Patent ID: 8483810

Claim:
A maternal uterine contraction and fetal movement monitoring apparatus, configured to monitor a maternal body and a fetus, the maternal uterine contraction and fetal movement monitoring apparatus comprising: a plurality of sensors, attached on an abdomen of the maternal body configured to provide at least three measuring leads; a signal pre-processor, configured to receive a plurality of sensing signals from the sensors, and configured to reduce noises in the sensing signals and amplify the sensing signals to output a plurality of characteristic sensing signals; a first signal post-processor, configured to receive the characteristic sensing signals from the signal pre-processor, and to filter noises out of the characteristic sensing signals to obtain a plurality of information of the maternal body and the fetus, wherein the information comprises a maternal electrocardiogram (MECG) signal, a maternal uterine electromyography (EMG) signal, and a FECG signal; a first analysis unit, configured to calculate a fetal sympathetic nerve activity signal according to the information obtained by the first signal post-processor; a second signal post-processor, configured to receive the characteristic sensing signals from the signal pre-processor and separate out a plurality of FECGs and a plurality of maternal uterine contraction signals corresponding to the measuring leads; a second analysis unit, configured to receive signals output by the second signal post-processor, analyze the FECG and a MECG corresponding to each of the measuring leads to monitor an energy variation, and obtain a uterine contraction status signal according to the maternal uterine contraction signals; and a third analysis unit, configured to determine whether there is a fetal movement according to the uterine contraction status signal, the energy variation signals, and the fetal sympathetic nerve activity signal through a fetal movement identification technique, wherein the fetal sympathetic nerve activity signal increases an accuracy in detecting the fetal movement, wherein a fetal movement is determined if the FECGs corresponding to the measuring leads change and the fetal sympathetic nerve activity signal reflects a positive result.