Monitoring electrical muscular activity
AssigneeQuinetiq Limited
InventorMatthew Thomas
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method of monitoring electrical activity non-invasively (such as uterine activity) which includes applying a localised group of electrodes to a patient's skin and monitoring signals thereon. The electrodes are localised sufficiently such that their muscular signal contributions simulate a single source despite source non-stationarity. The signals are amplified, filtered and digitised. They are then digitally filtered and processed by independent component analysis (ICA) to separate a muscular activity source from other sources. The method may be used to monitor maternal uterine activity, fetal activity and maternal and fetal cardiac activity simultaneously with the aid of additional electrodes and associated circuitry.
Claims18
A method of monitoring electrical muscular activity non-invasively, the muscular activity being stationary or non-stationary, and the method including the steps of:
- a) providing a signal separation technique suitable for separating stationary signals,
- b) placing a plurality of low-noise signal electrodes externally upon a patient's skin for detection of muscular activity, the signal electrodes being localised sufficiently such that:
- i) their muscular signal contributions simulate a single muscular source to the signal separation technique despite any non-stationarity of the muscular source, and
- ii) the number of sources detected by the signal separation technique is not more than the number of signal electrodes;
- and
- c) applying the signal separation technique to signals received from the signal electrodes to separate the muscular source.
An apparatus for monitoring electrical muscular activity non-invasively, the muscular activity being stationary or non-stationary, the apparatus comprising:
- a) computer apparatus for implementing a signal separation technique suitable for separating stationary signals,
- b) a plurality of low-noise signal electrodes for placing externally upon a patient's skin for detection of muscular activity, the signal electrodes being suitable for localisation sufficiently such that:
- i) their muscular signal contributions will simulate a single muscular source to the signal separation technique despite any non-stationarity of the muscular source, and
- ii) the number of sources detected by the signal separation technique will not be more than the number of signal electrodes;
- and
- c) processing means for processing signals received from the signal electrodes into digital signals suitable for application of the signal separation technique by the computer apparatus to separate the muscular source.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.