Disposable components for reusable physiological sensor
A sensor cartridge according to embodiments of the disclosure is capable of being used with a non-invasive physiological sensor. Certain embodiments of the sensor cartridge protect the sensor from damage, such as damage due to repeated use, reduce the need for sensor sanitization, or both. Further, embodiments of the sensor cartridge are positionable on the user before insertion in the sensor and allow for improved alignment of the treatment site with the sensor. In addition, the sensor cartridge of certain embodiments of the disclosure can be configured to allow a single sensor to comfortably accommodate treatment sites of various sizes such as for both adult and pediatric applications.
1. A disposable sensor cartridge system comprising:
a clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor including:
a first housing configured to house at least one of a light emitter or a light detector, the emitter configured to emit light into tissue of a finger of a patient, and the detector configured to receive the emitted light after attenuation by tissue of the finger of the patient;
a second housing configured to house at least one other of the emitter and the detector; and
a hinge element hingedly coupling the first housing and the second housing and configured such that an interior surface of the first housing and an interior surface of the second housing define a space of the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor capable of receiving the finger of the patient; and
a disposable sensor cartridge configured to be mateable with the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor by insertion of the disposable sensor cartridge into a position in the space of the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor such that the emitter is aligned with a first aperture of the disposable sensor cartridge and the detector is aligned with a second aperture of the disposable sensor cartridge, the disposable sensor cartridge including:
a first portion comprising:
a first resilient exterior surface that conforms to a shape of the first interior surface of the sensor; and
the first aperture having a size substantially similar to a size of a fingernail of the patient and configured to facilitate alignment of the first aperture with respect to a nail bed of the finger of the patient;
a second portion coupled to the first portion and defining a space between the first and second portions capable of receiving the finger of the patient, the second portion including:
a second resilient exterior surface that conforms to a shape of the second interior surface of the sensor; and
the second aperture; and
an information element capable of electrical communication with the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor when the cartridge is inserted into the sensor, the information element configured to provide compatibility information associated with the cartridge to the sensor,
wherein the first and second apertures are configured to allow light emitted from the emitter of the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor to travel through a path defined by the first and second apertures such that the light is incident on the finger, travels through and is attenuated by the tissue of the finger, exits the finger, and is received by the detector of the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor.
2. The disposable sensor cartridge system of claim 1 , wherein the compatibility information comprises quality control information.
3. The disposable sensor cartridge system of claim 1 , wherein the disposable sensor cartridge further includes:
one or more alignment features configured to cause the disposable sensor cartridge to align to the position in the space of the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor.
4. The disposable sensor cartridge system of claim 1 , wherein the disposable sensor cartridge further includes:
one or more securing features configured to interact with one or more corresponding features of the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor to releasably secure the cartridge with the sensor.
5. The disposable sensor cartridge system of claim 1 , wherein the disposable sensor cartridge further includes a hinge portion mechanically coupling the first portion and the second portion.
6. The disposable sensor cartridge system of claim 5 , wherein the first portion and the second portion are rotatable about the hinge portion to increase the size of the space between the first and second portions.
7. The disposable sensor cartridge system of claim 1 , wherein the disposable sensor cartridge is configured to substantially envelop the finger when the finger is placed in the space between the first and second portions.
8. The disposable sensor cartridge system of claim 7 , wherein the disposable sensor cartridge is substantially absorptive of the emitted light.
9. The disposable sensor cartridge system of claim 8 , wherein at least a portion of the disposable sensor cartridge colored darkly so as to be substantially absorptive of the emitted light.
10. The disposable sensor cartridge system of claim 1 , wherein the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor is a pulse oximeter sensor.
11. The disposable sensor cartridge system of claim 1 , wherein the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor is included in a portable monitor.
12. A method of using a clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor, the method comprising:
providing a clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor including:
a first housing configured to house at least one of a light emitter or a light detector, the emitter configured to emit light into tissue of a finger of a patient, and the detector configured to receive the emitted light after attenuation by tissue of the finger of the patient;
a second housing configured to house at least one other of the emitter and the detector; and
a hinge element hingedly coupling the first housing and the second housing and configured such that an interior surface of the first housing and an interior surface of the second housing define a space of the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor capable of receiving the finger of the patient;
providing a disposable sensor cartridge configured to be mateable with the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor by insertion of the disposable sensor cartridge into a position in the space of the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor such that the emitter is aligned with a first aperture of the disposable sensor cartridge and the detector is aligned with a second aperture of the disposable sensor cartridge, the disposable sensor cartridge including:
a first portion comprising:
a first resilient exterior surface that conforms to a shape of the first interior surface of the sensor; and
the first aperture having a size substantially similar to a size of a fingernail of the patient and configured to facilitate alignment of the first aperture with respect to a nail bed of the finger of the patient;
a second portion coupled to the first portion and defining a space between the first and second portions capable of receiving the finger of the patient, the second portion including:
a second resilient exterior surface that conforms to a shape of the second interior surface of the sensor; and
the second aperture; and
an information element capable of electrical communication with the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor when the cartridge is inserted into the sensor, the information element configured to provide compatibility information associated with the cartridge to the sensor;
attaching the disposable sensor cartridge to the finger of the patient such that the finger is disposed within the space between the first and second portions;
aligning the nail bed with the first aperture; and
mating the disposable sensor cartridge with the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor such that the sensor cartridge is disposed in the position within the space of the sensor, the first aperture is aligned with one of the emitter or the detector of the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor, and the information element is in electrical communication with a portion of the sensor.
13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the attaching the disposable sensor cartridge occurs prior to the mating the disposable sensor cartridge with the clip-type noninvasive physiological sensor.
14. The method of claim 12 further comprising:
receiving data from the information element;
activating the emitter of the sensor to emit light from the emitter of the sensor through the first aperture such that the light is incident on the first region of the finger and travels through and is attenuated by the tissue of the finger, the attenuated light exiting the finger at the second region of the finger and traveling through the second aperture;
receiving the attenuated light by the detector of the sensor; and
processing one or more signals from the sensor indicative of the attenuated light to determine one or more physiological parameters of the patient.
15. The method of claim 14 , further comprising performing a function based at least in part on the data received from the information element.
16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the function is a quality control function.