Patent ID: 8886290

Claim:
A medical device for determining placement of a tracheal tube in a subject comprising: a processor configured to execute instructions for: driving a light source to emit light through a plurality of optical conductors circumferentially spaced apart on a beveled distal end of a tracheal tube disposed in a subject, wherein the beveled distal end is slanted relative to a gas flow pathway of the tracheal tube; determining an intensity of the emitted light from each of the respective plurality of optical conductors; receiving information from a first detector configured to receive returned light emitted from each of the respective plurality of optical conductors after interaction with an anatomical structure of the subject; determining an intensity of the returned light emitted from each of the respective plurality of optical conductors based at least in part upon the information from the first detector; and determining a relative position of the beveled distal end of the tracheal tube within a trachea of the subject relative to the anatomical structure based at least in part on the intensity of the emitted light from each of the respective plurality of optical conductors and the intensity of the returned light emitted from each of the respective plurality of optical conductors and a difference in path length between the plurality of optical conductors wherein the difference in path length is representative of a position of each respective optical conductor about the beveled distal end; and a memory storing the instructions; wherein the processor is configured to access the memory to execute the instructions.