Patent ID: 9294121
Filing Date: 2016-03-22
CPC Classification: A61B,F04C,G16H,G16Z,H03G,H03M

Claim Text:
1. An apparatus for improving signal to noise ratio of an analog data signal derived from at least one physiological sensor coupled to a patient, the apparatus comprising: at least one sensor that senses the analog data signal, the analog data signal having a first component including patient parameter data and a second component including ancillary data; a converter coupled to the at least one sensor that automatically converts the analog data signal into a digital data signal and decimates the digital data signal from a first sample rate to a second lower sample rate, the converter comprising circuitry; and a gain compensation circuit coupled to the converter including circuitry that automatically measures a magnitude of at least one of the first component and second component of the digital data signal, the gain compensation circuit including circuitry that compares the measured magnitude to a reference value to determine if a gain applied to the analog data signal should be modified and automatically compensates the digital data signal in response to the determination that the analog gain value should be modified, wherein the compensated digital data signal corrects defects associated with a settling period of the converter resulting from modifying the gain applied to the analog data signal such that the first component and the second component can be derived from the digital signal even during the settling period, the first component and the second component characterizing a physiological condition of the patient.