Device for monitoring the presence of a person using a reflective energy beam

An apparatus capable of monitoring the presence of a person within a pre-defined space, comprising:

• a pulse generator circuit able to generate pulse waveforms;
• an energy beam source connected to and powered by said pulse generator circuit able to produce a reflectable beam of energy directed toward said person so as to generate a reflected beam of energy;
• an energy beam sensor capable of detecting said reflected beam and generating data regarding the intensity of said reflected beam;
• a control logic circuit connected to said energy beam sensor having internal programming for interpreting said data from said energy beam sensor thereby generating control signals based on said energy beam sensor data;
• and
• an output relay connected to said control logic circuit capable of receiving said control signals from said control logic circuit thereby signaling the presence or absence of said person to an external indicating device.

An apparatus capable of monitoring the presence of a person in a hospital bed, chair, or other support structure and mountable thereon, comprising:

• a pulse generator circuit for outputting pulse waveforms;
• a reflectable energy beam source, connected to and powered by said pulse generator circuit, for production of a focused beam of energy directed toward said person based on said pulse waveforms generated by said pulse generator circuit so as to produce an energy beam reflectable by said person;
• an energy beam sensing circuit for detection of said energy beam, having an output for transmitting data regarding reflected beam intensity;
• a window comparator circuit, connected to said output of said energy beam sensing circuit, able to produce filtered and amplified beam data at its output;
• a control logic circuit, connected to said output of said window comparator circuit, having internal microprocessor programming which interprets said window comparator output circuit data to continuously adjust and control the pulse generator circuit through a first output connected to said pulse generator circuit and to generate a corresponding activation instruction at a second output based on the presence of said person;
• and
• an output relay circuit, connected to said second output of said control logic circuit, which provides an interface to an external occupancy monitoring system by regulating an input signal to said monitoring system for triggering appropriate monitoring circuitry based on said activation instruction.

An apparatus capable of monitoring the presence of a person in a hospital bed, chair, or other support structure and mountable thereon, comprising:

• a pulse generator circuit for outputting pulse waveforms;
• a reflectable energy beam source, connected to and powered by said pulse generator circuit, for production of a focused beam of energy directed toward an area immediately adjacent to said person and based on said pulse waveforms generated by said pulse generator circuit so as to produce an energy beam reflectable by said person upon entry by said person into said adjacent area;
• an energy beam sensing circuit for detection of said energy beam, having an output for transmitting data regarding reflected beam intensity;
• a window comparator circuit, connected to said output of said energy beam sensing circuit, able to produce filtered and amplified beam data at its output;
• a control logic circuit, connected to said output of said window comparator circuit, having internal microprocessor programming which interprets said window comparator output circuit data to continuously adjust and control the pulse generator circuit through a first output connected to said pulse generator circuit and to generate a corresponding activation instruction at a second output based on the presence of said person;
• and
• an output relay circuit, connected to said second output of said control logic circuit, which provides an interface to an external occupancy monitoring system by regulating an input signal to said monitoring system for triggering appropriate monitoring circuitry based on said activation instruction.

An apparatus capable of monitoring the presence of a person within a predetermined location in a hospital bed, chair, or other support structure and mountable thereon, comprising:

• a pulse generator circuit for outputting pulse waveforms;
• an energy beam source, connected to and powered by said pulse generator circuit, for production of a focused beam of energy directed toward said predetermined location and based on said pulse waveforms generated by said pulse generator circuit;
• an energy beam sensing circuit for detection of said energy beam, having an output for transmitting data regarding detected beam intensity;
• a window comparator circuit, connected to said output of said energy beam sensing circuit, able to produce filtered and amplified beam data at its output;
• a control logic circuit, connected to said output of said window comparator circuit, having internal microprocessor programming which interprets said window comparator output circuit data to continuously adjust and control the pulse generator circuit through a first output connected to said pulse generator circuit and to generate a corresponding activation instruction at a second output based on the presence of said person;
• and
• an output relay circuit, connected to said second output of said control logic circuit, which provides an interface to an external occupancy monitoring system by regulating an input signal to said monitoring system for triggering appropriate monitoring circuitry based on said activation instruction.