# US 11,896,357 B2 · Systems and methods for detecting physical changes without physical contact > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,896,357 B2 - Document ID: US11896357B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 18/052,655 - Filed: 2022-11-04 - Published: 2023-04-13 - Granted: 2024-02-13 - Earliest claimed: 2016-01-27 - Assignees: Life Detection Technologies, Inc. - Applicants: Life Detection Technologies, Inc. - Inventors: John B. Langley, II; Guy McIlroy - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11896357B2 ## CPC - A61B 5/05: Detecting, measuring or recording for diagnosis by means of electric currents or magnetic fields; Measuring using microwaves or radio waves (measuring movement of the entire body or parts thereof A61B5/11; detecting, measuring or recording bioelectric or biomagnetic signals of the body or parts thereof A61B5/24) - A61B 5/7228: {Signal modulation applied to the input signal sent to patient or subject; Demodulation to recover the physiological signal} - A61B 5/725: {using specific filters therefor, e.g. Kalman or adaptive filters (specific diagnostics methods using using bioelectric or biomagnetic signals A61B5/316)} - A61B 5/7278: {Artificial waveform generation or derivation, e.g. synthesizing signals from measured signals} - A61B 5/742: {using visual displays (displays for heart-related electrical signals, e.g. ECG, A61B5/339)} - G01R 29/0814: {Field measurements related to measuring influence on or from apparatus, components or humans (EMC, EMI and similar testing in general G01R31/001), e.g. in ESD, EMI, EMC, EMP testing, measuring radiation leakage; detecting presence of micro- or radiowave emitters; dosimetry; testing shielding; measurements related to lightning} - A61B 5/024: Measuring pulse rate or heart rate - A61B 5/0816: {Measuring devices for examining respiratory frequency (measuring frequency of electric signals G01R23/00)} - A61B 5/7225: {Details of analogue processing, e.g. isolation amplifier, gain or sensitivity adjustment, filtering, baseline or drift compensation (input circuits for detecting, measuring, or recording bioelectric or biomagnetic signals A61B5/30; specific diagnostic methods using bioelectric or biomagnetic signals A61B5/316)} - A61B: DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION (usefulness limited to only animals A61D) - G01R: MEASURING ELECTRIC VARIABLES; MEASURING MAGNETIC VARIABLES (indicating correct tuning of resonant circuits H03J3/12) ## Abstract Systems and methods are provided for detecting and analyzing changes in a body. For example, a system includes an electric field generator configured to produce an electric field. The system includes an external sensor device configured to detect physical changes in the electric field, where the physical changes affect amplitude and frequency of the electric field. The system includes a quadrature demodulator configured to detect changes of the frequency of the output of the electric field generator. The system includes an amplitude reference source and an amplitude comparison switch configured to detect changes of the amplitude of the output of the electric field generator. The system includes a signal processor configured to analyze the changes of the amplitude and frequency of the output of the electric field generator. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A system comprising: an electric field generator comprising an oscillator oscillating at a frequency, the electric field generator establishing an electric field around a desired area of detection that includes a body being monitored; a demodulator coupled to an output of the electric field generator and outputting a signal indicative of a change in a frequency of the generated electric field around the desired area of detection, wherein the demodulator multiplies the output of the electric field generator by a phase-shifted version of the output of the electric field generator, the phase-shifted version of the output of the electric field generator being generated by a resonant circuit; and wherein characteristics of the body being monitored cause the change in the frequency of the generated electric field around the desired area of detection. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising: an external sensor coupled to the electric field generator, the external sensor monitoring the frequency of the generated electric field around the desired area of detection. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising a signal processor configured to analyze the change in the frequency of the generated electric field. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, further comprising a low pass filter coupled between the demodulator and the signal processor. ### Claim 5 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, wherein the signal processor is configured to separate a plurality of signal components in the output of the demodulator, each signal component associated with a separate constituent of the body. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The system of claim 5, wherein the plurality of signal components includes a heart rate signal and a respiration rate signal. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising a display configured to provide a plurality of bodily function features based on the change in the frequency of the generated electric field, the bodily function features including a vascular process and a respiration process. ### Claim 8 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, further comprising a sample-and-hold device coupled between the electric field generator and the signal processor. ### Claim 9 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, wherein the signal processor comprises the demodulator. ### Claim 10 A method comprising: establishing, by an electric field generator, an electric field around a desired area of detection that includes a body being monitored, the electric field generator comprising an oscillator oscillating at a frequency; and detecting, by a demodulator coupled to an output of the electric field generator, a change in a frequency of the generated electric field around the desired area of detection, wherein the detecting comprises multiplying the output of the electric field generator by a phase-shifted version of the output of the electric field generator, the phase-shifted version of the output of the electric field generator being generated by a resonant circuit; wherein characteristics of the body being monitored cause the change in the frequency of the generated electric field around the desired area of detection. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, further comprising: monitoring, by an external sensor, the frequency of the generated electric field around the desired area of detection. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, further comprising: analyzing, by a signal processor, the change in the frequency of the generated electric field. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, further comprising: filtering an output of the demodulator using a low pass filter to generate a filtered response, and providing the filtered response to the signal processor. ### Claim 14 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, further comprising: separating a plurality of signal components in an output of the demodulator, each signal component associated with a separate constituent of the body. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The method of claim 14, wherein the plurality of signal components includes a heart rate signal and a respiration rate signal. ### Claim 16 (depends on 10) The method of claim 10, further comprising: providing a plurality of bodily function features based on the change in the frequency of the generated electric field, the bodily function features including a vascular process and a respiration process. ### Claim 17 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, further comprising: providing, to the signal processor, a signal based on a sampled response of the output of the electric field generator. ### Claim 18 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein the detecting is performed by the signal processor. ### Claim 19 A non-transitory computer-readable medium containing instructions which when executed by a processor perform steps of: generating, by an electric field generator, an electric field around a desired area of detection that includes a body being monitored, the electric field generator comprising an oscillator oscillating at a frequency; and detecting, by a demodulator, a change in a frequency of the generated electric field, and wherein the detecting comprises analyzing an output of an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) coupled to a sample-and-hold circuit configured to sample an output of the electric field generator; wherein characteristics of the body being monitored cause the change in the frequency of the generated electric field around the desired area of detection. ### Claim 20 (depends on 19) The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 19, wherein the steps further comprise: separating a plurality of signal components in an output of the demodulator each signal component associated with a separate constituent of the body.