# US 11,432,991 B2 · Chest wall oscillation system with digital auscultation

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- Number: US 11,432,991 B2
- Document ID: US11432991B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 16/098,573
- Filed: 2017-05-11
- Published: 2019-05-16
- Granted: 2022-09-06
- Earliest claimed: 2016-05-11
- Assignees: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
- Applicants: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
- Inventors: Seunghyun Lee
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11432991B2

## CPC

- A61H 9/0078: {with intermittent or alternately inflated bladders or cuffs (mattresses for preventing bed-sores with alternated pressurized chambers A61G7/05776)}
- A61B 7/003: {Detecting lung or respiration noise}
- A61H 1/00: Apparatus for passive exercising (A61H5/00 takes precedence); Vibrating apparatus; Chiropractic devices, e.g. body impacting devices, external devices for briefly extending or aligning unbroken bones
- A61H 23/006: {Percussion or tapping massage (hand percussion A61H23/06)}
- A61H 23/02: with electric or magnetic drive
- A61H 23/0245: {with ultrasonic transducers, e.g. piezoelectric}
- A61H 23/04: with hydraulic or pneumatic drive {(hydraulic or Pneumatic massages, A61H9/00; underwater massages, A61H33/00)}
- A61H 31/00: Artificial respiration by a force applied to the chest; Heart stimulation, e.g. heart massage (applying electric currents by contact electrodes for stimulation, e.g. heart pace-makers, A61N1/36 {; teaching or training models, demonstration models for medical purposes G09B23/288})
- A61B 5/0051: {by applying vibrations}
- A61H 2201/1619: Thorax
- A61H 2201/1621: Holding means therefor
- A61H 2201/1623: Back
- A61H 2201/1626: Holding means therefor
- A61H 2201/165: Wearable interfaces
- A61H 2201/5005: for controlling frequency distribution, modulation or interference of a driving signal
- A61H 2201/5043: Displays
- A61H 2201/5097: wireless
- A61H 2205/084: Chest
- A61H 2230/405: used as a control parameter for the apparatus
- A61H: PHYSICAL THERAPY APPARATUS, e.g. DEVICES FOR LOCATING OR STIMULATING REFLEX POINTS IN THE BODY; ARTIFICIAL RESPIRATION; MASSAGE; BATHING DEVICES FOR SPECIAL THERAPEUTIC OR HYGIENIC PURPOSES OR SPECIFIC PARTS OF THE BODY (electrotherapy, magnetotherapy, radiation therapy or ultrasound therapy A61N)
- A61B: DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION (usefulness limited to only animals A61D)

## Abstract

Described is a wearable device configured to oscillate a chest of a user. The wearable device may include a chest wall oscillator, a sound detector, and a controller for controlling operations of the chest wall oscillator, based on sound from the sound detector. The chest wall oscillator may be mounted on the chest of the user to oscillate the chest of the user. The sound detector may detect the sound from the chest of the user before, during, and/or after operation of the chest wall oscillator. The controller may change one or more of a frequency, intensity, or duration of the oscillations of the chest wall oscillator, depending on an analysis of the sound from the sound detector.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A wearable device configured to oscillate a chest of a user, comprising:
a wearable garment;
a chest wall oscillator mounted on the wearable garment and configured to be mounted on the chest of the user and to oscillate the chest of the user in a therapy session;
a sound detector mounted on the wearable garment and configured to detect sound from the chest of the user and to output signals corresponding to the sound; and
a controller configured to receive the output signals from the sound detector;
the controller being configured to:
characterize the output signals of the sound detector as one or more adventitious lung sounds;
determine, based on the one or more adventitious lung sounds, an efficacy of the therapy session; and
generate control output signals based upon determination of the efficacy, the control output signals of the controller being communicated to the chest wall oscillator to control one or more of a frequency of oscillations, an intensity of oscillations, and a duration of the therapy session;
wherein the controller comprises one or more processors configured to characterize the output signals of the sound detector as one or more adventitious lung sounds using computer aided lung sound analysis (CALSA);
wherein the one or more processors are configured to quantify one or more of a number of crackles per breath cycle (nBC), a 2-cycle deflection width (2CD), a duration of crackles, a number of regions with crackles, or an intensity of crackles; and
wherein the controller is further configured to increase one or more of the controlled frequency, intensity, or duration from an initial frequency, intensity, and/or duration, respectively, if one or more of the quantified nBC number, 2CD width, duration of crackles, number of regions with crackles, or intensity of crackles is greater than a predetermined threshold;
wherein the predetermined threshold is one or more of a degree of change, a rate of change, a direction of change, and a speed of change in response to therapy.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the chest wall oscillator comprises one or more solenoids, actuators, or bladders.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the chest wall oscillator comprises a plurality of oscillating elements, each oscillating element of the plurality of oscillating elements being operated individually at one or more of a different frequency or intensity.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the sound detector comprises one or more stethoscopes and/or microphones.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the sound detector comprises five sound detection elements, the five sound detection elements being positioned to come in contact with a right upper lobe, left upper lobe, right middle lobe, right lower lobe, and left lower lobe, respectively, of the user.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the wearable garment comprises a wearable vest configured to carry the chest wall oscillator and the sound detector.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The wearable device of claim 6, wherein the wearable vest is further configured to carry the controller and a power supply.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The wearable device of claim 1, further comprising a remote controller configured to receive another set of output signals from the controller and to control the control output signals of the controller based upon the another set of output signals.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to change one or more of the controlled frequency, intensity, or duration responsive to comparison of one or more of the quantified nBC number, 2CD width, duration of crackles, number of regions with crackles, or intensity of crackles to the predetermined threshold.

### Claim 10

A method of operation of a chest wall oscillation system, comprising:
oscillating, with a chest wall oscillator mounted on a wearable garment, a chest of a user in a therapy session;
detecting sound at a sound detector mounted on the wearable garment;
characterizing the detected sound at one or more processors of the chest wall oscillation system as one or more adventitious lung sounds;
determining, based on the one or more adventitious lung sounds, an efficacy of the therapy session; and
controlling, based on the determining, one or more of: a frequency of the chest wall oscillator, an intensity of the chest wall oscillator, and a duration of the therapy session;
wherein the characterizing comprises quantifying one or more of a number of crackles per breath cycle (nBC), a 2-cycle deflection width (2CD), a duration of crackles, a number of regions with crackles, or an intensity of crackles; and
wherein the controlling includes increasing one or more of the frequency, intensity, or duration from an initial frequency, intensity, and/or duration, respectively, if one or more of the quantified nBC number, 2CD width, duration of crackles, number of regions with crackles, or intensity of crackles is greater than a predetermined threshold;
wherein the predetermined threshold is one or more of a degree of change, a rate of change, a direction of change, and a speed of change in response to therapy.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein the chest wall oscillator comprises a plurality of solenoids, actuators, or bladders, each of the plurality of solenoids, actuators, or bladders being operable at a different frequency or intensity.

### Claim 12 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein the sound detector comprises a plurality of sound detection elements, the plurality of sound detection elements detecting the sound from different regions.

### Claim 13 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein the controlling of the chest wall oscillator is partly or entirely performed by a remote controller.

### Claim 14 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10, wherein the controlling changes one or more of the controlled frequency, intensity, or duration responsive to comparison of one or more of the quantified nBC number, 2CD width, duration of crackles, number of regions with crackles, or intensity of crackles to the predetermined threshold.

### Claim 15

A wearable device configured to oscillate a chest of a user, comprising:
chest wall oscillation means of a wearable garment for oscillating the chest of the user in a therapy session;
sound detection means of the wearable garment for detecting sound from the chest of the user and outputting signals corresponding to the detected sound;
control means for receiving the output signals from the sound detection means, the control means comprising a processing means for characterizing the output signals of the sound detection means as one or more adventitious lung sounds, determining based on the one or more adventitious lung sounds an efficacy of the therapy session, and generating control output signals based upon determination of the efficacy, the control output signals of the processing means being communicated to the chest wall oscillation means to control one or more of a frequency of oscillations, an intensity of oscillations, and a duration of the therapy session;
wherein the control means comprises one or more processors configured to characterize the output signals of the sound detector as one or more adventitious lung sounds using computer aided lung sound analysis (CALSA);
wherein the one or more processors are configured to quantify one or more of a number of crackles per breath cycle (nBC), a 2-cycle deflection width (2CD), a duration of crackles, a number of regions with crackles, or an intensity of crackles; and
wherein the control means is further configured to increase one or more of the controlled frequency, intensity, or duration from an initial frequency, intensity, and/or duration, respectively, if one or more of the quantified nBC number, 2CD width, duration of crackles, number of regions with crackles, or intensity of crackles is greater than a predetermined threshold;
wherein the predetermined threshold is one or more of a degree of change, a rate of change, a direction of change, and a speed of change in response to therapy.

### Claim 16 (depends on 15)

The wearable device of claim 15, wherein control means is configured to change one or more of the controlled frequency, intensity, or duration responsive to comparison of one or more of the quantified nBC number, 2CD width, duration of crackles, number of regions with crackles, or intensity of crackles to the predetermined threshold.