Abstract: A disposable medical item for use with medical equipment includes circuitry forming an electrical path between the item and medical equipment. The circuitry is coupled to a medical equipment controller or independent microprocessor and includes a fuse. The controller transmits a status signal over the path in response to the equipment receiving the item. A disabled fuse prevents traversal of the path by the status signal, thereby indicating prior item use. If the controller does not detect the status signal, medical equipment operation is disabled. Otherwise, the controller transmits over the path a signal sufficient to disable the fuse to indicate item use and verifies the disabled fuse status. If the disabled fuse status is verified, the controller enables equipment operation. The controller periodically checks the fuse status during equipment operation and disables operation in response to a prior used item inserted into the medical equipment.

Abstract: The sterility of a drape for use on surgical equipment is ensured by the use of bar codes and a microprocessor. When a drape containing a bar code is placed on the corresponding surgical equipment, a bar code reader ascertains the bar code on the drape. A microprocessor receives the bar code and determines whether the bar code has been previously written to memory indicating the drapes prior use. If the bar code is not present, the current bar code of the drape is written into memory, and subsequent operation of the surgical equipment commences. If the bar code is present, the microprocessor prevents the surgical equipment from operating. The microprocessor conserves memory by deleting bar code numbers of drapes that surpass a user determined time period.