Patent ID: 6999904

Claim:
A signal processor capable of reducing unwanted fluctuations in oxygen saturation values while substantially tracking the occurrence and severity of desaturation events, wherein the oxygen saturation values were derived by processing absorption signals representative of light attenuated by body tissue carrying pulsing blood, the signal processor comprising: a buffer capable of storing a plurality of input oxygen saturation values corresponding to a plurality of time values; a signal confidence indicator; a selected time value based upon said signal confidence indicator; and an estimator capable of determining an oxygen saturation output value at the selected time value, said oxygen saturation output value comprising an estimate for the plurality of input oxygen saturation values; wherein the estimator is an oxygen saturation versus time curve fit to the input oxygen saturation values within the buffer; wherein the oxygen saturation output value is a point along said curve fit at the selected time value; and wherein the selected time value is between an average of the time values and a maximum of the time values.