Wireless microwave and RF technology enters medical applications
The use of imaging devices such as MRI is increasing, and more than 60 million MRI diagnoses are currently performed globally each year. They are commonly used to diagnose various diseases and injuries such as Alzheimer's disease (Alzheimer's disease), cancer cells, and ligament tears. The imaging system uses a variety of RF/microwave devices, including oscillators, transmitters, and antennas. For example, Analog Devices now offers a 32-bit data converter (DAC) AD5791 designed to improve imaging resolution.
The AD5791 has true resolution and accuracy in parts per million (ppm) (Figure 1). The AD5791 has a relative accuracy specification of ±1LSB DNL to ensure operational consistency. The DAC's low frequency noise is only 0.025ppm and the output drift is only 0.05ppm/C. Such low noise reduces undesirable image artifacts, thereby reducing the need for multiple MRI scans, so patients can be diagnosed in less time. The output can be configured as a standard unipolar (+5V, +10V) or bipolar (±5V, ±10 V) range. The AD5791's 3-wire serial interface operates at a clock rate of 50MHz.
Figure 1: The ADI single-chip DAC is highly accurate and enables very clear diagnostic imaging images.
Spectroscopic applications are another growth market for RF/microwave technology in the medical field, which essentially achieves chemical analysis by illuminating light onto specimens. Recently, Agilent and the University of Texas at Dallas announced plans to create a millimeter wave and submillimeter wave electronic characterization facility. The facility will initially support feasibility studies for 180- to 300-GHz spectroscopy on CMOS for healthcare and safety applications.
For many years, Microwave Devices has been providing devices for medical imaging applications such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems. While imaging applications continue to offer solid opportunities, many other medical applications are beginning to open the door to wireless microwave and RF technologies. For example, remote monitoring supports doctors who wirelessly send health conditions such as blood pressure, pulse, etc. to their patients at home. Other innovations are also helping hospitals and medical centers to track the location of assets and individuals. In the existing imaging market and new opportunities being created by wireless technology, the medical industry has become a real new market, and many microwave and RF companies have targeted this. Fortunately, many of these opportunities require only these companies to leverage their expertise in telecommunications and wireless LANs.
Hittite Microwave's new line of comparators also locks in spectral applications. The company said the six comparators have the following features: 20Gbps, 150mW, 120ps clock-to-data output latency (Figure 2). Typically, they have a detectable input pulse width of at least 60ps, while the nominal random jitter is only 0.2ps. These comparators support a common-mode input voltage range of ±1.75V with typical overdrive and slew rate deviations of less than 10ps. The HMC874LC3C, HMC875LC3C, and HMC876LC3C monolithic comparators feature high-speed latching with programmable hysteresis, which provide low-swing PECL, CML, and ECL output drivers, respectively.
Figure 2: Hittite Microwave's comparators meet the requirements of spectroscopic applications.
The company also announced three new single-chip 10GHz comparators HMC674LC3C, HMC675LC3C and HMC676LC3C with level-lock inputs. The three comparators support a 10 GHz input bandwidth with a transmission delay of 85 ps and a minimum pulse width of 60 ps at 0.2 ps RMS random jitter. They have an overdrive and slew rate dispersion of 10 ps and a power consumption of less than 140 mW. These devices feature differential latch control and programmable hysteresis and can be configured to operate in latched mode or as a tracking comparator. Like the rest of the family, they offer low swing PECL, CML and ECL output drivers.
Wireless technology in medical applications
To enter the medical market, it is important to understand which wireless standards are dominant. Interestingly, leading technologies are mainstream technologies such as ZigBee or IEEE 802.15.4, Bluetooth, IEEE 802.11x, and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). Looking ahead, the Continua Health Alliance seems to be driving the development of standards in the healthcare sector to a large extent. Its mission is to create an interoperable system for personal health programmes that promotes autonomy and enables individuals and institutions to better manage health and safeguard benefits.
The Continua Health Alliance has approved ZigBee Health Care as a low-power local area network (LAN) standard for sensing and control in professional environments, homes, event centers, and large campuses. ZigBee Health Care is the global open standard for interoperable wireless devices that securely monitors and manages non-significant, low-risk health care services such as chronic diseases, obesity, and aging. ZigBee Health Care fully supports IEEE 11073 devices. ZigBee Health Care provides uninterrupted wireless connectivity to support thousands of devices on a single network. ZigBee can coexist peacefully with other wireless technologies such as Wi-Fi, which is a key requirement for protecting patients in medical facilities and ensuring their applications. ZigBee Health Care devices can interact with other ZigBee wireless technologies deployed in consumer electronics, home automation, and commercial building automation.
Companies such as Freescale use ZigBee for a variety of healthcare products. The newly approved ZigBee Health Care standard provides a global open standard for interoperable low-power wireless devices. In this way, it ensures the safety monitoring and management of non-fatal, non-emergency health services such as chronic disease management, care for the elderly, health care, hospitalization management and asset tracking. It supports thousands of devices in a network and provides full support for IEEE 11073 devices, enabling each device to pass FDA certification.
ADI's analog circuit, the ADF7242, operates in the 2.4GHz Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) band and supports 250kbps in IEEE 802.15.4 mode. This transceiver can be used to implement solutions based on protocols such as ZigBeeIPv6/6LowWPAN. The ADF7242 supports IEEE 802.15.4 and GFSK/FSK dual-mode operation, which means that the same device can support IEEE 802.15.4-based standards at 250kbps and GFSK/FSK modulation at 2Mbps. There is an agreement.
More than a year ago, Continua's second edition of the design guide approved Bluetooth low energy. Low-power Bluetooth wireless technology is a key feature of the 4.0 version of the Bluetooth core specification, which enables button-powered, compact wireless products and sensors. These small, low-cost solutions are expected to foster a variety of medical watch, remote control and medical sensor markets.
Texas Instruments (TI) is one of the advocates for using Bluetooth for wireless medical applications. The company integrated its seventh-generation Bluetooth product, the CC2560, with an embedded Bluetooth stack to run on its MSP430 microcontroller (MCU). Designers can connect to analog signals, sensors, and digital devices simultaneously in a range of portable devices using low-power MSP430 MCUs.
Remote monitoring application
In hospitals, clinics and homes, remote monitoring involving wireless networks is probably the most prosperous medical market. The most attractive aspect of remote monitoring is that it can also be used to communicate with patients and educate patients. Of course, the need to send and receive information at the same time will have different requirements for the required equipment and network infrastructure. In a clinical study conducted in Illinois, remote monitoring was used to manage the administration of Gleevec. Gleevec is a drug developed and produced by Novartis for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia. The study will assess the use of a mobile-based personalized drug management system called eMedonline.
In this study, eMedonline, as a "smart service", leveraged the wireless capabilities of radio frequency identification (RFID) and mobile phones to turn a smartphone into a drug sensor. The mobile phone wirelessly reads and collects drug data from the RFID "smart tag" on the drug package in real time. It monitors the patient's reported results and helps verify that the patient took the right drug at the right time. The data in the phone is sent wirelessly to a secure server for clinical review and analysis using the data in the server. Alerts can be sent as appropriate to intervene in missed medications or adverse conditions so that they do not become a serious health risk. The original intention of this study came from the fact that patients often do not follow the doctor's advice.
In a recent demonstration in Boston to improve medication adherence, Bluetooth-enabled Vena inhalers record historical data on doses in real time and wirelessly. The data is uploaded to a user-centric software platform called Vena-Hub, which alerts the patient when they don't take the medication on time. Vena-Hub, which is used to collect data from the wireless medical device ecosystem, is also the gateway to Vena's spirometer. Data such as medication adherence and vital capacity are combined with other variables such as pollen counts to form a series of recommendations and related information that are then automatically sent to the user via an alert. Alerts can be sent via online readers, community networks, emails, and even text messages.
Another benefit of remote monitoring is that experts will be able to communicate with patients in rural areas, who will not have to travel long distances. For example, AT&T recently announced an agreement with the University of California. As part of this three-year, $27 million contract, AT&T will provide managed web services to support this telehealth program. The California Telehealth Network is a statewide alliance of healthcare, technology, government, and other interested parties seeking funding from the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Rural Health Care Pilot Program. The network is building a statewide network infrastructure that connects small hospitals, small clinics, and experts in large hospitals and large hospitals. When the network is completed, it will cover more than 860 sites across the state.
Wireless network standards are also increasingly used for asset tracking projects. For example, Henry Mayo Hospital has signed an agreement with AT&T to deploy AeroScout's Wi-Fi RFID asset tracking and temperature monitoring solution. As the disaster resource center in Los Angeles County, Henry Mayo Hospital is responsible for providing medical equipment, medicines, and providing care to society as a whole in the event of an emergency. AeroScout's asset tracking and management program is designed to help hospitals track hospital-wide use of key assets such as hospital beds, wheelchairs, gurneys, patient-controlled analgesia pumps and infusion pumps. In addition, AeroScout's temperature monitoring program simplifies the implementation of the requirements of the International Hospital Accreditation Joint Commission Regulations by ensuring that the temperature in the refrigerator meets the temperature range specified for the shelf life of drugs, tissue samples and other temperature-sensitive materials.
At the San Jerome Health and Social Service Center in Quebec, Canada, hospital staff wear the Ekahau pager label so they can be easily located. This T301BD Wi-Fi pager tag has two-way communication capabilities that enable users to send and receive text messages. These pagers also include a dedicated button that can be pressed in the event of an emergency. The Ekahau real-time location system uses the hospital's existing Wi-Fi network to locate small labels powered by button batteries within a network's coverage in seconds.
These products and services are some of the more dominant and growing applications in the healthcare industry today. As technology advances and the implementation of broadband plans, more opportunities will emerge. The backbone of these new services and systems relies on wireless networks to collect and provide information. At the same time, Microwave will continue to succeed in areas such as imaging. A number of factors will lead to a growing market that provides profitable opportunities for companies and their products.
Of course, with the advent of new medical services, more standards and technologies will emerge, such as the implementation of medical applications in conjunction with fourth-generation communication standards such as Long Term Evolution (LTE) and broadband technologies such as WiMAX.
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