Patent ID: 8182461
Filing Date: 2012-05-22
Classification: A61M

Abstract:
1. A method of automatically detecting an occlusion in a fluid line of a syringe pump, the syringe pump including a housing adapted to support a syringe containing a plunger moveable inside the syringe by pushing an end of a plunger with a pusher to expel fluid from an outlet of the syringe into a fluid line connected to the outlet and configured to carry the fluid under pressure to a patient, the method comprising: mounting the syringe onto the housing with the plunger end extended; coupling the pusher to the end of the plunger; initiating a pumping sequence to cause the fluid to flow into the fluid line; during the pumping sequence, using a sensor to determine a first instantaneous force value F during the pumping sequence, determining a second instantaneous force value F providing an indication of the occlusion if a slope calculated by dividing a difference between the second instantaneous force value F