Method for defining access perimeters and handling perimeter breach events by residents of an assisted living facility
Inventors
Devdas, Vikram • McNamara, Shane • Pang, Christopher • Heaton, Richard
Assignees
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Publication Number
US-10726699-B2
Publication Date
2020-07-28
Expiration Date
Abstract
One variation of a method for detecting breach events by residents of an assisted living facility includes: defining a first access perimeter within a facility; assigning the first access perimeter to a first resident, in a set of residents in the facility; tracking locations of resident wearable devices associated with residents, in the set of residents, within the facility; disabling a first subregion within the first access perimeter coincident a second location of a second resident, in the set of residents, flagged for separation from the first resident; and, in response to a first location of a first resident wearable device associated with the first resident falling outside of the first access perimeter, distributing a first breach event prompt to assist the first resident, proximal the first location, to care provider mobile devices associated with care providers affiliated with the facility.
Core Innovation
The invention provides methods for detecting breach events by residents of an assisted living facility by defining an access perimeter structure that includes a generic access perimeter, resident-specific individual access perimeters, and in some cases group access perimeters. The generic access perimeter is assigned to residents occupying the facility, and the individual access perimeter excludes a portion of the generic access perimeter based on resident-specific conditions.
The method tracks locations of resident wearable devices associated with residents within the facility over time and uses the tracked locations relative to the applicable access perimeter or perimeters to determine whether a resident is outside the perimeter. To support timely care-provider response, the invention defines care-provider response areas associated with locations of care provider mobile devices over a period of time, and it integrates these response areas into individual access perimeters.
In response to a resident’s wearable device location falling outside an assigned access perimeter at a time, the method distributes a breach event prompt to care provider mobile devices proximal the resident’s location. Some embodiments further include a two-stage prompting flow that distributes a perimeter observation prompt when a device approaches a boundary and distributes the breach event prompt when the device moves beyond the boundary.
The invention also incorporates separation and restriction handling by disabling or excluding subregions within an access perimeter that coincide with locations of another resident flagged for separation. Additional perimeter definitions may vary by daytime versus nighttime periods and may be based on resident characteristics and historical breach events proximal the exterior space.
Claims Coverage
The provided partial content includes three independent claims (clm-00001, clm-00014, clm-00016). Across these independent claims, the inventive features focus on access perimeters, resident wearable device location tracking, separation handling, and distributing breach event prompts to care provider mobile devices proximal the breach location.
Access perimeter definition and resident assignment
Defining a generic access perimeter within a facility; assigning the generic access perimeter to residents in a set of residents occupying the facility; defining a first individual access perimeter excluding a first portion of the generic access perimeter; and assigning perimeters during daytime period and night time period distinct from the daytime period.
Resident location tracking and care-provider response area
Tracking locations of resident wearable devices associated with residents within the facility; tracking locations of a first care provider mobile device within the facility over a period of time; and defining a first care provider response area containing and extending outwardly from the locations of the first care provider mobile device over the period of time.
Breach event detection and distribution of prompts
In response to a resident wearable device location falling outside of an assigned access perimeter, distributing a breach event prompt to assist the resident proximal the location to care provider mobile devices associated with care providers affiliated with the facility.
Disabled subregion coincident with a separated resident
Defining a first access perimeter within a facility; assigning the first access perimeter to a first resident; tracking locations of resident wearable devices associated with residents within the facility; and disabling a first subregion within a first access perimeter coincident a second location of a second resident flagged for separation from the first resident.
Generic, group, and individual access perimeters based on resident characteristics
Defining a generic access perimeter within a facility; assigning the generic access perimeter to residents by default; identifying a first resident group comprising residents characterized by a first characteristic; defining a first group access perimeter excluding a first portion of the generic access perimeter based on the first characteristic; and defining a second individual access perimeter excluding a second portion of the generic access perimeter based on a second characteristic of a second resident.
Across clm-00001, clm-00014, and clm-00016, the claim coverage is centered on detecting resident breach events by comparing tracked resident wearable device locations against defined access perimeters, using care-provider mobile device location tracking and response areas in conjunction with perimeter definitions, and distributing breach event prompts to nearby care-provider mobile devices when a resident’s location falls outside the applicable perimeter, including disabling or excluding subregions associated with separation from another resident.
Stated Advantages
Provides detection of breach events by residents of an assisted living facility based on wearable device locations relative to access perimeters.
Distributes breach event prompts to care provider mobile devices proximal the resident’s location in response to outside-perimeter detection.
Supports different perimeter assignments for daytime versus nighttime periods.
Disables or excludes subregions coincident with a second resident location flagged for separation from the first resident.
Supports group-based access perimeter definition based on resident characteristics and historical breach events proximal the exterior space.
Enables more localized prompting by incorporating care provider response area into an individual access perimeter.
Documented Applications
Monitoring residents in an assisted living facility for breach events by tracking resident wearable device locations and prompting affiliated care providers when a resident’s location falls outside an assigned access perimeter.
Assisted-living resident assistance in cases involving separation from another resident by disabling subregions coincident with locations of a separated resident flagged for separation.
Assisted-living breach detection with perimeter assignments varying by daytime period versus nighttime period distinct from the daytime period.
Assisted-living breach detection that distinguishes resident groups based on a first characteristic and identifies a first resident group comprising residents associated with historical breach events proximal the exterior space.
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