USAGE TRACKING / LIMITING
A common need of medical equipment that uses disposable attachments is to track and limit the number of uses of the disposable device. Also known as usage tracking or limit use, this feature ensures that the attachment is not used beyond it designated lifetime. Some disposable attachments should only be used a single time. Others may only be used for a given number of hours.
Problem: How can medical device OEMs track the usage statistics (e.g. number of uses, hours used, etc.) of their products with disposable attachments, so they can automatically limit the use of the disposable such that it never exceeds its expected lifetime? Further, how can they incorporate these usage tracking / limiting capabilities to both the disposable and the base controller unit designs while minimizing engineering costs, time-to-market and risk?
Solution: Add a rugged memory token to the disposable and a high cycle-life receptacle to the base controller unit.
Details: Datakey Electronics' rugged SlimLine™ memory tokens can be attached or integrated into nearly any kind of disposable attachment.  And once the attachment has this integrated non-volatile memory device, the microcontroller on the base unit of the medical device can record and check the usage information on the memory token. If the maximum usage has not been reached, use of the attachment can continue. Once the maximum usage has occurred, the base controller can automatically suspend operation and prompt for replacement.
Incorporating a SlimLine™ memory token and a mating SlimLine™ receptacle into an embedded design is a straightforward task. The base controller unit will simply need a receptacle. Datakey Electronics offers a wide range of receptacles to meet nearly any need or environmental requirement. SlimLine™ receptacles are available in a variety of styles:
- PCB Mount Receptacles in Through-Hole & Surface Mount Styles
- Panel Mount Receptacles with Header or Custom Connectors
- Receptacles for Wash-Down Applications (IP65 and IP67 options)
The leads from the receptacle should be routed directly to an available serial port on the base unit's microcontroller. Microwire, I2C and SPI ports are all supported. Please see Datakey Electronics Interface Specifications for more details.
Any SlimLine™ or Extended SlimLine™ token can be supplied with an integrated tether (as shown below).
 
Memory tokens utilize a variety of memory technologies and come in a wide range of memory capacities.
- Serial EEPROM (Microwire, SPI, I2C): 1Kbit - 512Kbit
- Serial Flash (SPI): 1Mbit - 64Mbit
- Managed-Memory® (SPI & USB): 256Mbytes - 1Gbyte
For usage tracking / limit use applications, only a small amount of memory is required, so smaller capacity serial EEPROM tokens are usually used. These tokens are also lower in cost. This is important as the memory token is often discarded along with the disposable attachment after it has been used.
In addition to being low-cost, another important feature of the SlimLine™ memory tokens is that they can survive EtO and autoclave sterilization. This allows the memory token to be sterilized and packaged right along with the disposable attachment.
For assistance in selecting which receptacle and memory device are best suited for your application, please contact the factory for a no-cost, no-obligation consultation with one of our engineers.
Email: info@datakey.com
Phone: 1-800-328-8828
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