Systems and methods for measuring a quantity of breast milk consumed by a baby

Abstract

The system includes at least one infrared light intensity sensor positioned on substrate to measure infrared light incident from a baby's stomach during a feeding. The infrared light is provided by an infrared light source. An initial intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach is measured at the beginning of the feeding. A feeding intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach is measured at the end of the feeding. The ratio of these infrared intensity measurements are used to calculate a value for the volume ingested into the human stomach during the feeding. The infrared light intensity measurements can be taken continuously to provide a real-time report of how the feeding is progressing, such as to a parent or doctor. The light source and sensor can be incorporated into an article of clothing to provide non-invasive measurements that do not physically obstruct the feeding.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system for quantifying a volume ingested by a human during a feeding comprising:
 at least one infrared light source positioned and configured to provide infrared light to the contents of a human stomach;   at least one infrared light intensity sensor positioned and configured to detect intensities of infrared light incident from the human stomach; and   a non-transitory computer storage medium in communication with said at least one infrared light intensity sensor and encoded with one or more computer programs for outputting a volume ingested by a human, the one or more computer programs including:
 a light intensity calculation module configured to identify an initial intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach at a first instance, at least one feeding intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach at a second instance, and the ratio of the at least one feeding intensity to the initial intensity; and 
 a volume calculation module configured to output a value for the volume ingested into the human stomach between the first instance and the second instance, wherein the volume ingested is defined by a formula that correlates the ratio of the at least one feeding intensity to the initial intensity to the volume ingested. 
   
     
     
         2 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein the first instance is prior to a start of the feeding and the second instance is during the feeding. 
     
     
         3 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein the second instance is after the feeding is completed. 
     
     
         4 . The system according to  claim 1 , further comprising a barrier positioned to limit detection of infrared light directly from the at least one infrared light source by the at least one infrared intensity sensor. 
     
     
         5 . The system according to  claim 4 , wherein the barrier includes a reflective layer. 
     
     
         6 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least one infrared light source is one or more infrared LEDs. 
     
     
         7 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein the at least one infrared light source is positioned adjacent to the at least one infrared light intensity sensor such that each interface with the skin proximate the human stomach. 
     
     
         8 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein the infrared light is emitted at a wavelength of about 1200 nm-1500 nm. 
     
     
         9 . The system according to  claim 1 , wherein the volume ingested is defined by the following formula:
     V =(log( I/I   o )+0.0036)/0.0007   wherein I o  is the initial intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach and I is the at least one feeding intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach.   
     
     
         10 . The system according to  claim 1 , further comprising one or more additional sensors including a heart rate sensor, a respiratory sensor, a temperature sensor, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         11 . A method for quantifying a volume ingested by a human during a feeding comprising:
 providing at least one infrared light source and at least one infrared light intensity sensor;   emitting infrared light from the at least one infrared light source to the contents of a human stomach;   measuring an initial intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach with the at least one infrared light intensity sensor at a first instance;   measuring at least one feeding intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach with the at least one infrared light intensity sensor at a second instance; and   calculating a volume ingested into the human stomach between the first instance and the second instance that corresponds to the ratio of the at least one feeding intensity to the initial intensity.   
     
     
         12 . The method according to  claim 11 , further comprising:
 positioning the at least one infrared light source to the skin proximate a human stomach;   emitting infrared light from the at least one infrared light source to the contents of the human stomach; and   positioning the at least one infrared light intensity sensor to detect intensities of infrared light provided by the at least one infrared light source and incident from the human stomach.   
     
     
         13 . The method according to  claim 11 , wherein the infrared light is emitted at a wavelength of about 1200 nm-1500 nm. 
     
     
         14 . The method according to  claim 11 , wherein the volume ingested is defined by to the following formula:
     V =(log( I/I   o )+0.0036)/0.0007   wherein I o  is the initial intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach and I is the at least one feeding intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach.   
     
     
         15 . The method according to  claim 11 , wherein calculating a volume ingested into the human stomach between the first instance and the second instance that corresponds to the ratio of the at least one feeding intensity to the initial intensity further comprises:
 continuously calculating the volume ingested into the human stomach during a feeding.   
     
     
         16 . A system for quantifying a volume ingested by a human during a feeding comprising:
 at least one infrared light source positioned and configured to provide infrared light to the contents of a human stomach;   at least one infrared light intensity sensor positioned adjacent to the at least one infrared light source and positioned to detect intensities of infrared light incident from the human stomach; and   a non-transitory computer storage medium in communication with said at least one infrared light intensity sensor and encoded with one or more computer programs for outputting a volume ingested by a human, the one or more computer programs including:
 a light intensity calculation module configured to identify an initial intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach at a first instance prior to or at the beginning of a feeding, a plurality of feeding intensities of infrared light incident from the human stomach at a plurality of additional instances during or after the feeding, and the ratio of the each feeding intensity to the initial intensity; 
 a volume calculation module configured to continuously output a value for the volume ingested during the feeding, wherein the volume ingested is defined by a formula that correlates to the ratio of the latest feeding intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach to the initial intensity to the volume ingested. 
   
     
     
         17 . The system according to  claim 16 , wherein the volume calculation module outputs a volume ingested according to the following formula:
     V =(log( I/I   o )+0.0036)/0.0007   wherein I o  is the initial intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach, I is the feeding intensity of infrared light incident from the human stomach.   
     
     
         18 . The system according to  claim 16 , further comprising:
 one or more databases including historical light intensity data from the light intensity calculation module and volume ingestion data from the volume calculation module; and   a microcontroller system including a wireless data communication module configured to enable communication of calculated light intensities and calculated volumes to the one or more databases from the light intensity calculation module and the volume calculation module.   
     
     
         19 . The system according to  claim 16 , wherein the infrared light is emitted at a wavelength of about 850 nm, 880 nm, 940 nm, 1050 nm, 1250 nm, 1550 nm, 1650 nm, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         20 . The system according to  claim 19 , wherein the infrared light is emitted at a wavelength of about 940 nm and about 1250 nm.