Abstract: A metallic diaphragm disk incorporating a piezoelectric material bonded thereto and operatively coupled to a base rim of a housing provides for closing an open-ended cavity at the first end of the housing. At least one inertial mass is either incorporated in or attached to the housing. A plastic film adhesively bonded to at least one of an outer rim of the housing or an outer-facing surface of the disk provides for receiving an adhesive acoustic interface material to provide for coupling the housing to the skin of a test subject.

Abstract: An auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor electronic test signal applied to a sound generator generates an acoustic sound signal, responsive to which an auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor in proximity to the sound generator generates a corresponding auscultatory sound signal. The auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor electronic test signal incorporates a plurality of frequency components, each frequency component of which incorporates an integral number of wavelengths and is terminated following a duration of time corresponding to the integral number of wavelengths after that frequency component is applied to the corresponding sound generator. A determination of whether or not the auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor is functioning properly is made responsive to an analysis of a Fourier Transform of the auscultatory sound signal.

Abstract: A metallic diaphragm disk incorporating a piezoelectric material bonded thereto and operatively coupled to a base rim of a housing provides for closing an open-ended cavity at the first end of the housing. At least one inertial mass is either incorporated in or attached to the housing. A plastic film adhesively bonded to at least one of an outer rim of the housing or an outer-facing surface of the disk provides for receiving an adhesive acoustic interface material to provide for coupling the housing to the skin of a test subject.

Abstract: At least one of at least one data-dependent scale factor or at least one data-dependent detection threshold is determined responsive to at least one block of time-series data of an auscultatory-sound signal generated by an auscultatory-sound sensor operatively coupled to a portion of the skin of a test-subject, wherein the at least one data-dependent scale factor or at least one data-dependent detection threshold provides a measure of a range of values of the at least one block of time-series data in relation to a predetermined metric, and is used to determine whether or not the auscultatory-sound sensor is either debonded or detached from the skin of the test-subject.

Abstract: At least one sound generator operatively coupleable to a corresponding at least one auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor provides for generating a corresponding at least one sound signal that is applied to the corresponding at least one auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor.

Abstract: An auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor electronic test signal applied to a sound generator generates an acoustic sound signal, responsive to which an auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor in proximity to the sound generator generates a corresponding auscultatory sound signal. The auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor electronic test signal incorporates a plurality of frequency components, each frequency component of which incorporates an integral number of wavelengths and is terminated following a duration of time corresponding to the integral number of wavelengths after that frequency component is applied to the corresponding sound generator. A determination of whether or not the auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor is functioning properly is made responsive to an analysis of a Fourier Transform of the auscultatory sound signal.

Abstract: An auscultatory sound signal acquired by a recording module is coupled through a high-pass filter having a cut-off frequency in the range of 3 to 15 Hz and subsequently filtered with a low-pass filter, and optionally subject to variable-gain amplification under external control—via a USB or wireless interface—of an associated docking system, responsive to the resulting processed auscultatory sound signal.

Abstract: An auscultatory sound signal acquired by a recording module is coupled through a high-pass filter having a cut-off frequency in the range of 3 to 15 Hz and subsequently filtered with a low-pass filter. The high-pass filter incorporates a pair of high-pass filter input circuits having a corresponding pair input terminals across which the auscultatory sound signal is operatively coupled, wherein each high-pass filter input circuit is associated with a corresponding input of an electronic differential-input amplifier, for each high-pass filter input circuit, the corresponding input terminal is operatively coupled to a first terminal of a corresponding capacitor, the second terminal of the corresponding capacitor coupled to both the corresponding input of the electronic differential-input amplifier and to a first terminal of a corresponding resistor, and the second terminal of the corresponding resistor is operatively coupled to a circuit ground.

Abstract: An auscultatory sound signal acquired by a recording module is coupled through a high-pass filter having a cut-off frequency in the range of 3 to 15 Hz and subsequently filtered with a low-pass filter, and optionally subject to variable-gain amplification under external control—via a USB or wireless interface—of an associated docking system, responsive to the resulting processed auscultatory sound signal. A sound generator in the docking system generates an associated test signal having an integral number of wavelengths for each of a plurality of frequencies. The test signal is applied to a corresponding auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor to test the integrity thereof. Resulting sound signals recorded by the recording module are analyzed using a Fourier Transform to determine sensor integrity.

Abstract: A time-series array of noise data is generated from an inverse frequency transform of the product of the frequency spectrum of an auscultatory sound signal with an associated noise filter generated responsive to a cross-correlation of frequency spectra of auscultatory sound signals from adjacent auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensors on the torso of a test subject. Noise power within at least one range of frequencies of average of frequency spectra from a plurality of windows of the time-series array of noise data is compared with a threshold to determine whether or not the associated auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor is excessively noisy. In one embodiment, the noise filter is generated by subtracting from unity, a unity-normalized cross-correlation of frequency spectra of the auscultatory sound signals, wherein the resulting values are clipped so as to be no less than an associated noise floor.

Abstract: A metallic diaphragm disk incorporating a piezoelectric material bonded thereto and operatively coupled to a base rim of a housing provides for closing an open-ended cavity at the first end of the housing. In one aspect, plastic film adhesively bonded to at least one of an outer rim of the housing or an outer-facing surface of the disk provides for receiving an adhesive acoustic interface material to provide for coupling the housing to the skin of a test subject. In another aspect, an outer-facing surface of a base portion of the housing provides for receiving an adhesive acoustic interface material to provide for coupling the housing to the skin of a test subject, at least one inertial mass is operatively coupled to a central portion of the metallic diaphragm disk, and the opening in the first end of the housing is closed with a cover.

Abstract: An auscultatory sound signal acquired by a recording module is coupled through a high-pass filter having a cut-off frequency in the range of 3 to 15 Hz and subsequently filtered with a low-pass filter, and optionally subject to variable-gain amplification under external control—via a USB or wireless interface—of an associated docking system, responsive to the resulting processed auscultatory sound signal. A sound generator in the docking system generates an associated test signal having an integral number of wavelengths for each of a plurality of frequencies. The test signal is applied to a corresponding auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor to test the integrity thereof. Resulting sound signals recorded by the recording module are analyzed using a Fourier Transform to determine sensor integrity.

Abstract: An auscultatory sound signal acquired by a recording module is coupled through a high-pass filter having a cut-off frequency in the range of 3 to 15 Hz and subsequently filtered with a low-pass filter, and optionally subject to variable-gain amplification under external control—via a USB or wireless interface—of an associated docking system, responsive to the resulting processed auscultatory sound signal. A sound generator in the docking system generates an associated test signal having an integral number of wavelengths for each of a plurality of frequencies. The test signal is applied to a corresponding auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor to test the integrity thereof. Resulting sound signals recorded by the recording module are analyzed using a Fourier Transform to determine sensor integrity.

Abstract: A time-series array of noise data is generated from an inverse frequency transform of the product of the frequency spectrum of an auscultatory sound signal with an associated noise filter generated responsive to a cross-correlation of frequency spectra of auscultatory sound signals from adjacent auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensors on the torso of a test subject. Noise power within at least one range of frequencies of average of frequency spectra from a plurality of windows of the time-series array of noise data is compared with a threshold to determine whether or not the associated auscultatory sound-or-vibration sensor is excessively noisy. In one embodiment, the noise filter is generated by subtracting from unity, a unity-normalized cross-correlation of frequency spectra of the auscultatory sound signals, wherein the resulting values are clipped so as to be no less than an associated noise floor.

Abstract: A metallic diaphragm disk incorporating a piezoelectric material bonded thereto and operatively coupled to a base rim of a housing provides for closing an open-ended cavity at the first end of the housing. In one aspect, plastic film adhesively bonded to at least one of an outer rim of the housing or an outer-facing surface of the disk provides for receiving an adhesive acoustic interface material to provide for coupling the housing to the skin of a test subject. In another aspect, an outer-facing surface of a base portion of the housing provides for receiving an adhesive acoustic interface material to provide for coupling the housing to the skin of a test subject, at least one inertial mass is operatively coupled to a central portion of the metallic diaphragm disk, and the opening in the first end of the housing is closed with a cover.

Abstract: At least one of at least one data-dependent scale factor or at least one data-dependent detection threshold is determined responsive to at least one block of time-series data of an auscultatory-sound signal generated by an auscultatory-sound sensor operatively coupled to a portion of the skin of a test-subject, wherein the at least one data-dependent scale factor or at least one data-dependent detection threshold provides a measure of a range of values of the at least one block of time-series data in relation to a predetermined metric, and is used to determine whether or not the auscultatory-sound sensor is either debonded or detached from the skin of the test-subject.