  In such a medical device monitoring system, in addition to the regular operation data transmission as described above, the operation data includes data indicating abnormal operation of the oxygen concentrator 2 and data indicating deterioration of the condition of the patient. Sometimes, it is required to immediately and surely transmit emergency data indicating the occurrence of an emergency to the server 81 and take prompt action. Therefore, between the communication terminal slave unit 6 and the oxygen concentrator 2, and between the communication terminal slave unit 6 and the communication terminal master unit 4, in order to prepare for such a state, it is possible to confirm a state where communication is possible (hereinafter referred to as status). Data communication is frequent.

  For example, status confirmation is performed between the oxygen concentrator 2 and the communication terminal slave 6 at a frequency of once every several tens of seconds (in the following description, once every 30 seconds). At this time, the communication terminal slave unit 6 transmits data indicating a status request to the oxygen concentrator 2 (hereinafter, such data transmission is referred to as a status request), and the oxygen concentrator 2 responds to the data indicating its own status. Is transmitted to the communication terminal slave unit 6 (hereinafter, such data transmission is referred to as a status response).

  Further, status confirmation is performed between the communication terminal slave unit 6 and the communication terminal master unit 4 at a frequency of once every few seconds (in the following description, once every two seconds). At this time, the communication terminal master device 4 requests a status from the communication terminal slave device 6, and the communication terminal slave device 6 makes a status response thereto.

  Here, considering that the oxygen concentrator 2 and the communication terminal slave unit 6 are connected by a cable, and thus the reliability of data communication is higher than the wireless communication between the communication terminal unit 4 and the communication terminal unit 6, the communication terminal unit 6 and the status check frequency of the oxygen concentrator 2 are lower than the frequency of status check between the communication terminal 4 and the communication terminal 6 (however, the regular operation data transmission from the communication terminal 4 to the server 81 is performed). Higher than the frequency).

  Here, a schematic configuration example of status request data and status data transmitted / received by status confirmation performed between the communication terminal master unit 4 and the communication terminal slave unit 6 and between the communication terminal slave unit 6 and the oxygen concentrator 2 Is shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, a header including time data held by the transmission side is added to the status request data and status data. This occurs when the communication terminal master unit 4, the communication terminal slave unit 6, and the oxygen concentrator 2 store status request data or status data for a set period of time that can be arbitrarily set as a log and analyze an operation abnormality or the like. This is to specify the time. In addition, flag data F1 and F2 indicating the state and type of time data are added to the header. A method of using the flag data F1 and F2 will be described in detail later.

  Returning to FIG. 1, the operation data is transmitted from the communication terminal base unit 4 to the server 81 at a relatively low frequency, for example, once every several hours to several tens of hours. This is because the steady operation data of the oxygen concentrator 2 is used by a doctor to check the patient's prescription history, but it is more difficult to deal with compared to abnormal operation of the oxygen concentrator 2 or deterioration of the patient's condition. This is because the degree of urgency is low, and thus frequently occupying the telephone line may hinder the use of the patient's telephone line. Therefore, the frequency of transmission of the operation data from the communication terminal master unit 4 to the server 81 is lower than the status confirmation frequency between the oxygen concentrator 2 and the communication terminal slave unit 6 and does not prevent the patient from using the telephone line. The lower limit can be set as appropriate within a range where the operation data collection frequency required for effectively confirming the prescription history of the patient is set as the upper limit. Therefore, in the following description, it is once every 24 hours.

  Further, a midnight time zone is used as an upload time that does not interfere with the use of the patient's telephone line. And if data communication from each patient's house is concentrated on the server 81 and the line is congested, smooth data communication may be hindered. Therefore, the communication terminal master 4 installed in each patient's house Different upload times are assigned.

  FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram illustrating an operation procedure in a steady state of the medical device monitoring system according to the first embodiment. The communication terminal master device 4 requests a status from the communication terminal slave device 6 every two seconds (S2), and the communication terminal slave device 6 makes a status response thereto (S4). In addition, the communication terminal slave 6 requests a status every 30 seconds (S6), and the oxygen concentrator 2 responds with a status (S8).

  The oxygen concentrator 2 transmits operation data to the communication terminal slave unit 6 (S12) when it is before the upload time based on its own time data (timing that can be set appropriately). Then, the communication terminal slave device 6 that has received this transmits operation data to the master device 4 (S14). Then, when the upload time is reached based on its own time data (S16), the communication terminal base unit 4 transmits the operation data to the server 81 (S18).

  By the way, if the external power supply is interrupted due to a sudden power failure, erroneous operation of the start switch, or disconnection from the outlet, the communication terminal master 4 stops and the time data is lost. In such a case, the communication terminal master 4 in the first embodiment acquires the time data from the communication terminal slave 6 after the external supply power is restored and restarted, and holds it as its own time data. As described above, the communication terminal master 4 uses the communication terminal slave 6 as a backup means, so that the communication terminal master 4 can restore its own time data, and the server 81 is set at a predetermined upload time. Operation data can be transmitted to

  On the other hand, in the communication terminal 6 as well, when the external power supply is cut off due to a sudden power failure, erroneous operation of the start switch, or disconnection of the outlet, the internal clock 66 may stop and the time data may be lost. . In such a case, the communication terminal slave unit 6 acquires the time data from the communication terminal master unit 4 after the external supply power is restored and restarted, and holds it as its own time data. By doing so, the communication terminal slave 6 can restore its own time data, and the backup function of the communication terminal master 4 can be recovered.

  As a more preferable aspect, the communication terminal slave unit 6 acquires the time data from the oxygen concentrator 2 in addition to the communication terminal master unit 4 after the external supply power is restored and restarted, and as its own time data. It can also be held. Since the oxygen concentrator 2 always holds time data by the power supplied from the backup battery 28, the time data can be acquired if the oxygen concentrator 2 is in operation. Therefore, even if the time data cannot be acquired from the communication terminal base unit 4, the communication terminal handset 6 can restore its own time data and restore the function of the communication terminal base unit 4 as a backup.

  FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram illustrating an operation procedure when the communication terminal base unit 4 restores time data in the first embodiment. When the external supply power of the communication terminal base unit 4 is cut off (S40) and then the external supply power is restored (S42), the communication terminal base unit 4 executes a preset initialization process (S44).

  Although the detailed procedure will be described later in the initialization process, when the communication terminal master 4 requests a status from the communication terminal slave 6 every 2 seconds (S444), the communication terminal slave 6 returns a status response as a steady operation. (S4). Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the time data held by the communication terminal slave 6 on the transmission side is added to the status data. Therefore, the communication terminal base unit 4 reads the time data added to the status data and holds it as its own time data (S450). By such a procedure, the communication terminal master 4 can restore its own time data, and can transmit the operation data to the server 81 at a predetermined upload time.

  FIG. 5 is a sequence diagram illustrating an operation procedure when the communication terminal slave 6 restores time data in the first embodiment. When the external power supply of the communication terminal slave unit 6 is interrupted (S50) and then the external supply power is restored (S52), the communication terminal slave unit 6 executes a preset initialization process (S54). In this initialization process, the detailed procedure will be described later, but when the communication terminal slave unit 6 receives a status request every 2 seconds executed by the communication terminal master unit 4 as a steady operation (S2), the communication terminal master unit 6 4 returns a status response (S547). Here, as shown in FIG. 2, time data held by the communication terminal parent device 4 on the transmission side is added to the status request data. Therefore, the communication terminal slave 6 reads the time data added to the status request data and holds it as its own time data (S550).

  However, for example, when the external power supply of the communication terminal base unit 4 is cut off at this time and the communication terminal base unit 4 is not operating, and therefore there is no status request from the communication terminal base unit 4, the communication terminal base unit 4 The machine 6 cannot acquire time data. In that case, the communication terminal slave 6 requests a status from the oxygen concentrator 2 every 30 seconds in the initialization process (S556), and the oxygen concentrator 2 returns a status response as a steady operation (S8). Here, as shown in FIG. 2, time data held by the oxygen concentrator 2 on the transmission side is added to the status data. Therefore, the communication terminal slave 6 reads the time data added to the status data and holds it as its own time data (S562). By doing so, when the external power supply of the communication terminal base unit 4 is restored and a status request is made from the communication terminal base unit 4, it is possible to add time data and make a status response.

  By such a procedure, the communication terminal slave unit 6 acquires time data from either the communication terminal master unit 4 or the oxygen concentrator 2, so that the time data can be restored with high accuracy. Therefore, the function as a backup when the communication terminal master 4 requires time data can be recovered, and the reliability of the entire medical device monitoring system is improved.

  In the above procedure, when the external power supply of the communication terminal master unit 4 is cut off and the time data is lost and then the external supply power is restored, the communication terminal unit 4 sends the communication terminal slave unit 6 every two seconds. If the external power supply of the communication terminal 6 is cut off when the status request is made, the communication terminal slave unit 6 cannot make a status response, and therefore the communication terminal master unit 4 cannot acquire time data. Furthermore, in that case, if the oxygen concentrator 2 is not in operation when the external power supply of the communication terminal slave 6 is restored and the communication terminal slave 6 requests a status from the oxygen concentrator 2 every 30 seconds, Even if the time data is held in the concentrator 2, the status response cannot be made to the communication terminal slave 6, and therefore the communication terminal slave 4 cannot acquire the time data. Then, even if the communication terminal slave 6 responds to a status request every 2 seconds from the communication terminal 4 after restarting, the time data remains lost, so the communication terminal master 4 cannot acquire the time data. .

  In such a case, since the communication terminal base unit 4 cannot recover the time data, even if operation data to be transmitted is stored in the internal storage device, it cannot be transmitted to the server 81 at the upload time. Therefore, in the first embodiment, in such a case, the communication terminal base unit 4 acquires the standard time data from the server 81 to restore the time data.

  FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram for explaining an operation procedure in such a case. In this case, when the communication terminal base unit 4 returns after the external power supply is cut off (S40) (S42), the communication terminal base unit 4 executes an initialization process (S44). Then, a status request is made to the communication terminal slave unit 6 (S444). At this time, if the communication terminal slave unit 6 is in a state where the external supply power is cut off (S50), the communication terminal master unit 4 The time response cannot be acquired because the status response cannot be obtained from

  When the externally supplied power of the communication terminal slave 6 is restored (S52), an initialization process is executed (S54). Then, a status request is made to the oxygen concentrator 2 (S556). If the oxygen concentrator 60 is in a stopped state (S60) at this time, the communication terminal slave unit 6 cannot obtain a status response from the oxygen concentrator 2. Time data cannot be obtained.

  In this case, when the communication terminal master 4 makes a status request to the communication terminal slave 6 again (S444), the communication terminal slave 6 responds with a status (S547), but the time data of the communication terminal slave 6 remains lost. Therefore, the communication terminal master unit 4 cannot acquire time data from the communication terminal slave unit 6. Therefore, the communication terminal base unit 4 connects to the server 81 and requests time data after a predetermined time (for example, 24 hours) has elapsed after restart (S456), and the server 81 transmits standard time data (S457). . Therefore, the communication terminal base unit 4 holds this as its own time data (S460).

  In this way, the communication terminal base unit 4 can restore the time data after 24 hours at the longest. Therefore, the reliability as a medical device monitoring system is maintained. In this case, data communication with the server 81 is executed even at times other than the upload time for the purpose of obtaining standard time data. Therefore, by not transmitting the operation data at this time, for example, even if the patient is likely to use the telephone line during the daytime, the use time of the telephone line is shortened. It is possible not to disturb the use of the telephone line.

  Next, the initialization procedure of the communication terminal master unit 4 and the communication terminal slave unit 6 in the above-described procedure will be described in detail.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart detailing the initialization process (step S44 in FIGS. 4 and 6) of the communication terminal base unit 4. This initialization process is routinely executed immediately after the external power supply is obtained and the communication terminal base unit 4 is activated.

  Since the communication terminal base unit 4 loses the time data when the external power supply is cut off, it first initializes the value of the time data flag indicating the holding of the time data as a variable in its own control program. (S440). Then, the loss of time data is determined from the value of its own time data flag (YES in S442), and a status request is sent to the communication terminal slave 6 every 2 seconds (S444). When the status response is received from the communication terminal slave unit 6 (S4 in FIG. 4 or S547 in FIG. 5) and the status response is confirmed (YES in S446), the communication terminal master unit 4 adds the communication terminal slave unit 6 from the status data. The time data and the time data flag are read (S448). Here, the flag data F1 added to the status data together with the time data shown in FIG. 2 corresponds to the time data flag of the communication terminal slave 6 on the transmission side.

  When it is confirmed that the time data flag is a value indicating retention (YES in S449), the time data transmitted by the communication terminal slave 6 is retained as its own time data, and the value of its own time data flag is retained. (S450).

  However, for example, when the external power supply of the communication terminal slave 6 is cut off and the communication terminal slave 6 is not operating, the communication terminal master 4 may repeatedly execute the status request (S444) every 2 seconds. A status response cannot be obtained from the communication terminal slave unit 6 (NO in S446). Or, when the externally supplied power of the communication terminal slave 6 returns later than the communication terminal master 4 and the oxygen concentrator 2 is not in the operating state, the time data is lost on the communication terminal slave 6 side. In such a case, even if it is confirmed that a status response is obtained from the communication terminal slave unit 6 in response to the status request (S444) every 2 seconds (YES in S446), the status data No time data is added, and the time data flag is a value indicating loss and not holding (NO in S449).

  Therefore, when 24 hours have passed in this state (YES in S452), the communication terminal base unit 4 connects to the server 81 (S454) and requests the server 81 to transmit time data (S456). Then, in response to this request, the server 81 transmits standard time data (S456), and when the communication terminal base unit 4 confirms reception (YES in S458), the communication terminal base unit 4 uses the standard time data as its own time. The data is held as data, and the value of its own time data flag is changed to a value indicating holding (S460), the connection with the server is disconnected, and the data communication is terminated (S462). When the communication terminal base unit 4 cannot confirm reception of time data from the server 81 (NO in S458), the communication terminal base unit 4 once disconnects from the server 81 and ends data communication (S463). Returning to step S442, the above-described processing is executed again.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart detailing the initialization process (procedure S54 in FIGS. 5 and 6) of the communication terminal slave unit 6. This initialization process is routinely executed immediately after the external power supply is obtained and the communication terminal slave 6 is activated.

  Since the communication terminal slave 6 loses the time data when the external power supply is cut off, it first initializes the value of the time data flag indicating the retention of the time data as a variable in its own control program. (S540). Then, the time data loss is determined from the value of its own time data flag (YES in S542), and if there is a status request from the communication terminal base unit 4 (S2 in FIG. 5 or S444 in FIG. 6), the status is requested. Is confirmed (YES in S546), and a status response is sent to the communication terminal base unit 4 (S547). Then, the communication terminal slave 6 reads the time data and the time data flag added by the communication terminal master 4 from the status request data (S548). Here, the flag data F1 added to the status request data together with the time data shown in FIG. 2 corresponds to the time data flag of the communication terminal parent device 4 on the transmission side.

  When it is confirmed that the time data flag is a value indicating holding (YES in S549), the time data transmitted by the communication terminal base unit 4 is held as its own time data, and the value of its own time data flag is held. (S550).

  However, for example, when the external power supply of the communication terminal master 4 is cut off and the communication terminal master 4 is not operating, the communication terminal slave 6 is not requested for status from the communication terminal master 4 (NO in S546). Alternatively, when the externally supplied power of the communication terminal master unit 4 returns later than the communication terminal slave unit 6, the time data is still lost on the communication end terminal master unit 4 side. Even if it is confirmed that the status is requested from the terminal base unit 4 (YES in S546), the time data is not added to the status data, and the time data flag is a value indicating the loss and indicating the holding. Not (NO in S549).

  Therefore, when 30 seconds have passed in this state (YES in S552), the communication terminal slave 6 requests a status from the oxygen concentrator 2 (S556). When the oxygen concentrator 2 makes a status response (S8 in FIG. 5) and confirms that the communication terminal slave unit 6 has made a status response (YES in S558), the communication terminal slave unit 6 determines from the status data that the oxygen concentrator The time data and the time data flag added by 2 are read (S559). Here, the flag data F1 added to the status data together with the time data shown in FIG. 2 corresponds to the time data flag of the oxygen concentrator 2 on the transmission side.

  When it is confirmed that the time data flag is a value indicating retention (YES in S560), the time data transmitted by the oxygen concentrator 2 is retained as its own time data, and the value of its own time data flag is retained. The value is changed to the indicated value (S562). Then, when the communication terminal parent device 4 next requests a status as a steady operation, the communication terminal child device 6 can add a time data held and make a status response.

  By executing the above procedure, even when either the communication terminal master 4 or the communication terminal slave 6 loses time data, it can be restored. At this time, the time data can be recovered without executing additional data communication for recovering the time data by using the time data transmitted / received at the time of the status request / status response executed regularly. Therefore, the processing load of the communication terminal master unit 4, the communication terminal slave unit 6, and the oxygen concentrator 2 can be minimized.

  The standard time data can be acquired from the server 81 after 24 hours at the longest, and the time data of the communication terminal parent 4 can be restored. Therefore, by suppressing the data communication to the server 81 to the minimum frequency, it is possible to prevent the home patient's use of the telephone line from being hindered, and to minimize the delay in the steady operation data transmission. Therefore, the reliability as a medical device monitoring system is maintained.

[Modification of First Embodiment]
Next, a modification of the first embodiment will be described. In this modified example, when the communication terminal master 4 transmits operation data to the server 81 at the upload time, the standard time data is received from the server 81, and the communication terminal master 4, the communication terminal slave 6, or the oxygen concentrator Any or all of 2 hold standard time data as respective time data. By doing so, even if the accuracy of these internal clocks is lower than the accuracy of the internal clock 86 of the server 81, the respective time data can be synchronized with the standard time data every 24 hours. Therefore, the communication terminal master 4 or the oxygen concentrator 2 can transmit the operation data at the upload time more accurately. Further, the communication terminal slave unit 6 can hold accurate time data as a backup of the communication terminal master unit 4. Therefore, the medical device monitoring system as a whole can operate more accurately with respect to the standard time.

  FIG. 9 is a sequence diagram for explaining an operation procedure of the medical device monitoring system according to the modification. The procedure of FIG. 9 is executed when the communication terminal base unit 4 transmits operation data to the server 81. In part, the same reference numerals as those in FIG.

  At the upload time (S16), the communication terminal base unit 4 transmits operation data to the server 81 (S18) and requests time data (S20). In response to this, the server 81 transmits standard time data (S22). Then, the communication terminal base unit 4 holds the standard time data as its own time data (S24).

  Then, when requesting a status from the communication terminal slave device 6, the communication terminal master device 4 adds the standard time data and requests a status (S26). At this time, for example, the flag data F2 shown in FIG. 2 is set to a value indicating that the standard time data is held. By doing so, the communication terminal slave 6 determines that the time data added to the transmission request data is the standard time data from the value of the flag data F2, and holds the standard time data as its own time data (S28). ). Then, a status response is sent to the communication terminal base unit 4 (S30).

  Further, when the communication terminal slave 6 requests a status from the oxygen concentrator 2 every 30 seconds, the communication terminal slave 6 adds a standard time data and flag data F2 indicating this to request a status (S32). Then, the oxygen concentrator 2 determines that the time data added to the status request data is the standard time data from the value of the flag data F2, and holds the standard time data as its own time data (S34). Then, a status response is sent to the communication terminal slave unit 6 (S36).

  By executing such a procedure, even when the accuracy of the internal clock of the communication terminal slave unit 6 or the oxygen concentrator 2 is lower than the accuracy of the internal clock 86 of the server 81, each time is set every 24 hours. The data can be synchronized with the standard time data, and the medical device monitoring system as a whole can operate more accurately with respect to the standard time.

  In the above description, the case of a pair of communication terminal master units and communication terminal slave units has been described as an example. However, for one communication terminal master unit, a plurality of communication terminal slave units and respective communication terminal slave units are provided. The first embodiment can be applied even to a configuration in which an oxygen concentrator that performs communication is provided. Furthermore, the first embodiment can also be applied to a case where three or more communication terminal master units are connected in series and perform data communication. In that case, the above-described procedure is executed between the communication terminals adjacent to each other in the data communication path with the oxygen concentrator side as the communication terminal slave and the server as the communication terminal master. By doing so, the lost time data can be restored and held between the communication terminals while minimizing the frequency of data communication with the server 81. Therefore, operation data can be transmitted to the server 81 at a predetermined upload time.

[Second Embodiment]
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of a medical device monitoring system according to the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, instead of providing the communication terminal master unit 4 and the communication terminal slave unit 6, the communication terminal unit 5 is provided. The communication terminal 5 has the same configuration as the communication terminal master 4 and the communication terminal slave 6 in the first embodiment, and includes a communication circuit 52, a control unit 54, and an internal clock 56. The communication terminal 5 is configured to be operable by externally supplied power, and the internal clock 56 holds time data by the externally supplied power.

  The oxygen concentrator 2 is connected by a communication terminal 5 cable and configured to be capable of data communication. The rest is the same as the configuration in the first embodiment.

  This configuration is used as a preferred configuration for improving the reliability of data communication by connecting the oxygen concentrator 2 and the communication terminal 5 with a cable when the oxygen concentrator 2 can be installed near the modular jack. . In addition, a complicated configuration can be prevented by reducing the number of communication terminals. In that case, considering that the reliability of data communication is higher than in the case of wireless communication, status confirmation is executed between the two, for example, every 30 seconds.

  In the following, the case where the oxygen concentrator 2 and the communication terminal 5 are connected by cable will be described as an example. However, the communication circuit 22 of the oxygen concentrator 2 and the communication circuit 52 of the communication terminal 5 are connected by wireless communication. Is also included in the second embodiment. In that case, considering that the reliability of data communication is lower than in the case of cable connection, status confirmation is performed between the two, for example, every 2 seconds.

  Then, the operation data of the oxygen concentrator 2 is transmitted from the communication terminal 5 to the server 81 every 24 hours.

  FIG. 11 is a sequence diagram illustrating an operation procedure in a steady state of the medical device monitoring system according to the second embodiment. The communication terminal 5 requests a status every 30 seconds (S102), and the oxygen concentrator 2 makes a status response (S104). Then, the oxygen concentrator 2 transmits the operation data to the communication terminal 5 (S108) before the upload time based on the time data held by the internal clock 26 (S106). Then, the communication terminal 5 transmits the operation data to the server 81 when the upload time comes based on the time data held by the internal clock 46 (S110) (S112).

  In the second embodiment, the communication terminal 5 is restarted when the external power supply is lost and the time data is lost due to an unexpected power failure, erroneous operation of the start switch, or disconnection of the power outlet. After that, the time data is acquired from the oxygen concentrator 2 and held as its own time data. Here, the internal clock 26 of the oxygen concentrator 2 can always be operated by the backup battery 28, and time data is not lost. Therefore, the communication terminal 5 can reliably return the time data if the oxygen concentrator 2 is in an operating state. Thus, by using the oxygen concentrator 2 as a backup means, the communication terminal 5 can restore the time data, and can transmit the operation data to the server 81 at a predetermined upload time.

  FIG. 12 is a sequence diagram illustrating an operation procedure when the communication terminal 5 restores time data in the second embodiment. When the external supply power of the communication terminal 5 is cut off (S140) and then the external supply power is restored (S142), an initialization process is executed (S144). In this initialization process, the communication terminal 5 makes a status request to the oxygen concentrator 2 (S1444), and when the oxygen concentrator 2 responds with a status as a steady operation (S104), the communication terminal 5 sends the status data to the oxygen concentrator. 2 is read and held as its own time data (S1450).

  According to such a procedure, the communication terminal 5 can recover the time data without performing data communication with the server 81. At this time, the time data can be recovered without executing additional data communication for recovering the time data by using the time data transmitted / received at the time of the status request / status response executed regularly. Therefore, the processing load of the communication terminal 5 and the oxygen concentrator 2 can be minimized. Then, the operation data of the oxygen concentrator 2 can be transmitted to the server 81 at a predetermined upload time.

  However, when the oxygen concentrator 2 is not in an operating state, the communication terminal 5 cannot obtain a status response from the oxygen concentrator 2, and therefore cannot acquire time data.

  The procedure in this case is shown in FIG. In FIG. 13, the same reference numerals are given to the procedures overlapping with those in FIG. 12.

  When the oxygen concentrator 2 has stopped operating (S162) and is not in an operating state, the communication terminal 5 cannot obtain a status response even if it requests a status from the oxygen concentrator 2 (S1444), and therefore cannot acquire time data. In this case, the communication terminal 5 requests time data from the server 81, for example, after 24 hours have elapsed since the restart (S1456), and the server 81 transmits standard time data (S1457). Then, the communication terminal 5 holds this as its own time data (S1460).

  By such a procedure, the standard time data can be acquired from the server 81 after 24 hours at the longest, and the time data of the communication terminal 5 can be restored. Therefore, by suppressing the data communication to the server 81 to the minimum frequency, it is possible to prevent the home patient's use of the telephone line from being hindered, and to minimize the delay in the steady operation data transmission. Therefore, the reliability as a medical device monitoring system is maintained.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart detailing the initialization process of the communication terminal 5 in the second embodiment. This initialization process is routinely executed immediately after the external power supply is obtained and the communication terminal 5 is activated.

  Since the communication terminal 5 loses the time data when the external power supply is cut off, the communication terminal 5 first initializes the value of the time data flag indicating the holding of the time data as a variable in its control program ( S1440). Then, the time data loss is determined from the value of its own time data flag (YES in S1442), and a status request is sent to the oxygen concentrator 2 every 30 seconds (S1444). When the oxygen concentrator 2 returns a status response as a steady operation (S104 in FIG. 12) and confirms that the status response has been received (YES in S1446), the communication terminal 5 determines the time data added by the oxygen concentrator 2 from the status data. The time data flag (flag F1 shown in FIG. 2) is read (S1448). Then, it is confirmed that the time data flag is a value indicating holding. In this case, in the oxygen concentrator 2, since the time data is always held by the power of the backup battery 28, it is confirmed that the value of the time data flag indicates holding (YES in S1449). Then, the time data transmitted by the oxygen concentrator 2 is held as its own time data, and the value of its own time data flag is changed to a value indicating holding (S1450).

  However, for example, when the oxygen concentrator 2 is not in an operating state, the communication terminal 5 cannot obtain a status response from the oxygen concentrator 2 even if it repeatedly executes a status request (S1444) every 30 seconds (NO in S1446). Alternatively, even when the oxygen concentrator 2 is in an operating state, if the time data is lost due to exhaustion or failure of the backup battery 28, the time data flag is not a value indicating holding (S1449). NO). In such a case, the communication terminal 5 cannot acquire time data from the oxygen concentrator 2.

  Therefore, when 24 hours have elapsed in this state (YES in S1452), the communication terminal 5 connects to the server 81 (S1454) and requests the server 81 to transmit time data (S1456). In response to this request, the server 81 transmits standard time data (S1457) and confirms that the communication terminal 5 has received this (YES in S1458), the communication terminal 5 transmits the standard time data itself. The time data flag is changed to a value indicating holding (S1460), the connection with the server is disconnected, and the data communication is terminated (S1462). When the communication terminal 5 cannot confirm the reception of time data from the server 81 (NO in S1458), the communication terminal 5 temporarily disconnects from the server 81 and ends the data communication (S1463), and the procedure S1442. Returning to FIG.

  By executing the above procedure, even when the communication terminal 5 loses time data, it can be restored. At this time, by using the time data transmitted / received at the time of the status request / status response that is regularly executed with the oxygen concentrator 2, it is possible to execute additional data communication for time data recovery. The time data can be restored. Therefore, the processing load on the communication terminal 5 can be minimized.

  The standard time data can be acquired from the server 81 after 24 hours at the longest, and the time data of the communication terminal 5 can be restored. Therefore, by suppressing the data communication to the server 81 to the minimum frequency, it is possible to prevent the home patient's use of the telephone line from being hindered, and to minimize the delay in the steady operation data transmission. Therefore, the reliability as a medical device monitoring system is maintained.

[Modification of Second Embodiment]
Also in the second embodiment, a modification in which the time data of the communication terminal 5 and the time data of the oxygen concentrator 2 are held in the standard time data acquired from the server 81 is possible.

  FIG. 15 is a sequence diagram for explaining such a modification. That is, when the upload time is reached (S110), the communication terminal 5 transmits operation data to the server 81 (S112) and requests standard time data (S120). In response to this, the server 81 transmits standard time data (S122). Then, the communication terminal 5 holds the standard time data as its own time data (S124).

  When the communication terminal 5 requests the oxygen concentrator 2 for a status every 30 seconds, the communication terminal 5 adds the standard time data and requests the status (S126). At this time, for example, flag data indicating that the data is held in the standard time data is added to the status request data. By doing so, the oxygen concentrator 2 determines that the time data added to the transmission request data is the standard time data from the value of the flag data, and holds the standard time data as its own time data (S128). . Then, a status response is sent to the communication terminal 5 (S130).

  By executing such a procedure, even when the accuracy of the internal clock of the communication terminal 5 or the oxygen concentrator 2 is lower than the accuracy of the internal clock 86 of the server 81, each time data is set every 24 hours. Can be synchronized with the standard time data, and the medical device monitoring system as a whole can operate more accurately with respect to the standard time.

  In the above description, a telephone line is used as an example of the public communication network 10, but a telephone or other communication device (facsimile or Internet) installed in a patient's home or clinic where the oxygen concentrator 2 and a communication terminal are installed. A public communication network shared with a connected personal computer or the like (for example, a public communication network including the Internet, a mobile phone communication network, or a PHS communication network realized by using wired communication means or wireless communication means) The first and second embodiments can be applied. That is, according to the first and second embodiments, the frequency of performing data communication with the server 81 via the public communication network is minimized, thereby preventing the use of communication devices sharing the public communication network. In addition, the time data of the communication terminal can be restored.

  In the above description, the medical device monitoring system using the oxygen concentrator as the monitored device is taken as an example. However, medical devices other than oxygen concentrators, such as ultrasonic therapy devices and adult ventilators, are medical devices that home patients use themselves at home, and it is desirable to collect operational data on a regular basis. The first and second embodiments can be applied to medical devices. Furthermore, in addition to medical devices, the first and second embodiments can be applied to general devices such as gas meters that are desired to constantly collect operation data from the viewpoint of security as monitored devices. .

  As described above, according to the present invention, even when the communication terminal loses the time data in the device monitoring system, the time data of the communication terminal is restored and the operation data is transferred to the server at a predetermined upload time. It becomes possible to transmit.

It is a figure explaining the structure at the time of the apparatus monitoring system in 1st Embodiment being applied to the medical device monitoring system. It is a figure which shows roughly the structure of the data transmitted / received at the time of status confirmation. It is a sequence diagram explaining the operation | movement procedure at the time of the steady state of the medical device monitoring system in 1st Embodiment. It is a sequence diagram explaining the operation | movement procedure in case the communication terminal main | base station 4 resets time data in 1st Embodiment. It is a sequence diagram explaining the operation | movement procedure in case the communication terminal subunit | mobile_unit 6 resets time data in 1st Embodiment. It is a sequence diagram explaining the operation | movement procedure in case the communication terminal main | base station 4 acquires time data from the server 81. FIG. 7 is a flowchart detailing an initialization process (procedure S44 in FIGS. 4 and 6) of the communication terminal base unit 4. FIG. It is a flowchart figure explaining the initialization process (procedure S54 of FIG. 5, FIG. 6) of the communication terminal subunit | mobile_unit 6 in detail. It is a sequence diagram explaining the operation | movement procedure of the medical device monitoring system in the modification of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure explaining the structure of the medical device monitoring system in 2nd Embodiment. It is a sequence diagram explaining the operation | movement procedure at the time of the steady state of the medical device monitoring system in 2nd Embodiment. FIG. 10 is a sequence diagram illustrating an operation procedure when the communication terminal 5 restores time data in the second embodiment. It is a sequence diagram explaining the operation | movement procedure in case the communication terminal 5 acquires time data from the server 81. FIG. It is a flowchart figure explaining the initialization process of the communication terminal 5 in a 2nd Example in detail. It is a sequence diagram explaining the operation | movement procedure of the medical device monitoring system in the modification of 1st Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

  1: patient home, 2: oxygen concentrator, 4: communication terminal master, 5: communication terminal, 6: communication terminal slave, 10: public communication network, 81: server

Claims (11)

A monitored terminal, a communication terminal slave that holds time data by externally supplied power and receives operation data of the monitored device, and holds the time data by externally supplied power and received from the communication terminal slave In a device monitoring system having a communication terminal parent device that transmits operation data to a server via a public communication network at a predetermined upload time,
When one of the communication terminal slave unit and the communication terminal master unit loses its own time data after the external supply power is cut off, it acquires and holds the time data held by the other A device monitoring system characterized by that. In claim 1,
The monitored device has a backup battery and holds time data by the power supplied by the backup battery,
The communication terminal slave unit further acquires and holds time data held by the monitored device when the external supply power is restored after the external supply power is cut off and the time data of the communication terminal is lost. Equipment monitoring system. In claim 1 or 2,
When the communication terminal base unit cannot acquire time data from the communication terminal slave unit, it acquires standard time data held by the server via the public communication network,
The device monitoring system, wherein the communication terminal slave unit further acquires the standard time data from the communication terminal master unit. In claim 2,
When the communication terminal base unit transmits the operation data to the server at the upload time, it acquires the standard time data held by the server and holds it as its own time data,
The device monitoring system, wherein the communication terminal slave unit and the monitored device hold standard time data acquired from the server as their own time data. In any one of Claims 1 thru | or 4,
The communication terminal master and the communication terminal slave are provided at a site where the monitored device is installed,
The device monitoring system, wherein the public communication network is shared by the communication terminal base unit and other communication devices provided at the site. In claim 5,
Between the monitored device and the communication terminal slave unit and / or between the communication terminal slave unit and the communication terminal master unit, mutual communication is performed at a frequency higher than the transmission frequency of the operation data to the server by the communication terminal master unit. A device monitoring system in which time data is transmitted and received when confirmation of a communicable state is performed. A monitored device having a backup battery and holding time data by the power supplied from the backup battery; a public communication network holding the time data by external power supply and operating data of the monitored device at a predetermined upload time In a device monitoring system having a communication terminal that transmits to a server via
The communication terminal receives and holds time data held by the monitored device when the external supply power is restored after the external supply power is cut off and the time data of the communication terminal is lost. system. In claim 7,
The device monitoring system, wherein the communication terminal acquires standard time data held by the server via the public communication network when time data cannot be acquired from the monitored device. In claim 7,
When the communication terminal transmits the operation data to the server at the upload time, the communication terminal acquires standard time data held by the server and holds it as its own time data.
The monitored device holds the standard time data acquired from the server as its own time data. In any one of Claims 7 thru | or 9,
The communication terminal is provided at a site where the monitored device is installed,
The device monitoring system, wherein the public communication network is shared by the communication terminal and other communication devices provided at the site. In claim 10,
Time data is transmitted / received between the monitored device and the communication terminal when the communication terminal confirms the communication possible state at a frequency higher than the transmission frequency of the operation data to the server by the communication terminal. A device monitoring system characterized by that.

Images