Patent ID: 11883158
Assignee: HILL-ROM SERVICES, INC.
Field: Medical technology (Instruments)
Classification: CPC A | IPC A

Claim 7:
8. A method of predicting an occupant exit from a support apparatus, the method comprising:
receiving data inputs detected from one or more force sensors positioned on a frame of the support apparatus, wherein the data inputs are analog-to-digital (A/D) counts representing voltage or current magnitudes of the one or more force sensors, and the data inputs are received without zeroing the one or more force sensors;
detecting changes in the data inputs from the one or more force sensors without combining the data inputs to determine a weight of an occupant of the support apparatus, the detected changes in the data inputs are detected changes in the A/D counts received from each of the force sensors individually;
storing predefined changes in A/D counts associated with movement trends, wherein the movement trends are associated with movements performed by occupants in order to exit the support apparatus;
determining whether the detected changes indicate a movement trend by comparing the detected changes to the predefined changes to determine whether the detected changes are indicative of the movement trend;
determining an exit prediction based at least partially on the movement trend, the exit prediction indicating a likelihood for the occupant exit from the support apparatus; and
generating a notification based on the exit prediction, wherein the notification is generated on the support apparatus.