Pressure data acquisition device for a patient monitoring system

A data acquisition device located in a first housing for use in a patient monitoring area having a patient monitoring system located therein for monitoring a patient, which patient monitoring system includes a signal processing and display device located in a second housing which is remote and independently positionable from said first housing, but still located in said patient monitoring area, and a plurality of pressure transducers adapted to be coupled to a patient, said transducers producing a plurality of patient blood pressure signals, the data acquisition device comprising:

• receiving means in said first housing for receiving signals representing blood pressure from said plurality of pressure transducers;
• conditioning means, coupled to said receiving means, located in said first housing, and responsive to control signals from said signal processing and display device for controllably conditioning the signals representing blood pressure for transmission to the signal processing and display device, the pressure transducers and the conditioning means being collocated, and the conditioning means, due to being located in said first housing, being positionable independent of the signal processing and display device located in said second housing;
• means for electrically coupling the pressure transducers with the conditioning means;
• and
• bi-directional communication means for selectively coupling the conditioning means with the signal processing and display device, to provide for the transmission of said control signals from said signal processing and display device located in said second housing to said data acquisition device located in said first housing for controlling said conditioning means, and to provide for the transmission of the conditioned blood pressure signals from said first housing to the signal processing and display device in said second housing.