TEMPERATURE SENSOR PATCH WIRELESSLY CONNECTED TO A

SMART DEVICE

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/828,943, filed on April 3, 2019 and titled“PATCH SENSORS, SYSTEMS AND METHODS OF USE”, the contents of which are incorporated herein in their entirety.

SUMMARY

[0002] Embodiments of the disclosure relate to an affixable sensor patch with near-field communication (NFC) circuitry for battery-less sensing, determining, monitoring, and reporting of physical quantities or conditions such as human-body temperature.

[0003] The internet of things (IoT) offers a world linked by a highly granular sensor net. It is anticipated that maturation of higher-density information networks will rely on increased miniaturization of wireless sensors ( e.g ., temperature sensors, humidity sensors, accelerometers, and transducers) for conveying relevant information, in analog or digital form, to user devices, remote workstations, or cloud-based computing machines. It is anticipated that this evolution will be achieved by the convergence of improvements in silicon-based manufacturing, ink printed circuitry, wearable electronics, and radio technologies. An elusive goal has been the capacity of sensors, devices, and systems to operate cordlessly and without battery power. The use of a battery as a substitute for a power cord may not be an optimal solution because a battery occupies space on a hardware device and may have a relatively short lifetime. Thus, expansion of the IoT into daily life has been slowed by the lack of a solution for wirelessly delivering power to a battery-less device (e.g., a sensor) for sensing, monitoring, determining, and reporting one or more physical quantities (e.g, temperature) or one or more conditions (e.g, environmental).

[0004] The capacity to power a device, such as a sensor device, passively, via energy harvested wirelessly by the sensor device from near-field emissions, offers a needed solution. Near-field wireless power transfer refers to energy transfer inside a working distance, which may be defined by, or otherwise related to, a wavelength or frequency at which a transmitter transmits a signal from which the sensor device derives power. For example, proximate application of an

electromagnetic field from a portable device, such as a smart device (e.g., a smart phone), can be sufficient to power a sensor device located within an approximate range of 0 - 24 inches of the portable device. Further in example, a sensor device enabled to harvest power from an

electromagnetic field is configured to sense, to monitor, and to report sensor quantities and conditions. The reporting may include both wireless "notification" to a proximate smart device and via a non-telemetric reporting means such as a visual display ( e.g ., one or more light-emitting diodes (LEDs)), acoustic signal, or haptic signal generated by the sensor device so as to draw the attention of a human user and to communicate the sensor output (e.g., temperature value or range) directly to the user. Temperature may be reported, for example, both telemetrically and visually.

[0005] Disclosed are one or more embodiments of a NFC ("near-field communication") sensor- patch device, or sensor patch,) for sensing, detecting, measuring, or monitoring a condition of, or a physical quantity related to, an object or a living being. Examples of such a condition including an environmental condition such as a level of ambient light and a level of noise and a living-body condition such as heart rate or respiratory rate. Examples of such a physical quantity include temperature, humidity, linear velocity, angular velocity, altitude, and pressure. Such a sensor patch can be configured to report sensor data wirelessly via an NFC data channel to a smart device such as a smart phone. The sensor patch also can include a“reporter” component (e.g, one or more LEDs) configured to report sensor data directly, in real time, to a human user. The NFC signal over which the smart device and the sensor patch wirelessly exchange data also powers the reporter component and the other components and circuits of the sensor patch The sensor patch’s local reporter display can be complementary to a wireless notification of the sensor output made to a proximate smart device, such as a smart phone that generates an NFC signal from which the sensor patch draws power.

[0006] In other examples, conditions/quantities that such a sensor patch may sense include temperature, pressure, vibration, moisture, humidity, pH, glucose, chemical composition associated with a living body, a nonliving object, or an environmental state, movement such as acceleration, velocity (linear and angular), and position.

[0007] The sensor patch uses the harvested power from an RF field to make one or more sensor measurements, and to report the result(s) locally, to a remote receiver, or both locally and to a remote receiver. Such a sensor patch does not require power from a battery and can be powered at the point of care only when a sensor measurement is desired. The sensor patch can include one or more antennas configured to receive a power-and-data signal from which the sensor device is configured to derive power, and the sensor device can be configured to receive data from a remote device by demodulating the power-and-data signal and can be configured to transmit data to the remote device by modulating the power-and-data signal. The sensor patch can be configured to perform two or more of the power deriving, data receiving, and data transmitting simultaneously. Further, the process of powering the sensor patch and measuring one or more quantities or conditions with the powered sensor patch can be repeated an indefinite number of times. And a remote device, such as a smart device, can be programmed to perform one or more kinds of sensor measurements without the need for specialized instruments dedicated to each kind of sensor, eliminating redundancy by providing a multifunctional sensor patch or a family of sensor patch types all operable from a single smart device.

[0008] Sensor data may be useful both at a point of measurement and at a remote host. For example, a sensor patch can be configured to transmit temperature sensor data to a remote workstation for charting, archiving, or making remote notifications (such as for cold-chain verification, fault detection, and temperature monitoring of a living being), but also for local use such as for providing an immediate indication of the result to, for example, a caretaker of a person whose body temperature the sensor patch is configured to sense. As configured for local use in measuring temperature, for example, a visual indicator is integrated into the sensor patch and is configured to display the temperature result parametrically ( e.g ., a numerical display) or non- parametrically (e.g., a color) to a user.

[0009] A sensor patch, according to an embodiment, is remotely powered by electromagnetic (EM) near- field emission from a device, such as a smart device, and a user, other human, or imaging machine can read, directly, a visual reporter display of the sensor patch. As used herein, a

"reporter" is a local electronic display or other indicator of the sensor patch, and a "notifier" includes a radio signal that the patch sensor transmits to a user's device (e.g., a smart phone), another remote device, an administrator, or a host.

[0010] In an embodiment, a sensor patch has a unique identifier that the sensor patch stores electronically. Data from the sensor can be tagged with the sensor identifier before reporting it to a smart device (e.g, a smart phone) over an NFC carrier signal, and the smart device can be operated to transmit, or otherwise to forward, the data as digitized information representing physical measurements taken by the sensor patch. The transmission can be, for example, via a Bluetooth radioset (e.g, radio or radio circuit), a Wi-Fi radioset, a cellular radioset, an NFC radioset, or over any other frequency band and field. The transmission also can be by wired means. One also can use the sensor patch for temperature monitoring of a product (e.g, a cold- chain application) and for clinical measurements.

[0011] In an embodiment, a sensor patch can be configured to sense, to determine, and to provide a clinical temperature. The sensor patch is adhered to skin so as to operate without dermal penetration and is capable of being held in place by an adhesive. The sensor patch can be more comfortable than an invasive device such as an insertable ear, rectal, and sublingual thermometer, or an implantable sensor capsule, all of which require that the measuring device be placed inside an orifice or tissue of the body. In contrast, a conventional insertable thermometer generally has a disposable probe cover so that bodily fluids are not transmitted from one patient to the next, and take significant time ( e.g ., fifteen seconds to one minute) to use per patient due to the need to install and dispose of the cover and to allow sufficient time for the thermometer reading to settle to a measured value. And the stocking probe covers for a conventional thermometer can require significant storage space, can be costly, and, therefore, can be a nuisance. But with an embodiment of the sensor patch, the sensor element (e.g., temperature sensor) being separate from the read device (e.g, a smart phone) can increase efficiency by reducing use time (e.g, the temperature sensor, once up to temperature, stays up to temperature as long as the sensor patch is affixed to the person or object whose temperature is being measured) and can reduce the instance of cross-user contamination and infection.

[0012] In addition, a remote device, such as a smart device, used in combination with a sensor patch, can be configured to send, to the sensor patch, configuration information or program instructions for carrying out one or more sensor measurements simultaneously or in sequence, and for displaying the results to the person whose temperature is being measured or to a caregiver of such person. Measurement data may be stored in memory of the smart device (e.g, smart phone) or of a remote workstation for later retrieval or for real-time plotting to show trends and

correlations with earlier results. The sensor patch can be configured to send a measurement requiring attention (e.g, a temperature measurement indicative of a fever) as a notification to a caregiver (e.g, the parent of a sick child) who may or may not be in proximity to the sensor patch. For example, the sensor patch may send such a notification to the smart phone of a caregiver.

[0013] Another conventional battery-powered thermometer device is configured for use in the following manner. One contacts the forehead of a subject with the device and then draws the device across the skin of the forehead. The battery-powered thermometer device provides a readout of a value that indicates the presence or absence of a febrile condition or hypothermia. But the device cannot operate passively (e.g., without a battery), and because the device relies on rate of change of heat transfer rather than equilibrium temperature, the device can be less accurate than other types of conventional thermometers, for example, when measuring the temperature of a human body that is in a cold sweat. [0014] In some instances, the sensor patch includes a thermistor for measuring temperature, an RF antenna coil for harvesting energy and for communicating data across an NFC radioset, and the thermistor is disposed on a probe outside the bounds of the antenna coil so that it can be inserted into a cavity in a body while still enabling the antenna to be positioned closed to a smart device that supplies the needed RF excitation energy to power the sensor. In one embodiment, there is also an LED positioned within the bounds of the antenna coil so that all heat generating elements are isolated from the thermistor by a low-thermal conductivity substrate. The LED may be an RGB-LED.

[0015] A sensor for pressure also may be of interest clinically, and in a sensor-patch embodiment having a multi-sensor element, a pressure sensor is provided in addition to, or in place of, a temperature sensor.

[0016] For example, pressure within one’s radial artery and pulse rate are of interest in

combination with temperature for determining clinical states associated with endotoxic shock, anaphylactic shock, and hypothermia. Radial blood pressure is also of interest as a measurement of pulse for improving athletic performance and for cardiac rehabilitation, for example.

[0017] Sensor patches may be worn and readily checked on the go, so that early detection of fever, as for coronavirus surveillance, is readily achieved without the need to carry anything more than a smart device. The sensor devices also may be operated as part of a system for delivering telemedicine to remote rural locations, and, therefore, an embodiment of a sensor patch can reduce the need for a subject’s hospitalization, emergency-room treatment, and travel for physician-office visits.

[0018] The sensor patch uses the harvested power to make one or more sensor measurements, and to report the result(s) locally, to a remote receiver, or both locally and to a remote receiver. Such a sensor patch does not require power from a battery and can be powered at the point of care only when a sensor measurement is desired. The sensor patch can include one or more antennas configured to receive a power-and-data signal from which the sensor device is configured to derive power, and the sensor device can be configured to receive data from a remote device by demodulating the power-and-data signal and can be configured to transmit data to the remote device by modulating the power-and-data signal. The sensor patch can be configured to perform two or more of the power deriving, data receiving, and data transmitting simultaneously. Further, the process of powering the sensor patch and measuring one or more quantities or conditions with the powered sensor patch can be repeated an indefinite number of times. And a remote device, such as a smart device, can be programmed to perform one or more kinds of sensor measurements without the need for specialized instruments dedicated to each kind of sensor, eliminating redundancy by providing a multifunctional sensor patch or a family of sensor patch types all operable from a single smart device

[0019] In an embodiment, the sensor patches are disposable and inexpensive. The remote devices, such as smart devices, used for powering a sensor patch and for receiving sensor output may not be single-purpose units, but instead can be configured to interact with various classes of sensor patches and sensors on those sensor patches.

[0020] In an embodiment, a sensor device, such as a sensor patch, includes multiple sensor elements and an operator need only select the kind of measurement to be made and the smart device is programmed to do the rest, including configuring the sensor device to make the selected measurement(s).

[0021] In contrast, current practice typically requires an armamentarium of devices to collect the range of data commonly needed in clinical monitoring of a subject. But one or more sensor patches, according to an embodiment, can slash the required specialized equipment needed to do clinical monitoring of a subject’s temperature and other vital signs and makes a commonly available smart device the center of an "ecosystem" of disposable sensor devices ( e.g sensor patches) that require no specialized training to use and are not dedicated to any particular kind of testing. Thus, an embodiment of an NFC-driven system disclosed herein can have a dramatic effect in reducing the cost of delivering medical care and can enable sensor data to be digitized and shared to any remote monitoring site such as a nursing station, or across a continent, or across the world. Once digitized, the data can be stored in a database for later retrieval, and by assigning each sensor patch a unique digital identifier, data automatically is associated with the correct user or subject profile. For example, an RFID subject armband or QR code can be used to associate the sensor patch with the correct subject, and once this is done, the sensor patch is programmed to deliver data to the correct subject file. Such a sensor patch also may be used for home healthcare as an inexpensive disposable "bandage" type sensor patch that is configured to provide sufficient information to monitor a sick child, for example, via the instantaneous local display of temperature or other vital sign(s).

[0022] An embodiment of a sensor patch also can be adhered to inanimate objects such as a wine bottle or other container holding perishables where, for example, temperature of the container contents is critical. By supplying each sensor patch with electronic memory, the sensor patch can be configured to store a temperature history of the object ( e.g ., one temperature per NFC access/scan) and upload the stored temperature history of the object from the sensor-patch memory to a smart device simply by placing the sensor patch within NFC proximity of the smart device and by activating, with a configurable application, the smart device to read and to report the current temperature and temperature history that the sensor patch senses and provides.

[0023] In an embodiment, each sensor patch has a unique identifier that the sensor patch is configured to send digitally to a corresponding smart device when the sensor patch makes a measurement, and the user has an option to associate that digital identifier with a particular subject (e.g., patient, child) or inanimate object about which the sensor patch is collecting sensor data. An application program installed on the smart device can provide user profiles to be attached to particular subjects or objects so that the smart device, in response to the application program, can aggregate sensor data over time, and can plot or track trends in the sensor data.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] These and other features of sensor devices, such as sensor patches, and related smart devices, software application, configuration data, systems, and methods are within the scope of the disclosure. The elements, features, steps, and advantages of embodiments of the patches, devices, software applications, configuration data, methods, and systems will be more readily understood upon consideration of the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the

accompanying drawings, in which embodiments are illustrated by way of example.

[0025] It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for illustration and description only and are not intended as a definition of the scope and limits of the disclosed devices, software applications, configuration data, systems, and methods. The various elements, features, steps, and combinations thereof that characterize embodiments of the subject matter disclosed herein are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to, and forming part of, this disclosure.

[0026] The teachings of the present disclosure are more readily understood by considering the drawings, in which:

[0027] FIG. 1 is a circuit block diagram of an NFC-powered sensor patch configured for deriving operating power from an NFC signal generated by a proximate NFC-capable smart device, for reporting one or more sensor conditions in a local display mode, and for exchanging data with a proximate NFC-enabled smart device by modulating and demodulating the NFC signal, according to an embodiment.

[0028] FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of a temperature sensor suitable for usein the sensor patch of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment.

[0029] FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of a pressure sensor suitable for use in the sensor patch of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment.

[0030] FIG. 2C is a schematic diagram of a red-green-blue (RGB) light-emitting-diode (LED) array suitable for use as a sensed- value reporter in the sensor patch of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment.

[0031] FIG. 3 is a diagram of a sensor patch including an antenna, a controller circuit, a communication circuit, one or more sensors, and one or more electronic reporter components, according to an embodiment.

[0032] FIG. 4A is a schematic diagram of the circuitry of the sensor patch of FIG. 1 according to an embodiment, the circuitry including a controller and a temperature sensor with a local reporter display (here an RGB LED array).

[0033] FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram of a circuitry of the sensor patch of FIG. 1, according to another embodiment, the circuitry including a controller circuit, a temperature sensor, and a pressure sensor.

[0034] FIG. 5 is a plan view of a sensor patch measuring less than 2 centimeters (cm) in diameter and less than 1 millimeter (mm) in thickness, according to an embodiment.

[0035] FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram of a sensor patch having multiple banks of sensors and a supercapacitor configured to store energy to power the sensor patch during an extended measurement cycle, according to an embodiment.

[0036] FIG. 7A is an exploded view of a two-layer adhesive sensor patch that can include the circuitry of one or more of FIGS. 1 - 6, and that includes a visual indicator (LED), a

microcontroller, and a thermistor (temperature-sensing element) optionally integrated within the microcontroller, according to an embodiment.

[0037] FIG. 7B is an exploded cross-sectional view, along a midline, of the two-layer adhesive sensor patch of FIG. 7A, according to an embodiment. [0038] FIG. 8 is a plan view of a sensor patch with a cover layer (transparent in FIG. 8), according to an embodiment.

[0039] FIG. 9A is an exploded view of a three-layer adhesive sensor patch that can include the circuitry of one or more of FIGS. 1 - 6, and that includes a visual indicator (LED), a

microcontroller, and a thermistor (temperature-sensing element) optionally integrated within the microcontroller, according to an embodiment.

[0040] FIG. 9B is an exploded cross-sectional view, along a midline, of the three-layer adhesive sensor patch of FIG. 9A, according to an embodiment.

[0041] FIG. 10A is an exploded view of a four-layer adhesive sensor patch that can include the circuitry of one or more of FIGS. 1 - 6, and that includes a visual indicator (LED), a

microcontroller, and a thermistor (temperature-sensing element) optionally integrated within the microcontroller, according to an embodiment.

[0042] FIG. 10B is an exploded cross-sectional view, along a midline, of the four-layer adhesive sensor patch of FIG. 10A, according to an embodiment.

[0043] FIG. 11 is an exploded cross-sectional view of a four-layer adhesive sensor patch that includes a heat sink for the controller and an LED a light pipe configured to expose the LED through an external insulative cover, and that is otherwise similar to the adhesive sensor path of FIGS. 10A - 10B, according to an embodiment.

[0044] FIG. 12 is an exploded cross-sectional view of a four-layer adhesive sensor patch that includes a flexible circuit backing ( i.e substrate) having a display module on a backside of a circuit face, and that is otherwise similar to the adhesive sensor path of FIGS. 10A - 10B, according to an embodiment.

[0045] FIG. 13 is an exploded cross-sectional view of a four-layer adhesive sensor patch that includes a supercapacitor, and that is otherwise similar to the adhesive sensor patch of FIGS. 10A - 10B, according to an embodiment.

[0046] FIG. 14 is a diagram of a system configured for making sensor measurements and for networking sensor data to a local-area network (LAN) or a wide-area network (WAN) via Wi-Fi, to one or more cellular networks, or to a combination or sub-combination of any of the

aforementioned networks and other networks, according to an embodiment. [0047] FIG. 15 is a flow diagram of a method for making a sensor measurement on a human body, for example, with a sensor patch of one or more FIGS. 1, 3, 4A - 13 and 19 - 20, according to an embodiment.

[0048] FIG. 16A is a diagram of a caretaker taking the temperature of a human subject using a sensor patch of one or more of FIGS. 1, 3, 4A - 13, and 19 - 20 and a smart device ( e.g ., a smart phone), according to an embodiment.

[0049] FIG. 16B is a plot of the temperature of the human subject of FIG. 16A over a time during which the human subject developed and recovered from a fever, according to an embodiment.

[0050] FIG. 17 is a flow diagram of a method for making a sensor measurement with one or more of the sensor patches of FIGS. 1, 3, 4A - 13, and 19 - 20, according to an embodiment.

[0051] FIG. 18 is a diagram of a sensor patch attached to a bottle of wine (object) and a smart device (e.g., a smart phone) powering the sensor patch, receiving data representing the temperature of the bottle as measured by the sensor patch, and displaying the measured temperature, the smart device performing these functions in response to a software application that the smart device is executing, according to an embodiment.

[0052] FIG. 19 is a circuit diagram of a sensor patch configured for deriving operating power from an NFC signal generated by a proximate NFC smart device, for reporting one or more sensed quantities and conditions in a local display mode, and for exchanging information with a proximate NFC smart device by modulating and demodulating the NFC signal, according to an embodiment.

[0053] FIG. 20 is an exploded view of a five-layer adhesive sensor patch that can include the circuit of FIG. 19, according to an embodiment.

[0054] FIG. 21 is a plan view of a smart phone displaying, on a display screen, a user interface of a sensor-patch software application that configures the smart phone for use with the sensor patch of FIGS. 19 - 20, according to an embodiment.

[0055] FIG. 22 is a flow diagram of a method for downloading, installing, and setting up a sensor- patch software application for use with the sensor patch of FIGS. 19 - 20, according to an embodiment.

[0056] FIG. 23 is a diagram of a caregiver taking a temperature of a subject using the sensor patch of FIGS. 19 - 20 and a smart phone running a sensor-patch software application, according to an embodiment. [0057] FIG. 24 is a flow diagram of a method for measuring a condition, such as temperature, of an object, such as the child of FIG. 23, using a smart device and the sensor patch of FIGS. 19 - 20, according to an embodiment.

[0058] FIG. 25 is a circuit diagram of a smart device, such as the smart phone of FIG. 21, that can be configured for use with a sensor patch, such as one or more of the sensor patches of FIGS. 1, 3, 4A - 13, and 19 - 20, according to an embodiment.

[0059] FIGS. 26A, 26B, 26C, 26D, 26E, 26F, 26G, and 26H are views of screenshots on a graphical user interface for operation of a method of measuring a temperature.

[0060] FIGS. 27 and 28 are views of representative cloud services enabled by the NFC sensor devices.

[0061] FIG. 29 is a cutaway side view of the bridge of FIG. 5, according to an embodiment.

[0062] FIG. 30 is a plan view of a sensor patch having a bridge, according to another embodiment.

[0063] FIG. 31 is a diagram of a sensor patch having at least one component disposed outside of a region bounded by an antenna, according to an embodiment.

[0064] FIG. 32 is a diagram of a sensor bandage, according to an embodiment.

[0065] FIG. 33 is a circuit diagram of a sensor patch, according to another embodiment.

[0066] FIG. 34 is a diagram of a sensor system configured for use in a clinical setting and including one or more of the sensor devices described herein, and a patient on which the system is being used, according to an embodiment.

[0067] FIG. 35 is a diagram of a sensor bandage, according to an embodiment.

[0068] FIG. 36 is a plan view of a sensor patch, according to another embodiment.

[0069] FIG. 37 is a plan view of a sensor patch, according to yet another embodiment.

[0070] FIG. 38 is a diagram of an oral thermometer, according to an embodiment.

[0071] The drawings are not necessarily to scale. Certain features or components herein may be shown in somewhat schematic form and some details of conventional elements may not be shown in the interest of clarity, explanation, and conciseness.

GLOSSARY [0072] Certain terms are used throughout the following description to refer to particular features, steps or components, and are used as terms of description and not of limitation. As one skilled in the art will appreciate, different persons may refer to the same feature, step, or component by different names. Components, steps, or features that differ in name but not in structure, function, or action are considered equivalent, and may be substituted herein without departure from the scope of the disclosure. Certain meanings may be defined here as intended by the inventors, i.e., they are intrinsic meanings. Other words and phrases used herein may take their meaning as consistent with usage as would be apparent to one skilled in the relevant arts. One can interpret the meaning of a term listed in the Glossary based on the Glossary description of the term, on the use of the term elsewhere in this disclosure, or on a combination of the Glossary description of the term and the use of the term elsewhere in this disclosure.

[0073] Unless otherwise described herein, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this subject matter belongs.

[0074] A“sensor device” can be a device or apparatus configured for making, collecting, and reporting one or more measurements of a condition ( e.g ., fever) or a physical quantity ( e.g ., temperature) while attached (e.g., with an adhesive) to a living being (e.g, a human) or to an inanimate object (e.g, a bottle of wine, a food-serving platter). A“sensor patch” can be a type or category of a“sensor device.”

[0075] "Exemplary" and“embodiment” can mean "serving as an example, instance, configuration, version, implementation, or illustration." Unless stated otherwise herein, no embodiment or example is considered to be preferred over any other embodiment.

[0076] "Wireless power" can mean any form of energy associated with electric fields, magnetic fields, electromagnetic fields, electric signals, electromagnetic signals, or otherwise that is transmitted from a transmitter to a receiver without the use of physical electromagnetic conductors. For example, the following non-limiting list of devices can be powered, charged, or recharged wirelessly: mobile phones, cordless phones, iPods, MP3 players, Bluetooth ^® and other wireless headsets. A type of wireless energy transfer includes magnetic coupling, such as magnetic-coupled resonance, using frequencies, for example, below 30 MHz. But various frequencies may be employed including frequencies where license-exempt operation at relatively high radiation levels is permitted, for example, at either below 135 kHz or at 13.56 MHz. At these frequencies, which are normally used by Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems, systems typically comply with interference and safety standards such as EN 300330 in Europe or FCC Part 15 norm in the United States.

[0077] "Smart device" can mean any of the class of devices ( e.g ., a smart phone, a tablet computer) that derived from pagers and cellphones and are miniature computers with radiosets capable of addressing, for example, local-area networks and broad-area networks. These devices are typically programmable (e.g., by downloading and installing a software application often called an“app”) or are otherwise software, firmware, or data-stream configurable for a wide variety of uses.

Individual device permissions can limit access, and specialized encoding may be applied to data to prevent unauthorized parties from recovering that data. Smart devices are well known in a variety of communications technologies, including Wi-Fi®, direct Wi-Fi®, Bluetooth®, and NFC/RFID protocols, but also have antennas that may be tuned to resonate, or otherwise to operate, at frequencies compatible with powering contactless sensor elements. A smart device may be configured, by an“app,” to receive or to transfer power wirelessly according to, for example, an NFC or RFID protocol. Furthermore, "smart devices" that are Wi-Fi®, direct Wi-Fi®, or

Bluetooth® enabled may also be NFC or RFID enabled, and, therefore, may include one or more NFC or RFID antennas that may be configured to emit radio energy at frequencies compatible with powering contactless sensor devices such as a sensor patch. An“app” installed on a smart device may configure, or otherwise enable, the smart device to discharge radio energy according to an NFC protocol to power a battery-less temperature sensor device such as a temperature sensor patch.

[0078] "Passive NFC mode" can mean an operational mode in which only one or more, but not all, NFC devices in a system are active in that it/they each generate a respective power signal. The remaining one or more devices are passive in that it/they may receive, but do not generate, a power signal. In a“passive NFC mode,” any NFC device in the system can receive and transfer data via a power signal by demodulating and modulating, respectively, the power signal.

[0079] "Computer" can mean a virtual or physical computing machine that includes computing circuitry, that accepts information in analog or digital form, and that manipulates the information (typically after conversion into digital form if not already in digital form) for a specific result based on a sequence of program instructions or based on circuitry (e.g, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)) that is configured to implement an algorithm. Examples of a“computer” include a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a smart device such as a smart phone, and a server computer. [0080] "Computing machine" can mean an electronic apparatus that includes logic circuitry having one or more processor circuits or controller or control circuits ( e.g ., a microprocessor or

microcontroller), programmable memory or firmware-configurable circuitry (e.g., an FPGA), volatile memory, non-volatile memory, and one or more ports to I/O devices such as a pointer, a keypad, a sensor, imaging circuitry, a radio or wired communications link, and so forth. A computing machine can be networked with other computing machines via conventional wireless or wired connections. Controllers are generally supported by volatile and non-volatile memory, a timing clock or clocks, and digital input and output circuits, as well as one or more

communications protocols. Furthermore, computers are frequently formed into networks, and a network of computers may be referred to by the term "computing machine." In one instance, one or more computing machines“in the cloud” can form a“cloud” computing machine.

[0081] "Server" can mean a computing machine which executes software and which provides one or more services to a virtual client (e.g, a software program running on the server) or to an actual client (e.g, another computer or computing machine directly connected to the server, or connected to the server via a network such as the internet). A client typically has a user interface and performs some or all of the processing on data or files received from the server, but the server typically maintains the data and files and processes the data requests. A "client-server model" divides processing between one or more clients and one or more servers, and refers to an architecture of the system that can be co-localized on a single computing machine or can be distributed throughout a network or the“cloud.”

[0082] "Processor" can mean a digital device, such as a digital integrated circuit (e.g, a

microprocessor or microcontroller) that processes information in digital form and manipulates the information for a specific result based on a sequence of programmed instructions, or can mean a hardwired pipeline that can be configured with a stream of configuration values. Processors are used as parts of digital circuits generally including a clock, volatile memory and non-volatile memory (e.g, containing programming instructions), and may interface with other digital devices or with analog devices through Input/Output (I/O) ports, for example. Other names for

“processor” include“controller,”“control circuit,”“controller circuit,”“microprocessor,” and “microcontroller.”

[0083] General connection terms including, but not limited to "connected," "attached,"

"conjoined," "secured," "coupled," and "affixed" are not meant to be limiting, such that structures so "associated" may have more than one way of being associated. For example, there may be zero, one, or more than one component disposed ( e.g in series) between two components that are described as being“coupled” or“connected” to one another. "Fluidly connected" indicates a connection for conveying a fluid therethrough. "Digitally connected" indicates a connection in which digital data may be conveyed therethrough. "Electrically connected" indicates a connection in which units of electrical charge are conveyed therethrough.

[0084] Relative terms should be construed as such. For example, "front" can be relative to "back," "upper" can be relative to "lower," "vertical" can be relative to "horizontal," "top" can be relative to "bottom," "inside" can be relative to "outside," and so forth. Unless specifically stated otherwise, ordinals such as "first," "second," "third," and "fourth" can be for purposes of designation and not for order or for limitation. Reference to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," or an "aspect," means that a particular feature, structure, step, combination or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment or aspect is included in at least one realization of the present teachings. Thus, the appearances of the phrases "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same

embodiment and may apply to multiple embodiments. Furthermore, particular features, structures, or characteristics of two or more of the embodiments may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more other embodiments, even if such a combination or other embodiment is not expressly described herein.

[0085] Claims not including a specific limitation should not be construed to include that limitation. For example, "a" or "an" as used in the claims does not exclude a plurality.

[0086] "Conventional" refers to a term or method designating that which is known and commonly understood in the technology to which these teachings relate at the time of the earliest priority date of the patent application.

[0087] Unless the context requires otherwise, throughout the specification and claims that follow, "comprise" and variations thereof, such as, "comprises" and "comprising," and other open-ended terms such as“including,” are to be construed in an open, inclusive sense - as in "including, but not limited to."

[0088] A "method" as disclosed herein refers to one or more steps or actions for achieving the described end. Unless a specific order of steps or actions is required for proper operation of the embodiment, the order and/or use of specific steps and/or actions may be modified without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. And the order of steps or actions in a method claim does not limit the method claim to that order unless expressly stated or unless the method is inoperable if the steps are performed in any other order.

[0089]“Approximately,”“substantially,” and similar words, as used herein, indicate that a given quantity b can be within a range b ±10% of b , or b ±1 if 110% of b\ < 1. “Approximately,” “substantially,” and similar words, as used herein, also indicate that a range | b - c\ can be from | b 0.10\ (c b) I to c + 0.10 (c-b) \ \ . Regarding the planarity of a surface or other region,

“approximately,”“substantially,” and similar words, as used herein, indicate that a difference in thickness between a highest point and a lowest point of the surface/region does not exceed 0.20 millimeters (mm).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0090] The detailed description set forth below in connection with the appended drawings is intended as a description of exemplary embodiments and is not intended to represent the only embodiments in which the present subject matter can be practiced. The term "exemplary" used throughout this description means "serving as an example, instance, or illustration," and should not necessarily be construed as preferred or advantageous over other exemplary embodiments. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of exemplary embodiments of the disclosure but may include other details for purposes of clarity.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that at least in some instances, embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. And in some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block-diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the novelty of the exemplary embodiments presented herein.

[0091] FIG. 1 is a circuit diagram of a sensor device, here an NFC-powered sensor patch 100, configured for passive operation, for reporting one or more sensor quantities or conditions by a local display mode, and for data exchange with a proximate smart device by demodulating and modulating an NFC field or signal, according to an embodiment.

[0092] NFC (near-field communication) is a technology for exchanging information ( e.g data) and transferring power between two devices via an electromagnetic field or signal, hereinafter an “NFC signal” or“signal.” An example of an NFC system is a smart card and a smart-card reader. The smart-card reader is configured to transmit an NFC signal, to modulate the NFC signal with another signal that represents data or one or more commands, and to demodulate the NFC signal to recover data or one or more commands that the smart card transmits. The smart card is configured to derive operational power from the NFC signal, to demodulate the NFC signal to recover data and commands transmitted by the smart-card reader, and to modulate the NFC signal with another signal that represents data or one or more commands. In an embodiment, the smart-card reader and the smart card can be configured to modulate and demodulate the NFC signal at respective times ( e.g ., time-division multiplexing) or simultaneously ( e.g ., frequency-division multiplexing). The antennas of the reader and the smart card can be configured to resonate at the frequency of the NFC signal to facilitate power transfer. The resonant frequency of the reader and card antennas, while coupled in the near field, can be related to the respective inductance and capacitance of each antenna and the respective conductance and capacitance that each of the antennas presents to the other antenna.

[0093] Embodiments include a device to couple power to another device via the device antennas, which are in the near fields of each other.

[0094] A smart device (not shown in FIG. 1) includes dual functionality for emitting wireless power on a carrier wave via an NFC wireless power transmitter and for engaging in bidirectional NFC with the sensor patch 100. The smart device includes an NFC transceiver configured to emit an active electromagnetic or magnetic field and to transmit and receive data to and from the NFC passive sensor patch 100 while the smart device is in proximity to (e.g., within approximately 0 - 12 inches of) the NFC antenna 102.

[0095] In addition to the antenna 102, the patch sensor 100 includes a power circuit 104, a communication circuit 106, a memory circuit 108, a sensor circuit 110, an indicator 112, and a controller circuit 114.

[0096] The antenna 102 can be any type of antenna that is suitable for NFC, and that is suitable to generate, from an NFC source signal received from a remote device (e.g, a smart phone), a receive signal of a strength sufficient to power the patch sensor 100 (e.g., typically, the larger the cross- sectional area of the antenna, the more power the energy-harvester circuit 1 16 can extract from the NFC source signal) with a sufficiently high supply voltage (e.g., typically the more

turns/windings/loops that the antenna has, the higher the voltage of the receive signal that the antenna can generate across its nodes). Furthermore, the antenna 102 can be a group of multiple antennas that cooperate to receive an NFC source signal and to generate a receive signal in response to the source signal. Moreover, in an embodiment where the antenna 102 is an inductive antenna, the circuit nodes, e.g., of the energy-harvester circuit 1 16, of the communications circuit 106, or of any other circuitry to which the antenna is coupled, present, to the antenna, a capacitance having a value that effectively forms, with the inductive antenna, a parallel LC, or tank, circuit having a resonant frequency ^— = ~ 13.56 megahertz (MHz), where L is the inductance of the antenna, and C is the capacitance across the circuit nodes. The circuitry coupled to these circuit nodes typically is, or includes, an impedance-matching network that, at least ideally, allows maximum, or near-maximum, power transfer from the antenna 102 to the power circuit 104 and the communications circuit 106. For example, such an impedance-matching network may be disposed between the antenna and the power and communication circuits 104 and 106.

[0097] The power circuit 104 is configured to harvest power from the NFC receive signal generated by the antenna 102, to provide the harvested power to other circuits and components of the sensor patch 100, and includes an energy-harvester circuit 116 and a power-supply circuit 1 18. The energy-harvester circuit 1 16 is configured to convert the receive signal from the antenna 102 into a raw power signal. For example, the energy-harvester circuit 1 16 includes a conventional half-wave or full-wave rectifier (not shown in FIG. 1) that is configured to generate a rectified signal, and one or more low-pass filters (not shown in FIG. 1) configured to generate the raw power signal by reducing the ripple superimposed on the rectified signal. And the power-supply circuit 118 is configured to convert the raw power signal into a regulated power signal having a regulated voltage, for example, in an approximate range of 1.8 Volts (V) to 2.5 V. For example, the power-supply circuit 118 can be any suitable type of voltage regulator, such as a linear regulator, a buck converter, a boost converter, a buck-boost converter, or a flyback converter.

[0098] The communication circuit 106 is configured to recover source information from the NFC source ( e.g a smart phone, not shown in FIG. 1) that generates the NFC source signal, is configured to transfer sensor-patch information from the sensor patch 100 to the source, and includes a demodulator circuit 120 and a modulator circuit 122. The NFC source is configured to transmit source information, such as source commands or other source data, to the sensor patch 100 by modulating a carrier signal with the source information to generate the source signal; that is, the source signal is configured to provide power, and to carry source information, to the sensor patch 100. For example, the source is configured to generate the source signal by amplitude, frequency, or phase modulating a sinusoidal carrier signal with a source information signal that represents the source information; further in example, the source is configured to generate the source signal by amplitude- shift-key (ASK) modulating a sinusoidal carrier signal with a source information signal that represents the source information. The demodulator circuit 120 is configured to recover the source information from the receive signal (received from the antenna 102) by demodulating the receive signal to recover the source information signal, by further processing ( e.g ., error decoding) the recovered source information signal, and by digitizing the recovered and further processed source information signal. Alternatively, if further processing of the recovered source information signal is not needed (e.g., the source did not error code the source information signal), then the demodulator circuit 120 can be configured to omit the further processing of the recovered source information signal. Furthermore, the modulator circuit 122 is configured to send sensor-patch information, such as a sensor-measurement value (e.g,

temperature), sensor-patch status, or other sensor-patch data, to the source by modulating the source signal with the sensor-patch information; that is, in addition to providing power and carrying source information from the source to the sensor patch 100, the source signal also carries sensor-patch information from the sensor patch to the source. For example, the controller circuit 114 is configured to generate a digital sensor-patch-information signal that represents the sensor- patch information, and the modulator circuit 122 is configured to amplitude, frequency, or phase modulate the source signal with the sensor-patch information signal via the antenna 102; said another way, the modulator circuit 122 effectively modulates the carrier signal generated by the source with the sensor-patch information signal. For example, the modulator circuit 122 is configured to amplitude-load-modulate (ALM) the carrier signal generated by the source with the sensor-patch information signal. The controller circuit 114 or the modulator circuit 122 also can be configured to further process the sensor-patch information signal by, for example, error encoding the sensor-patch information signal before the modulator circuit modulates the source signal. The source typically includes a demodulator circuit, which may be similar to the demodulator circuit 120, configured to recover the sensor-patch information by demodulating the source signal to recover the sensor-patch information signal, by further processing (e.g, error decoding) the recovered sensor-patch information signal, and by digitizing the recovered and further processed sensor-patch information signal. Alternatively, if further processing of the recovered sensor-patch information signal is not needed, then the source can be configured to omit the further processing of the recovered sensor-patch information signal. Therefore, the above- described configurations of the source and the sensor-patch 100 allow the source and sensor patch to communication with one another bidirectionally over a carrier signal that the source generates. To prevent the source and sensor-patch information signals from interfering with one another, the source and the sensor patch 100 can be configured to implement one or more conventional interference-prevention techniques. For example, the source and sensor patch 100 can be configured to implement time-division multiplexing such that the sensor patch 100 does not modulate the source signal with the sensor-patch information signal while the source is modulating the source signal with the source information signal, and the source does not modulate the source signal with the source information signal while the sensor patch is modulating the source signal with the sensor-patch information signal. In such an embodiment, the NFC source ( e.g ., a smart device such as a smart phone) may be the master and indicate, via the source information signal, when the sensor patch 100 can, and cannot, modulate the source signal with the sensor-patch information signal. Or, if the source and the sensor patch 100 are configured to implement frequency modulation, then the source and the sensor patch each can be configured to frequency modulate the carrier signal (which is generated by the source) at significantly different respective modulation frequencies. In addition, the communication circuit 106 is configured to receive, and to be powered by, the regulated supply voltage generated by the power-supply circuit 118.

[0099] The memory circuit 108 may include one or both of volatile and non-volatile memory, and is configured to receive, and to be powered by, the regulated supply voltage generated by the power-supply circuit 118. For example, the non-volatile memory can be configured to store circuit-configuration data for configuring one or more circuits of the sensor patch 100, or can be configured to store a set of program instructions that, when executed by the controller circuit 114, cause the controller circuit to operate as described herein for one or more embodiments. For example, while executing some or all of the stored instructions, the controller circuit 1 12 is configured to execute a sensor measurement and a reporting and notification cycle. The volatile memory may include registers and buffers configured for storing source information recovered by the demodulator circuit 120, and configured for storing sensor-patch information that the controller circuit 114 previously generated for transmission to the source via the modulator circuit 122 ( i.e ., the modulator circuit is configured to modulate, via the antenna 102, the source signal with the sensor-patch information as described above).

[0100] Each of the one or more sensors 1 10 is configured to sense a respective physical quantity or condition such as temperature of an object (e.g., a human forehead) to which the sensor patch

100 is attached, a level of ambient light to which the sensor patch is exposed, a level of humidity to which the sensor patch is exposed, or a linear movement (e.g, acceleration), angular movement

(e.g, angular velocity), or a vibration (e.g., sound) that the sensor patch experiences, and to generate a respective analog or digital sense signal that represents a value of the sensed quantity or condition. For example, a sensor 110 can include a conventional thermistor circuit (not shown in

FIG. 1) configured to sense a temperature and to generate a voltage or current having a magnitude, phase, or frequency that represents, or that is otherwise related to (e.g, proportional to, inversely proportional to), the value of the sensed temperature. The one or more sensors 110 can be configured to receive, and can be configured to be powered by, the regulated power signal that the power-supply circuit 118 is configured to generate, or can be configured to be powered by a signal generated by the controller circuit 114 ( e.g ., by a power-supply circuit 128 onboard the controller circuit).

[0101] The reporter, or indicator circuit 112 (also“indicator”) is configured to indicate locally, in response to the one or more sense signals generated by the one or sensors 110, a value of a physical condition or quantity that the one or more sensors 110 sense, or a range in which the value is located. The reporter circuit 1 12 includes one or more light-emitting diodes (LEDs), such as a red-green-blue (RGB) LEDs display 124, and can also include another reporter circuit 126, such as an alphanumeric display (e.g., a liquid-crystal display (LCD)), a sound generator, chromogenic ink, or a vibration (haptic) generator. The RGB LED display 124 is configured to generate a light having a color indicative of a range in which the value of the sensed physical condition or quantity is located. For example, one of the sensors 110 is a temperature sensor configured to sense a temperature of a human body while the sensor patch 100 is attached to a region (e.g, forehead) of the body. Considering that 98.6“Fahrenheit (°F) is considered to be the normal body temperature of a healthy human, the RGB LED display 124 can be configured to generate blue light if the temperature that the sensor 1 10 senses is below 97.6 °F, to generate a green light if the temperature that the sensor senses is within the range 97.6 °F - 99.6 °F inclusive, and to generate a red light if the temperature that the sensor senses is greater than 99.6 °F. Further to this example, the other reporter 126 can be an alphanumeric display configured to display the sensed temperature, for example,“97 °F.” Or, the other indicator 126 can be a piezoelectric crystal configured to generate a sequence of sounds or vibrations that is indicative of the sensed temperature. For example, the piezoelectric crystal can be configured to generate a single sound or vibration if the temperature that the sensor 110 senses is below 97.6 °F, to generate two sounds or vibrations if the temperature that the sensor senses is within the range 97.6 °F - 99.6 °F inclusive, and to generate three sounds or vibrations if the temperature that the sensor senses is greater than 99.6 °F. Or, the piezoelectric crystal can be configured to“play” a first tune if the temperature that the sensor 110 senses is below 97.6 °F, to play a second tune if the temperature that the sensor senses is within the range 97.6 °F - 99.6 °F inclusive, and to play a third tune if the temperature that the sensor senses is greater than 99.6 °F. And it is understood that the LED display 124 and the other reporter 126 being“configured to” perform a respective function includes the controller circuit 114 being configured to cause the LED display and the other reporter to perform the respective function. The reporter circuit 112 can be configured to receive, and to be powered by, the regulated power signal that the power-supply circuit 118 is configured to generate, or can be configured to be powered by a regulated voltage signal generated by the controller circuit 114.

[0102] The controller circuit 114 is configured to communicate with, and to control, one or more other circuits and components of the patch sensor 100, in response to being configured with configuration data stored in the memory circuit 108 ( e.g ., in a non- volatile-memory section of the memory circuit), in response to executing program instructions stored in the memory circuit (e.g., in a non-volatile-memory section of the memory circuit), or in response to both being configured with configuration data and executing program instructions. The controller circuit 114 can include, for example, one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers, and also can include a power- supply circuit 128 disposed internal to the controller circuit and configured to generate a regulated power-supply signal for the controller circuit and for one or more other circuits and components of the sensor patch 100. For example, the power-supply circuit 128, which can be similar to the power-supply circuit 1 18, can be configured to receive the raw power signal from the energy- harvester circuit 1 16, and to convert the raw power signal into a regulated power-supply voltage.

[0103] Furthermore, the controller circuit 114 can be configured to“wake up” in response to receiving, from the energy-harvester circuit 1 16, the raw power signal having a steady voltage level that exceeds a threshold value, such as 1.8 Y. For example, the controller circuit 114 can include a wake-up circuit (e.g, a power-on-reset (POR) circuit) configured to receive power from the power-supply circuit 128, which activates automatically in response to receiving the raw power signal having a steady voltage level that exceeds a threshold value.

[0104] After the power-supply circuit 128 begins to generate a regulated power-supply voltage signal, the controller circuit 114 is configured to activate other circuits within the controller circuit. For example, the POR circuit onboard the controller circuit can generate a reset signal having an enable value (e.g., a logic 1 or a logic 0) in response to the power-supply circuit 128 generating a regulated power-supply voltage signal having a voltage level above a threshold, and the other circuits can be configured to receive the reset signal and to commence operations in response to the reset signal having the enable value.

[0105] After activation of its circuitry, the controller circuit 1 14 is configured to load configuration data (if applicable) from the memory circuit 108, to configure itself in response to the

configuration data, and to commence executing program instructions stored in the memory circuit. [0106] The controller circuit 114 is configured next to receive, from the demodulator circuit 120, any source information that the demodulator circuit 120 recovered from the receive signal from the antenna 102, and to act on the received source information.

[0107] For example, if the source information includes a command to measure and to display a temperature, then the controller circuit 114 first causes at least one of the one or more sensors 110 to sense a temperature and to generate a corresponding sense signal.

[0108] Next, the control circuit 114 receives and processes the sense signal (e.g., the control circuit 114 may include an analog-to-digital converter (ADC), and may cause the ADC to convert the sense signal from an analog signal to a digital signal if the sense signal is not already in digital form), and, in response to the sense signal, determines a value of the temperature sensed by the at least one sensor 110.

[0109] Then, the control circuit 114 causes the indicator circuit 112 to generate an indication of the determined value of the sensed temperature. For example, the control circuit 114 may cause the reporter display 126 to display a numeric, or alphanumeric, determined value of the sensed temperature, or may cause the LED 124 to generate a color indicative of a range within which the determined value of the sensed temperature lies. Further in example, if the determined value of the sensed temperature is 99 °F, then the controller circuit 114 causes the display 126 to display“99 °F,” or causes the LED 124 to generate a green light to indicate that the value of the sensed temperature lies within a range from 97.6 °F to 99.6 °F inclusive.

[0110] The controller circuit 114 also may generate a sensor-patch-information signal that represents the determined value of the sensed temperature, send the sensor-patch-information signal to the modulator circuit 122, and cause the modulator circuit to send the detemiined value of the sensed temperature to the source smart device (not shown in FIG. 1) via the antenna 102 by modulating the source signal with the sensor-patch-information signal. Consequently, the source smart device receives, and can display, store, and otherwise process the determined value of the sensed temperature.

[0111] Still referring to FIG. 1, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 100 are contemplated. For example, although described as being separate, the circuits 104, 106, 108, and 114, the sensors 110, the reporter circuit 112, and the controller circuit 114 can be disposed on a single integrated circuit 130 such as a system on a chip (SOC), or can be disposed on two or more integrated circuits. Further in example, where the controller circuit 114 is disposed on a separate integrated circuit, then the controller circuit may need to have firmware“flashed” to internal memory during manufacture and test, and may call for a respective bypass capacitor (not shown in FIG. 1)

between each of its one or more power-supply nodes and ground; but where the controller circuit, power circuit 104, and communication circuit 106 are integrated on a same integrated circuit, then such integrated circuit may be configured to allow omission of the firmware flash to internal memory during manufacture and test and of one or more of the bypass capacitors. Furthermore, the sensor patch 100 can include fewer or more circuits or components than those described above. Moreover, although one of the one or more sensors 110 is described as being a temperature sensor, the one or more of the sensors can be any suitable type of sensor, such as acoustic ( e.g .,

piezoelectric, microphone), optical (e.g., photocell for reflected light, CMOS pixel array), and chemical (e.g, to detect substances in sweat) sensors, multi-axis accelerometers, multi-axis gyroscopes, and microelectromechanical (MEMs) devices such as MEMs cantilevers. For example, a displacement sensor can be configured to sense a heartbeat in a peripheral artery of a human by detecting a transient increase in displacement. The controller circuit 114 can readily analyze characteristics of the displacement to calculate heart rate, but also can analyze other characteristics to determine cardiac output such as left-ventricular ejection volume. And in extreme cases of congestive heart failure, the sensor patch 100 can be configured to report a local alarm state and to notify a remote dispatcher, a nursing station, or a bedside monitor that assistance is required. In addition, although described as being a microcontroller or microprocessor, the controller circuit 114 can be, or can otherwise include, any suitable circuit, such as a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein.

Furthermore, although described as extracting power from, and communicating via, an NFC signal, the sensor patch 100 can be configured to extract power from, and to communicate via, a radio- frequency-identification (RFID) signal. Moreover, the LED 124 may be omitted, the reporter display 126 may be a chromogenic ink or a similar device that has a color corresponding to a temperature of an object to which the sensor patch 100 is in contact, and the sensor patch is configured to send a value of a sensed or determined temperature to the smart device generating a wireless source signal for numerical display of the value; therefore, the sensor patch 100 is configured to indicate a sensed or determined temperature with little or no power draw by the reporter display. In addition, the following references, which disclose NFC and RFID circuitry and techniques that may be suitable for use in, or in conjunction with, the sensor patch 100, are incorporated by reference: A 13.56 MHz Passive NFC Tag IC in 0.18-mhi CMOS Process for Biomedical Applications , Lu et al., 978-1-4673-9498-7/16, IEEE 2016; Near Field Communication (NFC) Technology and Measurements, Minihold, version lMA182_5e, June 2011; TN1216 Technical Note ST25 NFC Guide , DocID027940 Rev 2, October 2016; Near Field Communication (NFC) A Technical Overview, Motlagh, University of Vaasa, 05 November 2015; AN11755,

PN7150 Antenna Design and Matching Guide, NXP, Rev. 17, 10 July 2019; NFC Reader Design: How to build your own reader, NXP MobileKnowledge, February 2015; U.S. Patent App. Pub. 2018/0110018; U.S. Patent App. Pub. 2014/0349572; U.S. Patent 8,983,374; U.S. Patent

9,014,734; U.S. Patent 9,345,050; U.S. Patent 9,379,778; U.S. Patent 9,613,747; U.S. Patent 8,818,267; U.S. Patent 8,914,061; U.S. Patent 8,018,344; U.S. Patent 8,050,651; U.S. Patent Pub. 2012/0083205; U.S. Patent 9,225,372; U.S. Patent 9,236,658; U.S. Patent Pub. 2007/0026825;

U.S. Patent 9,496,925; U.S. Patent Pub. 2009/0011706; and U.S. 9,782,082. Moreover, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 2 A - 38 may be applicable to the patch sensor 100 of FIG. 1.

[0112] FIG. 2A is a schematic diagram of a temperature sensor 210, which is suitable for use as at least one of the one or more sensors 110 of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment. The temperature sensor 210 includes an amplifier 212 having an input node 213, a resistor 214, a thermistor 216, a supply node 218 configured to receive a supply voltage V _supp ( e.g ., from the controller circuit 1 14 of FIG. 1), an output node 220 coupled to a sense-signal input node of the controller circuit, and a control node 222.

[0113] In operation, the controller circuit 114 of FIG. 1 generates, on the supply node 218, the supply voltage Vsu _PP , and generates, on the control node 222, a control signal having an enable value (e.g., a logic 1) that enables the amplifier 212 to amplify (e.g., with unity gain) a voltage on the input node 213 and to generate an output voltage on the output node 220; alternatively, the input node may be coupled to receive the regulated supply voltage V _supp from the power-supply circuit 118 of FIG. 1. The resistor 214 and the thermistor 216 form a voltage divider that

R _Tf> (T) generates, at the input node 213, a temperature- dependent sense voltage V _sense ( Ό = ——

V _SUpp , where Rm(T) is the temperature-dependent resistance of the thermistor 216, RR is the resistance of the resistor 214, and T is temperature in units of Kelvin; for example, the resistance RTR(T) of the thermistor increases or decreases with increasing temperature, and decreases or increases with decreasing temperature. Because RTR(T) depends on, i.e., is a function of, the temperature T of the thermistor 216, the sense voltage Vsense(T) also is a function of the temperature T of the thermistor. That is, the sense voltage Vsense(T) is related to the temperature that the thermistor 216 experiences, or senses; for example, the sense voltage VsensefT) increases or decreases with increasing thermistor temperature, and decreases or increases with decreasing thermistor temperature. The amplifier 212 amplifies Vsense(T) , for example with a gain of approximately unity ( i.e the amplifier 212 operates as a buffer), and provides the amplified Vsense(T) to the controller circuit 1 14 via the output node 220.

[0114] Because the relationship between the resistance of, and the temperature experienced by, the thermistor 216 may change from thermistor to thermistor, and because the resistance of the resistor 214 my change from resistor to resistor and with temperature, during manufacture of the sensor patch 100 (FIG. 1), a technician or automatic-testing setup can calibrate Vsense(T) to temperature sensed by the thermistor 216, and can store, in the memory circuit 108 (FIG. 1), a calibration algorithm or look-up table (LUT) that relates Vsense(T) to the sensed temperature. An example calibration algorithm is x- Vsense(T) = temperature in degrees Fahrenheit (F), where x can be a scalar, a function of temperature T, or other type of factor, the value of which is determined during a calibration procedure and is stored in the memory circuit 108. Further in example, if v = 100 and Vsense(T) equals 1.0 Y, then the controller circuit 114 determines that the value of the temperature experienced, and thus sensed, by the temperature sensor 210, is equal to 100 · 1.0 V = 100 °F. Alternatively, the memory circuit 108 can store an LUT having a respective value of temperature for each of a number of values of Vsense(T) . For example, if Vsense(T) = 1.0 Y, then the controller circuit 114 retrieves, from the LUT in the memory 108, the determined value of the sensed temperature corresponding to 1.0 V. If Vsense(T) lies between two voltage values for which the LUT stores respective values of sensed temperature, then the controller circuit 114 can determine the value of the sensed temperature according to any suitable interpolation algorithm. In addition, the controller circuit 114 can determine the value of temperature that the sensor 210 senses by both using an LUT and an algorithm.

[0115] Still referring to FIG. 2A, alternate embodiments of the temperature sensor 210, the calibration procedure, the calibration algorithm, and the LUT are contemplated. For example, although described as a constant, x can be a variable that is a function of temperature or on another quantity or condition. Furthermore, although described as being an analog temperature sensor, the temperature sensor 210 can be a digital temperature sensor, which can eliminate the thermistor 216 and calibration during manufacture or test. Moreover, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 and 2B - 38 may be applicable to the temperature sensor 210 of FIG. 2A. [0116] FIG. 2B is a schematic diagram of a solid-state resistor array configured as a pressure sensor 230, which is suitable for use as at least one of the one or more sensors 1 10 of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment. The resistor network disclosed herein is configured to respond to local deformation by outputting a differential voltage from an amplifier 231, which can be or include, for example, an operational amplifier. By positioning the resistor network over a pulse such as radial or a carotid pulse, the pulsatile deformations caused by a beating heart can be sensed and a related sense signal can be generated by the pressure sensor 230 and sent to the controller circuit 114.

[0117] Sensor devices, such as the sensor patch 100 (FIG. 1) having a solid-state pressure sensor, such as the pressure sensor 230, may give an indication of barometric pressure but not a pressure differential resulting from compression or deformation of the solid-state device. In other embodiments, sensors that respond to deformation are known to include capacitive and inductive pressure sensors having deformable proximity between two opposing electrically interactive surfaces or elements. Magnetic Hall effect sensors also can be miniaturized to generate a voltage according to minute changes in the separation of two magnetically responsive elements. MEMs sensors built using etch methods derived from nanotechnology also can be used to generate a sensor signal from a deformation.

[0118] An embodiment has a strain gauge or a load cell. Thus, a variety of sensors can be adapted for use as at least one sensor of the one or more sensors 110 of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1.

[0119] Still referring to FIG. 2B, alternate embodiments of the pressure sensor 230 are

contemplated. For example, although described as being an analog pressure sensor, the pressure sensor 230 can be a digital pressure sensor. Furthermore, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1, 2A, and 2C - 38 may be applicable to the pressure sensor 230 of FIG. 2B.

[0120] FIG. 2C is a schematic diagram of an RGB LED circuit 250, which is suitable for use as the RGB LED 124 of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment. Three LEDs, each of a different color ( e.g ., red (R)/green (G)/blue (B)) are assembled in a package having four leads, a respective input lead for each LED and a common reference, e.g., ground, lead. By varying the respective voltage on each of the input leads, and, therefore, varying the respective current through, and intensity (e.g, brightness) of, each of the diodes while active, the controller circuit 1 14 (FIG. 1) can cause the circuit 250 to generate a rainbow of colors. Alternatively, the controller circuit 114 can be configured to activate fewer than all of the LEDs at one time. For example, as described above in conjunction with FIG. 1, the controller circuit 1 14 can be configured to activate the red LED, and to deactivate the green and blue LEDS, to indicate a determined temperature that is greater than 99.6 °F, to activate the green LED, and to deactivate the red and blue LEDs, to indicate a determined temperature that is within a range of 97.6 °F - 99.6 °F inclusive, and to activate the blue LED, and to deactivate the red and green LEDs, to indicate a determined temperature that is less than 97.6 °F.

[0121] The LED circuit 250 may be obtained as a wire-bonded package, as a solder-bump package, or as a flip-chip package, and may have an orientation normal to a substrate surface, lateral to a substrate surface, or even inverted such that the LED emission is directed through the substrate surface (assuming the substrate surface is translucent or transparent).

[0122] Still referring to FIG. 2C, alternate embodiments of the RGB LED 250 are contemplated. For example, although described as allowing the active/inactive status and the respective brightness of each LED to be controlled in an analog manner, the RGB LED 250 can be configured to allow the active/inactive status and the respective intensity of each LED to be controlled in a digital manner. Furthermore, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 2B and 3 - 38 may be applicable to the RGB LED 250 of FIG. 2C.

[0123] FIG. 3 is a plan view of the patch sensor 100 of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment in which the antenna 102 is, or otherwise includes, a loop antenna, and in which the power circuit 104, communication circuit 106, memory 108, the one or more sensors 1 10, the reporter circuit 112, and the controller circuit 114 are disposed within a region ( e.g ., area, volume) 300 bounded by at least one loop 302 of the antenna. Such an efficient layout allows the antenna 102 to have a size (e.g., loop diameter or loop area) sufficiently large for extracting power from the source signal from the NFC source smart device (not shown in FIG. 3) and also allows the overall size (e.g, diameter) of the sensor patch 100 to be sufficiently small for attachment to an object such as a child’s forehead.

[0124] Still referring to FIG. 3, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 100 are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 2C and 4 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 3.

[0125] FIG. 4A is a schematic diagram of system including a sensor patch 400 and a smart device 440 configured to power, communicate with, and control the sensor patch, according to an embodiment. The sensor patch 400 includes an integrated controller circuit 402 (U2) and a peripheral temperature sensor 404 that includes a thermistor TH1) with a local display 406 (here an

RGB LED). The sensor patch 400 also includes a communication-and-power circuit 408 (Ul) with an antenna 410, represented as an inductor having an inductance LI configured for NFC power harvesting and bidirectional exchange of data between the sensor patch 400 and the smart device 440, and includes a power-supply bypass capacitor C. As described above, information is transmitted by modulation and demodulation of a carrier wave in the NFC signal transmitted by the smart device 440.

[0126] The antenna 410 is a loop antenna, and the communication-and-power circuit 408 includes circuitry for power harvesting and generation of a regulated power signal having a stable ( e.g ., regulated) voltage level. In an embodiment, the controller circuit 402 includes a POR circuit (not shown in FIG. 4A) configured to enable the controller circuit in response to the voltage level of the regulated power signal equaling or exceeding a threshold voltage; the communication-and- power circuit 408 also may include such a POR circuit. Or the controller circuit 402 may include a power-supply circuit (not shown in FIG. 4A) configured to generate a regulated supply voltage in response to a raw power signal from the communication-and-power circuit 408, and may include a POR circuit configured to enable the controller circuit in response to the voltage level of this internally generated regulated supply voltage equaling or exceeding a threshold voltage.

[0127] The communication-and-power circuit 408 also includes circuits for modulation and demodulation as described above in conjunction with FIG. 1. And one or both of the

communication-and-power circuit 408 and the controller circuit 402 include a clock, random- access (RAM) memory, non-volatile memory such as electrically erasable and programmable read only memory (EEPROM), and pin-out connections to a sensor module or modules 404, optionally multiplexed or on an I ² C bus to permit sequential measurements with different classes of sensors including analog and digital sensor outputs.

[0128] Antennas and circuitry for wireless power transfer by harvesting near-field RF power are designed so that the antenna size and impedance are sufficient to power the sensor patch 400 from the near- field source signal transmitted by the smart phone 440. Wireless power transfer using capacitive coupling, inductive coupling, or magnetic resonant coupling are known, but near-field wireless power transfer to a sensor circuit embedded in an adhesive patch has not been combined so that the sensor patch reports sensor data directly via a local reporter display and also can notify at least one remote device (such as the smart device 440, which powers the sensor circuit) wirelessly, with the option of forwarding the notification to a broad area network or a remote workstation. For example,, the programmable smart device 440 having a suitable NFC antenna and signal generator is set up with a software application (e.g., an "app") that when run, renders the smart device suitable to energize the sensor patch 400 and to collect data from the sensor patch via the communication-and-power circuit 408. Generally, power is provided, and data are exchanged simultaneously, by a near-field source signal generated by the smart phone 440, having a suitable center frequency such as 13.56 MHz, and, when amplitude modulated with a data signal, having two sidebands at suitable frequencies such as 12.71 MHz and 14.41 MHz, respectively.

[0129] The sensor patch 400 is configured to keep power consumption at, or less than, 300 microwatts (pW) in an embodiment. With the thermistor 404, the sensor patch 400 is configured to achieve a temperature accuracy in an approximate range of 0.05 °C to 0.1 °C in the approximate temperature range of 35 °C to 40 °C. For measuring body temperature in a clinical environment, this accuracy and reproducibility is comparable with conventional ear- and forehead-temperature- measurement systems and is better than the conventional wet-bulb thermometers.

[0130] For inanimate objects, in an embodiment where the monitored parameter is temperature, the smart device 440 can be configured to compare a history of temperatures encountered in earlier measurements during storage or transmit, to a previously established range of acceptable values. The device 440 then can store selected data, such as data representative of (1) the occurrence of excursions outside of the acceptable range, (2) times of occurrence of the first cross-over and last cross-over from acceptable values to overage and/or underage (measured with respect to the acceptable value range) for excursions outside the acceptable range, (3) times of occurrence of and magnitude of the extreme values during excursions outside the acceptable range, and (4) the number of out-of-range excursions. Generally, the information may be retrieved in two ways: 1) visual display upon user-activation of a display device; or 2) up-loading to an external computer device. The sensor patch 400 also may be configured to report a temperature excursion by making a direct display to the user (not shown in FIG. 4A). The display device can be a buzzer, an LED light, a haptic display, or an electrochromic label with color-coded reporter, for example.

[0131] The sensor patch 400 is a passive device with no power source of its own. Accordingly, to use the sensor patch 400, a user brings the NFC antenna of the smart device 440 into proximity with the antenna 410 of the sensor patch 400. Power is extracted from an NFC receive signal generated by the antenna 410 in response to receiving an NFC source signal from the smart device 440. That is, the sensor patch 400 harvests, from the smart device 400, power to operate the sensor-patch electronics.

[0132] In NFC data transfer by standard interfaces, the underlying layers of NFC technology follow the normal ISO standards. For example, the data- transfer rate may be either 106, 212, or 424 kbps. The software application that the smart device 440 runs sets up the initial

communication speed, but the speed may be changed later depending upon the communication environment and the requirements. Compatibility between the smart device 440 and the sensor patch 400 is established during initial inductive coupling of the antenna 410 and the antenna (not shown in FIG. 4A) of the smart device. For example, the smart device 440 generates a source magnetic field ( e.g ., a source signal) with a loop antenna (not shown in FIG. 4A), and one places the smart-device antenna close enough to the sensor-patch antenna 410 so that the smart-device and sensor-patch antennas are inductively (e.g., magnetically) coupled and the source magnetic field induces a receive current signal i in the sensor-patch antenna. The receive current induces, across nodes 460 and 462 of the antenna 410, a voltage Vreceive = Ldi/dt. For example, if di/dt is sinusoidal, then Vreceive also is sinusoidal, and if di/dt is a sinusoidal signal that is modulated with an information signal, then Veceive also is a sinusoidal signal that is modulated with an information signal. Said another way, Vreceive differs from di/dt only by the scalar value L of the inductance of the antenna 410. The sensor patch 400 includes a memory circuit, the size of which may be sufficient to load a measurement from an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) or from a digital sensor chip and deliver that measurement to an encoder for broadcast through the NFC

communications circuit 408.

[0133] The communications circuit 408 is configured to broadcast (effectively via modulation of the source signal) an NFC signal with a radio device identifier (UID) that uniquely identifies the sensor patch 400. Messages may range from 8 bits to 128 bits for most applications, but for higher accuracy, such as for more complex pressure data, serial frames may be broadcast.

[0134] Still referring to FIG. 4A, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 400 are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 3 and 4B - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 400 of FIG. 4A.

[0135] FIG. 4B is a schematic diagram of a system that includes a sensor patch 450 and the smart device (e.g, a smart phone) 440, according to an embodiment.

[0136] The sensor patch 450 includes an integrated controller circuit 452, a temperature sensor 451, a pressure-sensor array 453, and a communication-and-power circuit 458. Temperature or pressure is selected for reporting according to the programming or according to commands from the smart device 440 to the controller circuit 452. Local display of sensor output is enabled using an RGB LED 456 or an optional beeper 457. The communication-and-power circuit 408 (Ul) and antenna circuit 410 are configured for power harvesting and for bidirectional exchange of data by modulation and demodulation of an NFC signal transmitted by the smart device 440.

[0137] The two sensors 451 and 453, temperature and pressure, are configured for independent operation. Both are analog sensors but may be supplied with an integrated digital-conversion capacity. The pressure sensor 453 is positioned on a flexible circuit membrane so that deformation of the circuit membrane and resistor network of the pressure sensor array is sufficient to generate a voltage difference, amplified by the op-amp and then processed by the controller circuit 452.

[0138] Still referring to FIG. 4B, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 450 are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 4A and 5 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 450 of FIG. 4B.

[0139] FIG. 5 is a plan view of a sensor patch 500, which can include circuitry similar to the circuitry of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment.

[0140] The sensor patch 500 measures less than 2.0 centimeters (cm) in diameter and less than 1.0 millimeters (mm) in thickness, and includes an antenna 502, communication-and-power circuit 504, controller circuit 506, RGB LED 508, thermistor 510, thermal-sensor resistor 512, and a flexible substrate 514.

[0141] The antenna 502 includes conductive loops 516 disposed around a periphery of the flexible substrate 514.

[0142] The communication-and-power circuit 504 includes a power circuit that can be similar to the power circuit 104 of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1, includes a communication circuit that can be similar to the communication circuit 106 of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1, and may include a memory circuit similar to the memory circuit 108 of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1.

[0143] The controller circuit 506 can be similar to the controller circuit 114 of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1

[0144] The RGB LED 508 can be similar to the RGB LED 124 of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1.

[0145] The thermistor 510 and the thermal-sensor resistor 512 form a temperature sensor 518, which can be similar to the temperature sensor 210 of FIG. 2 A.

[0146] The flexible substrate 514 is formed from a translucent and flexible plastic such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate (PC), nylon, a fluoropolymer, polyimide (e.g., KAPTON®), or other higher dielectric plastic. The substrate 514 is coated with an aluminum or copper film, and then is masked, etched, and otherwise processed in a conventional manner to form the antenna loops 516, other conductive traces, conductive pads, and conductive connection points that interconnect the components of the sensor patch 500.

[0147] The substrate 514 includes a crossover or bridge 520 over which a portion of the antenna 502 is disposed. The bridge 520 allows a connection to an outer node 522 of the antenna 502 to cross under or over the antenna loops 516 without“short circuiting” any two or more of the antenna loops together. A first inner node of the antenna 502 is coupled to a first node 524 of the communication circuit 504. From the first node 524, the continuous conductive trace that forms the loops 516 of the antenna 502 winds around the periphery of the substrate 514 to the outer node 522 of the antenna, and the bridge 520 includes an outer conductive landing 521 coupled to the outer node 522, and an inner conductive landing 523 is coupled to a second inner node 526 of the antenna 502. A conductor (not visible in FIG. 5) coupled to the outer landing 521 traverses the bridge 520 over or under inner ones of the antenna loops 516 to the inner conductive landing 523; the bridge is configured to insulate, electrically, the conductor from the antenna loops over or under which the conductor traverses. And a portion 528 of an antenna loop 516 electrically couples the second inner node 526 to a node 530 of the communication circuit 504. FIG. 28 is a cross-section of the bridge 520 taken along lines A-A.

[0148] A“chip” side (i.e., the side on which the components are mounted (the chip side is facing out of the page of FIG. 5) of the substrate 514 can be sealed from water, salt, corrosion, and other impurities, contamination, and degradation by a liquid-impermeable protection film or layer, such as a passivation layer, formed over the chip side of the substrate.

[0149] And over the film is disposed a non-conductive adhesive layer ( e.g ., polyacrylate, methacrylate, acrylamide, or a silastic gel layer).

[0150] A release backing may also be applied over the adhesive layer for protecting the adhesive from contaminants and for removal just prior to adhering the sensor patch 500 to an object like a forehead of a human subject.

[0151] Furthermore, the sensor patch 500 can be disposable and, as described above in conjunction with FIG. 1, needs no battery or other onboard power source because the sensor patch is configured to be powered entirely by an NFC emission from a smart device, such as a smart phone, while an NFC antenna of the smart device is held in proximity (e.g., 0 - 12 inches) with the antenna 502. [0152] Still referring to FIG. 5, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 500 are contemplated. For example, one or more of the protection layer, adhesive layer, and release backing may be disposed over a non-chip side of the substrate 514. Furthermore, although shown as having two terminals, the antenna 502 can have three or more terminals; for example, the antenna can have a center tap (in the center of the inner and outer terminals, where the center is located at one half the linear spiral distance between the inner and outer terminals). Moreover, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 4B and 6 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 500 of FIG. 5.

[0153] FIG. 6 is a diagram of a system that includes a smart device, such as a smart phone, 440, and a sensor patch 600, according to an embodiment. The sensor patch 600 is configured for passive operation: that is, the sensor patch is inactive until the smart phone 440 transmits a source NFC signal 603, an NFC antenna 601 of the sensor patch 600 receives the source NFC signal and converts the source NFC signal into a receive NFC signal, and a power circuit 602 extracts, from the receive NFC signal, power to operate the sensor patch.

[0154] The antenna 601 is configured to couple the receive NFC signal to a power circuit 602, which is configured to extract power from the receive NFC signal, and a communication circuit 604, which is configured to perform bidirectional NFC communications between the smart device 440 and the sensor patch 600. Power harvesting and data exchange can occur simultaneously. While the ability to exchange data can be dependent on an ongoing power supply from the source NFC signal generated and transmitted by the smart device 440, the sensor patch 600 includes a temporary energy -storage capacitor 610 (here represented as a supercapacitor, but alternatively another type of capacitor or a rechargeable laminar battery), which is configured, at least under some operating conditions, to allow the sensor patch 600 to operate for a period during which the antenna 601 does not receive the source NFC signal 603. Power harvested is split so that at least a part of the available energy is directed to the supercapacitor 610 so that it can be discharged if the source signal 603 is interrupted. The supercapacitor 610 is configured to power some or all of the circuits and other components of the sensor patch 600, for a duration related to the capacitance of the supercapacitor, in units of Farads (F), and the load that the circuits and other components of the sensor patch present to the supercapacitor.

[0155] The power circuit 602 includes an energy-harvester circuit 612 and a power-supply circuit 614. Together, the circuits 612 and 614 include a half- or full-wave rectifier, a voltage regulator, and a circuit ( e.g ., a POR circuit) configured to indicate when a supply voltage generated by the power-supply circuit 614 equals or exceeds a threshold voltage (e.g., 1.1 Y). The power-supply circuit 614 is configured to power, with the supply voltage, at least the power circuit 602, the communication circuit 604, and a controller circuit 626 (e.g., a microprocessor or microcontroller that can include one or more of a memory cache, configurable (e.g, with configuration data such as firmware) logic circuitry, and a clock circuit).

[0156] The power circuit 602 also includes a field-coupling gauge 611, which is configured to determine a position of the smart device 440 relative to the sensor patch 600 at which NFC power transfer from the smart device to the sensor patch is suitable, or even is highest. The field- coupling gauge 611 can cause the sensor patch 600 to signal suitable positioning of the smart device 440 by generating a steady tone or by other means to guide a user to maintain the indicated position. Note that the energy-harvester circuit 612 can include a bidirectional link 616 with the communication circuit 604, and the link may be useful for initial setup of a radio link during power up of the sensor patch 600.

[0157] As stated above, the energy-harvester circuit 612 and power-supply circuit 614 supply power to the communication circuit 604, which includes a modulator circuit 620 and a

demodulator circuit 622. The demodulator circuit 622 is configured to recover information, such as commands or data, that the smart device 440 transmits and the antenna 601 receives and provides to the communications circuit 604. And the modulator circuit 620 is configured, effectively, to modulate the source NFC signal, via the antenna 601, with information, such as status or measurement data, generated by the controller circuit 626 for transmission to the smart device 440.

[0158] A memory circuit 624 includes one or both of volatile and non-volatile memory. For example, the non-volatile memory can be configured to store configuration data for configuring one or more of the circuits of the sensor patch 600, and a set of software instructions that, when executed by the controller circuit 626, cause the controller circuit, or one or more circuits under the control of the controller circuit, to execute a sensor measurement, reporting, and notification cycle. The volatile memory of the memory circuit 624 can include registers and buffers configured for storing data received from the smart device 440 via the demodulator circuit 622 and data received by the controller circuit 626 for transmission to the smart device 440 via modulator circuit 620.

[0159] Together the modulator and demodulator circuits 620 and 622 and any data-storage, decoding, and encoding circuitry that the modulator and demodulator include, the power circuit 602, and the memory circuit 624, form a wireless-communication circuit 618, which includes both the power-harvesting and information-exchange circuits of the sensor patch 600. [0160] Wireless-communication circuit 618 has an integrated-circuit architecture. The integrated circuit includes the power circuit 602 and the communication circuit 604. The communication circuit 604 is configured to configure and to control the energy-harvester circuit 612 by loading configuration data from the memory circuit 624 into the power circuit 602, and also may obtain information from the power circuit 602 via link 616 (hence the bidirectional arrow/coupling between the energy -harvester circuit 612 and the communication circuit 604). For example, the wireless-communication circuit 618 is a single-chip component and is configured to operate with some level of independent functionality from the controller circuit 626. The circuit 618 is configured to generate an onboard voltage sufficient to wake up the controller circuit 626, for example, before the controller circuit can take a sensor measurement.

[0161] In an embodiment, the controller circuit 626 is configured to perform at least two functions. Sensor banks 631 and 632, which may be mounted on a flexible circuit support membrane, e.g., a substrate, 630 with the other circuits and components of the sensor patch 600, are in digital communication with the controller circuit 626. The sensors may be analog or digital, but the sensor package(s) for sensors S5, S6, S7 and S8, if these sensors are analog, can include an ADC to render these sensors compatible with a bus, such as an I ² C bus, 635.

[0162] To access sensor readouts for sensors SI, S2, S3, and S4, a serial bus 633 joined to a first bank 631 of these sensors may include a multiplexer 634 or multiple sensors joined to an I ² C bus may include an I ² C multiplexer switch on the bus. The controller circuit 626 is configured to receive sensor output and to process the sensor output for several purposes.

[0163] In a first executable step, the controller circuit 626 may process the sensor output according to programmable rules established by the manufacturer or programmable by the user, and transmit a command to a reporter component such as the RGB LED 638;

[0164] In a second executable step, the controller circuit 626 may include several data fields in a message and cause the data string to be transmitted via the modulator circuit 620 through antenna 601 to a proximate compatible smart device 440. The message includes a digital unique identifier UID that is assigned to the sensor patch 600. A time stamp may also be included. From the smart device 440, the "notification" may be forwarded to LAN or WAN network components (not shown in FIG. 6) and to any remote workstation (not shown in FIG. 6) by a Bluetooth signal, by a cellular signal, by Wi-Fi, or by any wireless or wired system. The smart device 440, or a remote workstation in receipt of data may also present display tables and trendlines that show the latest sensor measurement in the context of past sensor measurements. By storing the data in a folder dedicated to the unique identifier UID of the sensor patch 600 and associating that folder with a particular target of the measurements ( e.g a patient, a sick child, a champagne bottle, a

refrigerator, a package, a truck trailer, a runner in a race, a soldier, a blood specimen, and so forth, without limitation) so that a permanent tracking history of the measurement is incorporated into the folder history, then that folder can be copied to other parties having an interest according to permissions and rules associated with the UID by the user or by a system administrator.

[0165] The controller circuit 626 also may command any optional reporter component (such as a buzzer or vibrator) to call attention to the data. The reporter circuit 638, which can include one or more RGB LEDs, or the optional one or more reporter displays 639, can serve as an alarm if there is a critical sensor result, or can signal an "all clear" if the data is within expected limits.

[0166] As embodied in the sensor patch 600, sensor data is (A) sent as a wireless notification and (B) reported by some physical manifestation that is manifested in the sensor patch by reporter components 638 or 639, or can be an electrochromic patch that changes color or shape according to the sensor value as interpreted by the controller circuit 626. The wireless notification can include the UID of the sensor patch 600, but the direct display onboard the sensor patch need not display the UID because the reporter component is co-located with the patch sensor.

[0167] In variants of this architecture, the sensor patch 600 is fitted with an array of sensors, such as force sensors. The result is that by addressing each sensor by a particular address, such as on an I ² C bus, and by time stamping each sensor output, a temporal and spatial map of deformations in the sensor patch 600 can be constructed. Such a force-sensing operation may have interest in clinical applications where heart pulse rate and pulse characteristics are studied at a peripheral artery. The sensor array also permits a user to place the sensor patch 600 on top of an artery, such as on the wrist, without exactly knowing where the radial artery is - the sensor patch 600 can be configured to detect the strongest signal and assess pulse rate accordingly. Similarly, the sensor patch 600 may be configured to assess peroneal, brachial, or carotid pulse without detailed palpation to determine the precise anatomy of the strongest signal. And by comparing pulse deformation along a series of sensors that follow the artery, the sensor patch 600 can integrate the size of the pulse wave. The integration, when placed in the context of a database of measurements made of patients in various stages of heart pathology or in treatment for heart pathology, can be used to make predictions about diagnosis, about prognosis, about the response to therapy, and can be used to alert the user (via the patch reporter) or a caregiver or administrator (via a patch notification) that something is amiss, that some new event is occurring, or that a series of measurements over time shows a steady improvement or a worsening condition. When confined with electrophysiology of the heart by use of an electrocardiogram (EKG), measurement of peripheral pulse volume can provide a convincing indication of cardiac ejection volume, a major predictor for morbidity and mortality in congestive heart failure. Thus, use of the sensor patch 600 in combination with a smart device for a daily home examination, when transmitted to an experienced clinician or to a cloud facility for making computerized evaluations, can result in improved outcomes by getting people to the emergency room when needed and by giving them the peace of mind to stay home when no intervention is called for.

[0168] Similarly, for athletes the sensor patch 600 can be configured to evaluate an athlete’s response to training using cardiac output as a parameter. A sensor patch 600 with force sensors also may be adapted to monitor breathing rate and lung vital volume, factors of interest to pulmonologists and for athletes in training. An inexpensive disposable version of the sensor patch 600 that an athlete can use to record and to store key data after a workout offers not only improved individual training, but also can be used to compare training regimens across large groups, an application of big data made possible by easy access to physiological measurements.

[0169] The sensor patch 600 could facilitate further learning about real-time hematological indicia as well. For example, the science of blood oximetry is little studied in the general population. By assembling large cohorts of individuals and obtaining periodic measurements of blood oxygenation using a suitably configured sensor patch 600 with a simple photo-oximeter sensor, epidemiological studies of air quality, clinical studies of exposure to toxic pollutants, chronic occupational conditions, correlations with age and underlying conditions, and so forth, large volumes of data can be accumulated. Related big-data studies can be undertaken for diabetics and by looking at other blood markers, a broad range of human conditions in health and disease. The devices and systems disclosed here offer significant advances in telemedicine that may reduce costs of medical care while improving outcomes and providing safer environments and working conditions.

[0170] Still referring to FIG. 6, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 600 are contemplated. For example, the sensor patch 600 can have an NFC/RFID tag architecture that includes the integrated controller circuit 626 and the integrated communications circuit including the modulator 620 and the demodulator 622, which interface with the NFC antenna 601. The communication circuit 604 and the controller circuit 626 can be on separate chips or on a same chip. Or, the one or more integrated circuits can be flexible chips such as supplied by American Semiconductor, Inc., of Boise, Idaho. Furthermore, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 5 and 7 A - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 600 of FIG. 6.

[0171] FIG. 7A is an exploded isometric view of a two-layer sensor patch 700 according to an embodiment in which the sensor patch includes the circuitry of, and is otherwise similar to, the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1. An upper layer 702 is a flexible circuit backing or substrate, for example a plastic that resists folding but bends easily. The conductive circuit-interconnection traces and pads are layered on the bottom face of the flexible substrate 702. A conductive glue is then used to attach the integrated-circuit (IC) chips and components to the conductive pads of the substrate 702. The sensor patch 700 includes an LED device ( e.g ., an RGB LED such as described above in conjunction with FIGS. 1, 2C and 6) configured for bottom illumination (emission direction is "up", see FIG. 7B) and a controller IC (e.g., such as the controller circuits of FIGS. 1 and 6). A nested set of conductive loops forming an NFC antenna 705 are formed over a bottom (same side to which the components are mounted) of the substrate 702. Conductive test pads are also included on a same side of the substrate 702 as the conductive traces, and facilitate calibrating, loading of software and configuration data into, and testing of, the sensor patch 700 during manufacture and test. One or more other circuits and components may be omitted from FIG. 7 A for clarity. Furthermore, in an embodiment, no "vias" through the substrate 702 are present because there are no circuits or components disposed on the other side (top side in FIG. 7A) of the substrate. A lower layer 704 includes a compliant film of a non-conductive adhesive. The adhesive may be selected to be biocompatible and adhere to an object, for example, to the skin of a human subject, or may be an adhesive such as used in packaging labels or industry. For example, the adhesive may be a nonconductive gel such as polyacrylate. The adhesive is applied over the circuitry and components. A removable cover layer (not shown in FIG. 7A) may be disposed over the adhesive layer 704 to prevent contamination of the adhesive layer before attachment of the sensor patch 700 to an object, and may be peeled off of the adhesive layer just before attaching the sensor patch to an object, similar to how one peels off a cover layer before applying an adhesive bandage, a license-plate tag, etc. Furthermore, because even a non-conductive adhesive layer 704 may become conductive after exposure to moisture, such as sweat on human skin, and because a conductive adhesive layer may“short out,” electrically, one or more conductive traces, such as the antenna loops, disposed over the substrate 702, the sensor patch 700 also can include an optional liquid-proof sealing layer 706 disposed between the substrate 702 and the adhesive layer 704. For example, the sealing layer 706 can be, or otherwise can include, a dielectric such as a potting material. Moreover, including the sealing layer 706 may allow the adhesive layer 704 to include an electrically conductive adhesive. And the materials from which the adhesive layer 704 and optional sealing layer 706 are formed, and the thicknesses of these layers, render the adhesive layer and, if included, the sealing layer, suitably thermally conductive so that a temperature sensor disposed over ( e.g ., on the bottom in FIG. 7A) the substrate 702 is suitable thermally coupled to an object the temperature of which one is using the sensor patch 700 to measure.

[0172] FIG. 7B is an exploded cross-sectional side view of the sensor patch 700 of FIG. 7A, according to an embodiment. The sensor patch 700 includes an RGB LED 708 and an IC control circuit 710, which can be similar to the RGB LED 124 and the controller circuit 114, respectively, of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1. A temperature sensor (not shown in FIG. 7B) can be integrated as part of the controller circuit 710. The LED 124 is configured so that light exits the LED through the back (top in FIG. 7B) of the transparent substrate 702 and away from the adhesive layer 704. The loops of the antenna 705 form a raised circumferential segment, and the antenna can be made (e.g., by etching) from a deposited layer of aluminum or other conductive metal (e.g., copper, an alloy) that has a bending modulus similar to the bending modulus of the substrate 702.

[0173] Because the controller circuit 710 is configured to actuate the LED 708 only after a temperature measurement is completed, and because the substrate 702 is less than a millimeter in thickness, the sensor patch 700 can omit a heat sink for the LED. The colored glow of the LED, while active, is readily visible through the transparent substrate 702, and graphics may be applied to the exterior side (upper side in FIG. 7B) of the substrate without interfering with the visibility of the LED.

[0174] As described above in conjunction with FIG. 7A, the adhesive layer 704 is disposed on the component side of the substrate 702, the component side being the side of the sensor patch 700 that contacts and adheres to skin or another surface while in use.

[0175] Referring to FIGS. 7 A - 7B, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 700 are

contemplated. For example, the substrate 702, the adhesive layer 704, and, if included, the sealing layer 706, can be formed from one or more“breathable” materials so that the sensor patch 700 can be attached to a human body (e.g, to human skin) for an extended period of time (e.g., hours, days) without irritating the skin or causing one or more other problems. Furthermore, in addition to the substrate 702 being flexible, one or more integrated circuits mounted to the substrate can be flexible integrated circuits such as available from American Semiconductor, Inc., of Boise, Idaho.

In addition, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 6 and 8 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 700 of FIGS. 7A - 7B. [0176] FIG. 8 is a plan view of a temperature sensor patch 800 having an alternate form factor and with a cover layer 841, according to an embodiment. The sensor patch 800 includes a flexible substrate 842, a thermistor 843, an RGB LED 844, a controller circuit 845 including a clock and cache memory, an antenna 846 having multiple loops or turns, and an NFC integrated circuit 847 having power(energy)-harvester, modulator, and demodulator circuits.

[0177] The antenna 846 includes a bridge 848 for coupling an outside end or node of the antenna to the NFC circuit 847; the inside end or node of the antenna is coupled to the NFC circuit directly. That is, the bridge 848 is a conductor that bridges the inner loops of the antenna 846 and that is electrically connected to the outer loop of the antenna at its outer node. The bridge 848 is electrically insulated from the inner loops of the antenna 846 by a dielectric or other non- electrically conductive material in a conventional manner. Alternative antennas that can be used in the sensor patch 800 instead of the loop antenna 846 include RFID, monopole, dipole, patch, microstrip, and fractal antennas such as proposed in U.S. Pat Nos 6,452,553 and 7,256,751, which are incorporated by reference, and at www. fractenna. com the contents of which are incorporated by reference.

[0178] Still referring to FIG. 8, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 800 are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 7B and 9 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 800 of FIG. 8.

[0179] FIG. 9A is an exploded view of a three-layer sensor patch 900, according to an

embodiment. Conductive traces and pads are formed over a plastic flexible substrate 905 and components are soldered to the conductive pads by remelt of solder balls to ensure good conductivity; a drop of dielectric epoxy flowed under each component may be used to strengthen the attachment of the component to the substrate 905. Alternatively, the components may be attached to the conductive pads with an electrically conductive glue. Overlayer 901 is a protective cushion of a translucent foam and bandage-like material that is configured to insulate, thermally, the circuit so as to prevent interference in temperature measurements when ambient temperature is low or high relative to the temperature of an object to which the sensor patch 900 is attached; the overlayer may also function to block water capillarity under the circuit backing.

[0180] An underlayer of a non-conductive adhesive 907 is applied over the components, which include a backlit LED 902 and a controller circuit 904. Also indicated are test pads and

component-coupling pads that connect to circuit tracings (not shown). [0181] FIG. 9B is a cross-sectional side view along a midline of the sensor patch 900, with a backlit visual indicator ( e.g ., LED) 902 and an IC controller circuit 904 with an integrated thermistor. A temperature sensor including the thermistor 904 alternatively may be provided as an analog peripheral connected to the controller circuit 904 by a serial or other bus.

[0182] Referring to FIGS. 9A - 9B, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 900 are

contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 8 and 10A - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 900 of FIGS. 9A - 9B.

[0183] FIG. 10A is an exploded view of a four-layer sensor patch 1000, according to an

embodiment. Components of the sensor patch 1000 are placed and soldered (or glued) onto a plastic flexible substrate 1005, and an underlayer of a non-electrically conductive adhesive 1007 is applied over the components. Cover layers 1001 and 1003 for cushioning and insulating the components are also applied on a side of the substrate 1005 opposite the side on which the components are disposed. Layer 1001 may extend past the diameters of the substrate 1005 and of the cover layers 1001 and 1003 to improve adhesion of the sensor patch 1000 to an object around the edges of the sensor patch.

[0184] FIG. 10B is a cross-sectional side view along a midline of the four-layer adhesive sensor patchlOOO of FIG. 10A, where the sensor patch includes a visual indicator, which is an LED in an embodiment. All circuit and other components are mounted on the bottom face of a flexible substrate. The LED is provided with a transparent silastic lens for enhanced visibility. The controller circuit is provided with a heat sink so that repeat temperature measurements can be made with little or no background drift. A thin sealant epoxy layer is coated onto the components and component leads before application of an adhesive coating or film. And an insulative cover extends over the edges of the substrate.

[0185] Referring to FIGS. 10A - 10B, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 1000 are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 9B and 11 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 1000 of FIGS. 10A - 10B.

[0186] FIG. 11 is an exploded side view of a variant construction of a sensor patch 1100 having four layers in which a sealant coating layer over the components is called out, according to an embodiment. The LED is back lit, and the LED and the controller circuit (IC) are protected with a gel capsule and an insulative cover. The gel capsule, also called a lens capsule, serves as a light pipe so that the LED color is displayed through the external insulative cover, according to an embodiment. [0187] Referring to FIG. 11, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 1100 are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 10B and 12 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 1 100 of FIG. 11.

[0188] FIG. 12 is a cutaway side view along a midline of a sensor patch 1200 in which a flexible substrate includes a "display module" such as an LED, Organic LED (OLED), liquid crystal display (LCD), electrochromic strip, or LED array on the backside of the circuit face under a clear lens, according to an embodiment. The display module can include, for example, an

electrochromic strip or a dot matrix LED array configured to display digits and scrolling script. The display module can be embedded in, or otherwise covered by, a silastic lens capsule for protection and to increase stiffness around the one or more display components.

[0189] Yias electrically connect the display module to circuitry on a face-down side of the flexible substrate (backing layer). Components may be electrically connected to the circuit leads using conventional wire bonding, solder bead-bump-on pad fusion, flip-chip fabrication technologies, or electrically conductive glue. For flip-chip fabrication, solder balls on the base of the chip are contacted with pads on the face of the circuit membrane, then re-melted (typically using hot-air reflow, or using a thermosonic bonding, see "reflow soldering"). The mounted chip is then "underfilled" using an electrically insulating adhesive of the desired stiffness. Thermal bonding can be a challenge if the two surfaces to be joined do not have matched thermal expansion. The underfill step prevents breaking the chip electrical connections under flex and prevents the die from being cracked and broken. Because these dies are on the order of 1 mm ² , the mechanical stress is manageable. A common-base die can be used to make "piggyback" or hybrid flip chips having the sensor built on a separate die and then stacked onto the flip chip before soldering. In this way, any one of multiple sensor types can be attached without the need to individualize the basic package.

[0190] Alternatively, clusters of chips can be wired together using connectors and pads

lithographed in or on the flexible substrate. Flip chips also may be unique in that after soldering is completed, a layer of adhesive, such as an epoxy, is flowed under the chip and around the solder beads. This provides rigidity that can be localized specifically to the area of the chip and helps to insulate the connections while not restricting flexibility of the carrier or the bandage package.

[0191] An IC processor circuit ( e.g a microprocessor or microcontroller) 1201, when used with this device, can be provided with software or firmware so as to enable display of pulse rate, blood pressure, temperature in Celsius or Fahrenheit, and so forth, using sensor outputs from an array of one or more sensors 1202. For non-clinical applications, the display can summarize the historical temperature high and low, or any shock delivered to the system. In alternative embodiments, the pressure sensor can be substituted by or supplemented with an accelerometer in order to improve shock sensitivity and to permit better resolution of pulse beats in the human circulation, for example.

[0192] Referring to FIG. 12, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 1200 are contemplated.

For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 11 and 13 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 1200 of FIG. 12.

[0193] FIG. 13 is a cutaway side view along a midline of a sensor patch 1300 having a

supercapacitor, according to an embodiment. Metallized layers of a supercapacitor (or optionally a layered rechargeable battery) would block radio energy; hence the flexible substrate is flipped so that the component side is facing away from the skin contact side and the LED is configured to emit light up through the top cover without being blocked by the reflective metallized layers under the flexible substrate. The antenna is also on the upper face of the substrate, and hence is covered only by a pliant radiolucent cover. Yias can be positioned in the substrate to support connections from one side to another of the substrate. The pliant cover includes an optional lens configured to transmit light from the LED. A buzzer (not shown in FIG. 13) may also be included. The size and power density of the supercapacitor are configured to permit longer measuring cycles (such as useful for measuring pulse rate over a defined interval) on a single charge by a smart device (not shown in FIG. 13). Alternatively, the charge can be stored and once charged, a set of sensors can be actuated in sequence according to an internal clock before reporting all the data. Other capacitor configurations may be used.

[0194] To accommodate the superconductor or, alternatively, a thin-film battery, a thicker sealant layer is used and vias are laser punched through the substrate to make electrical connections with the processor circuit and components of the sensor and radio circuits. The adhesive layer then can be applied to the bottom face of the sealant layer and more hygroscopic and hence more

biocompatible adhesives can be used. A release backing is provided that is peeled off before the sensor is adhered to the skin or other surface.

[0195] Referring to FIGS. 1 - 13, alternate embodiments of a sensor patch are contemplated. For example, a sensor patch can be part of a system for making sensor measurements using NFC wireless power transfer that powers both a local reporter display and a wireless remote notification. The sensor patch is typically passive but may contain charge- storage components (battery, super capacitor) for extended use. The sensor patch receives power from an energy-harvesting circuit that generates a power signal in response to the sensor patch being exposed to an NFC field emitted by a smart device ( e.g ., a smart phone) that is placed in close proximity to the sensor patch and actuated. Generally, the smart device is programmable and operates with an installable application and a graphical user interface (GUI). Different programming and GUIs may be used for different measurements, making the combination of sensor patch and smart device a flexible and robust system for sensing, monitoring, and reporting sensed quantities and conditions.

[0196] FIG. 14 is a diagram of a system 1400 configured to make sensor measurements and to network sensor data to a local area network (LAN) 1412, wide area network (WAN) via Wi-Fi 1411, one or more cellular 1410 networks, or a sub-combination or combination of any of the preceding networks and other networks, according to an embodiment. Micro-networks, such as Manet, and LAN networks, such as Bluetooth, may also be used to connect the smart device 440 to other computing components of the system.

[0197] The smart device 440 (e.g., a smart phone) is configured to communicate with, and to power, a sensor patch 1401 via electrical, magnetic, or inductive coupling between antennas of the smart device and the sensor patch, for example according to an NFC protocol or an RFID protocol. Operational distance between the smart device 400 and the sensor patch 1401 can be, for example, in a range of approximately 30 cm or less, or 20 cm or less, or 10 cm or less.

[0198] The sensor patch 1401 can be configured to provide an indication of a measured quantity (e.g, human temperature within or not within normal range). The sensor patch 1401 can be configured to send a value of the sensed quantity to the smart device 440, which can be configured to communicate with a remote device via a Wi-Fi access point 141 1, a cell tower, or cellular network 1410, with another device (e.g., a computer or workstation 1412), or with an

administrative host (not shown in FIG. 14). All of these intermediate devices can be configured to communicate with the“cloud” 2000 or with a remote device via the internet. The data can be analyzed by, e.g., a medical professional so as to enable applications for telemedicine. The data can also be programmed and used in a household or business to enable better monitoring and notifications of sensor conditions that require attention.

[0199] Furthermore, the sensor patch 1401 can be considered an internet-of-things (IoT) device.

[0200] The sensor patch 1401 and smart device 440 are configured to work together to share data with the IoT on the cloud 2000 or on local terminals. One or more network links and portals may be used to forward data from the sensor patch 1401 to a higher-level data-processing system. Once data is captured by the smart device 440, it may be stored or manipulated locally, including for display and for making rules-based notifications that are associated with thresholds or states of sensor output.

[0201] Data shared with the larger system networks can be stored and archived, displayed as needed, and notifications can be sent to remote devices for action or for tracking. Each sensor patch 1401 in the system 1400 (the system also can be configured to include multiple sensor patches) is provided with a unique identifier that is sent digitally to a smart device 440 in response to a measurement being made and the user has the option to associate that digital identifier with a particular patient, child, or inanimate object for which sensor data is being collected. The program on the smart device 440 can provide user profiles so that the sensor-patch UID can be attached to a particular patient or object. Data that is identified by UID and timestamp can be aggregated over time and trends plotted or tracked.

[0202] Notifications can be issued according to the trends in the data and in compliance with rules and permissions established by the end user or a system administrator, for example an

administrative host associated with an IP address in cloud 2000.

[0203] For example, a software application can configure any suitable smart device 440 as a thermometer that can read a temperature from the sensor patch. The smart device 440 includes a controller circuit ( e.g ., a microprocessor or microcontroller) with NFC transmission capability and is in communication with an administrative host server on the cloud 2000. The local smart device 440 or a cloud-hosted administrative server may be configured to provide temperature charting, and remote notifications as needed, and to display enhanced plots or annotations either on the small screen of the smart device or on a desktop monitor such as at a nursing station.

[0204] The charting and display functions are part of an electronic medical record and are automatic once the measurement cycle is activated by bringing the smart device 440 into NFC proximity with the sensor patch 1401. During measurement, data exchange can be bidirectional (e.g., time-division multiplexed or frequency-division multiplexed) as described, for example, so that sensor parameters can be updated while sensor data is being collected or sequentially. The smart device 440 also can be adapted to make other sensor measurements by providing sensor patches 1401 with suitable sensors and a suitable software application installable on the smart device. [0205] Still referring to FIG. 14, alternate embodiments of the system 1400 are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 13 and 15 - 38 may be applicable to the system 1400 of FIG. 14.

[0206] FIG. 15 is a flow diagram of a method for making a sensor measurement using a sensor patch such as described above in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 14, according to an embodiment.

The nature of the sensor patch is agnostic and temperature sensors, pressure sensors, and accelerometers have been illustrated as exemplary sensors, while not limiting the applicability to other sensors wired in series or in parallel to the controller circuit or operated as multiplexed sensor modules.

[0207] At a first step 1501, a user applies the adhesive sensor patch to a surface to be monitored and places a smart device that has been programmed for operating with the sensor patch in close proximity to the sensor patch. The sensor patch activates in response to a source power-and- information signal from a nearby ( e.g ., within a range of one foot or less) smart device such as a smart phone; the active sensor patch harvests energy from the source signal.

[0208] At a step 1502, a supply voltage that the sensor patch generates in response to the harvested energy ramps up, and, at a step 1503, in response to the supply voltage equaling or exceeding a threshold voltage, the controller circuit 1 14 wakes up and may cause one or more other

components (e.g., sensor, speaker) of the sensor patch to power up, or otherwise to wake up, out of a standby or sleep mode. For example, a logic level on a general-purpose input-output (GPIO) pin of a power circuit that includes an energy-harvester circuit transitions to an enable state in response to the supply voltage equaling or exceeding a threshold voltage. Or the controller circuit 114 otherwise can be configured to wake up in response to the supply voltage equaling or exceeding a threshold voltage.

[0209] At a step 1504, the sensor patch initiates a measurement, for example, in response to a command from the smart device, and a sensor of the sensor patch generates a sense signal that is digital, that an ADC converts into a digital sense signal, or that the sensor patch digitizes by pulse counting if the sensor is, for example, a capacitive sensor. The sensor patch then encodes the digital signal with a unique identifier (UID) and transmits the encoded digital signal to the smart device by modulating a carrier wave of the source signal via the sensor-patch antenna. For example, the smart device modulates the carrier wave at a center frequency of 13.6 GHz with an information message, the sensor patch extracts the information message by demodulating the modulated carrier wave and harvests power from the carrier wave, and then the sensor patch modulates the carrier wave with a patch-information message such that unidirectional or bidirectional communication between the smart device and the sensor patch, and power harvesting by the sensor patch, can occur simultaneously. Alternately, communications can be time-division multiplexed so that at any one time the information is flowing in only one direction between the smart device and the sensor patch.

[0210] At a step 1505, the sensor patch sends a sensor-patch information signal to the smart device, and the sensor-patch information signal includes a UID of the sensor patch, and the smart device demodulates, decodes, and recovers the sensor-patch information from the sensor-patch

information signal, and processes the recovered information. For example, the smart device may send or share the recovered information to or with local computing resources, remote system resources, and cloud servers or any local radio links that are authorized to receive the sensor-patch information. Following analysis at any level in the system, notifications and commands may be sent to one or more of the smart device and the sensor patch. The smart device also may archive the sensor information along with a time stamp and any other relevant information derived from the UID. A profile that has been set up for a particular sensor patch and associated with a particular patient or object is updated with current information. Security and other properties in the profile are typically set by the user or by a system administrator.

[0211] Next, the sensor patch shuts down when power ( e.g ., the source signal generated by the smart device) is withdrawn or when the measurement is completed. In some instances, onboard power will be stored so that an extended function such as a speaker or a series of sensors can be operated.

[0212] During the initial step 1501, an operator brings the smart device into close proximity (e.g., within one foot) with the sensor patch and initiates a program or "application" on the smart device. The program causes the device, while executing instructions of the program, to emit an NFC radio signal, for example, at 13.56 MHz with an amplitude sufficient to power the sensor patch. The controller circuit of the sensor patch wakes up when the supply voltage that a power circuit onboard the sensor patch generates equals or exceeds a defined threshold voltage.

[0213] The controller circuit onboard the sensor patch, as configured by configuration data (e.g., firmware) or while executing software, causes a temperature sensor to be powered and enabled so that the sensor can measure a temperature.

[0214] A sense signal generated by the sensor is converted into a digital signal and a return transmission of the sensed temperature is made from the sensor patch NFC radioset to the smart device. The transmission is generally encoded by modulating the carrier frequency of the source signal generated by the smart device. Once the sensed temperature value is received by the smart device, the smart device causes the data to be distributed through a local or wide area network where other programming may be used to archive and to display the sensor output in context of previous measurements and to send out an alarm if the temperature is at variance with expected normal results.

[0215] In addition, the skin-adhesive sensor patch is provided with an LED or LEDs and is configured so that a visual indication of the temperature as high or low accompanies a

measurement. The LED may be a 3 -pin RGB LED for multicolor use or a pair of LEDs, one red and one green, can be provided so that the method permits the user to rapidly determine whether the skin temperature is elevated by applying NFC energy, typically by bringing a smart device into proximity of the sensor patch. Other visual indicators may be used. Alternatively, a vibration or a sound can serve as an indicator of the temperature at the bedside, without reliance on an indirect readout from the smart device. These and other features can be controlled by firmware that configures one or more of the circuits embedded in the skin-adhesive package of the sensor patch and by software installed on the smart device, such software as is typically termed an "app".

[0216] The method also can include a local display that is indicative of the sensor output, either a parametric output or a qualitative output. The visual indicator may blink, change output frequency, color, and the sensor patch may also send data to memory. The sensor patch need not transmit data but can instead operate to display the temperature only visually ona visual display or can both visually display the sensed temperate and transmit the temperature to the smart device for display or other action.

[0217] For example a user, the sensor-patch manufacturer, or other provider of the sensor patch, can set a high temperature threshold and a low temperature threshold that defines a fever (or chills) and a sensor signal that meets the required criteria will result in a display identifiable as significant, such as a RED color LED to indicate an abnormal high temperature or a BLUE color LED to indicate a chill. A GREEN color LED can indicate a temperature within a normal range, as a practical illustration. The smart device also can look up previous temperatures associated with a profile and analyze the data for trends. The smart device, if a trend is detected, can issue, to the sensor patch, a command by which a unique display is initiated. For example, if a fever is continuing to go up, the controller circuit of the sensor patch can cause the LED to flash a rapid series of pulses, and if the fever has broken and is starting down, the controller circuit can cause the LED to flash RED and GREEN in alternation. An indicator, such as an RGB LED, on the sensor patch, while typically having four leads and hence more controller complexity, has an advantage that there is an immediate, real time, point-of-care notification that does not require viewing the smart device or pressing a button to have an understanding of the measurement result.

[0218] A user, such as a caregiver or subject under care, can consult the smart device’s display for more detail, for plotting functions, and for later access, but is not needed to get the information that is immediately presented by the sensor-patch LED or by some other reporter component such as a buzzer, beeper, vibrator, or other direct sensory input. By programming the smart device to issue commands to the sensor patch, or by supplying firmware or software with the sensor patch, a method is achieved by which a user can receive a local and a remote notification, and the remote notification can be shared with others or with a remote network. The inclusion of a local reporter structure, as exemplified by a variable color LED, is an advance in the art and provides a solution to a longstanding problem of rapidly assessing temperature (or some other sensor output) by an easy-to-understand symbolic language (color, pulsation, tone, and so forth) without the need to squint at a thermometer or angle an LCD screen so that the result is visible with backlighting.

[0219] And all the features described here can be achieved with a battery-less sensor patch that is disposable. By incorporating all the electronics, the antenna, and the IC components on a single layer, a simple device results that is inexpensive to make and simple to use. The ability to command the sensor patch according to the kind of measurement being made and to add

programming so that the UID can be associated with a profile unique to an individual or an object, a robust and powerful means for accessing sensor data and sharing it with the IoT is achieved.

[0220] Still referring to FIG. 15, alternate embodiments of the described method are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 14 and 16 - 38 may be applicable to the method described in conjunction with FIG. 15.

[0221] FIG. 16A illustrates context of use of a sensor patch 1600 configured to sense temperature of an object to which the sensor patch is attached, according to an embodiment. For example, the sensor patch 1600 may be the same as, or similar to, any one or more of the sensor patches described above in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 15. In this example, the sensor patch 1600 has been applied to the skin of a forehead of a child 1602, and a caregiver, such as a parent 1604, is using a smartphone 1610 to take a temperature reading (shown here as 102 °F in a display window 1611 of the smartphone). The temperature reading may be analyzed by specialized tools on the smart phone, optionally with added tools available through a WAN (such as for telemedicine, for example, where the data is shared with a clinician). However, the temperature will also be displayed to the parent 1604 in a directly accessible color that communicates the significance of the sensor result. Normal and warning indications are reported immediately at the point of care ( e.g ., flash LED green if temp in range, flash LED red if temp too high, flash LED blue if temp too low). After transmission to higher system resources, any result of further analysis may be used to select or to modify the nature of the local display, or there can be rules based decision making directly in the sensor patch or directly in the smart device that determines how the report will be displayed. By permitting users to program their own rules for interpreting temperature

measurements (e.g., a respective rule for interpreting temperature for each of multiple temperature- measurement locations on a body, such as forehead or armpit), a powerful apparatus for home, hospital, and other use is achieved. The devices may be stored in the same way that bandages are stored and have a shelf life that can be measured in years. Software updates to the software application installed on the smartphone 1610 are handled by the smart phone and require no special reconditioning of the sensor patches. And software and firmware updates to the sensor patch 1600 also can be accomplished via the smartphone 1610.

[0222] For the temperature of a human body, the temperature sensor onboard the sensor patch 1600 can include a thermistor such as the Murata NCP18XH103D03RB, which has a resistance of 10 kQ and linearity of 3380K ± 0.7% from 25 to 50 °C, and offers low power consumption (e.g, low enough to be part of a device that is powered by an NFC signal) and suitable accuracy in a clinical range.

[0223] FIG. 16B is a representative time plot of a course of a fever of the child 1602 (FIG. 16A) as collected from periodic measurements made with the sensor patch 1600 of FIG. 16A. In the described example, the fever spikes (peak of plot at approximately day 2) and then breaks as, e.g., an immune response develops. The data and plot can be reviewed by a medical professional to ensure quality of care. Although the sensor patch 1600 may be applied to the forehead for monitoring fever, other sensor-patch form factors may be adapted for application to local wounds such as on a finger that might become infected, where the sensor patch will provide information related to local inflammation associated with a pyogenic response by measuring skin temperature in the vicinity of the wound. Or for application to the radial or carotid artery, the form factor of the sensor patch 1600 may be more band-like and is configured to securely adhere above the artery so that force sensors may measure and count pulse rate and any anomalies in ejection volume or pulse waveform. The sensor patch 1600 may include a mesh of force sensors so that a suitable sensor sensitivity is obtained regardless of user positioning. [0224] Application of the sensor patch 1600 to a finger for optical monitoring of blood constituents is also contemplated. Or application of the sensor patch 1600 to any skin area for evaluation of electrolyte composition of sweat, and other applications without limitation.

[0225] Referring to FIGS. 16A - 16B, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 1600 and the described method of use are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 15 and 17 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 1600 and the method described in conjunction with FIGS. 16A - 16B.

[0226] FIG. 17 is a flow diagram of a method for making a sensor measurement with one or more of the sensor patches described above in conjunction with FIGS. 1 and 3 - 16B, according to an embodiment.

[0227] At an initial step 1701, apply an adhesive sensor patch to a surface and place a smart device in proximity.

[0228] Next, at a step 1702, by the smart device, activate the NFC circuitry of the smart device to expose the sensor patch to emitted NFC energy. Then, by applying NFC energy, the controller circuit, supporting circuitry, LED, and sensor(s) of the sensor patch are powered up and a measurement cycle is conducted.

[0229] Then, at a step 1703, the sensor patch may store excess power recovered from the NFC signal in a capacitor or other temporary rechargeable energy-storage component to extend the use of the sensor patch to a time while the sensor patch is not receiving the NFC signal.

[0230] Next, at a step 1704, when the measurement is complete, by the sensor patch, a local report of the sensor measurement s) is displayed; and, sensor outputs are encoded as digital messages, time stamped, and transmitted with a unique identifier (UID) to the smart device by modulation of the coupled NFC carrier wave. Upon receipt, by the smart device, sensor data is decoded for analysis and is shared with local networks or a cloud host and notifications are made to the user of the smart device or other authorized parties. This process can be repeated if needed.

[0231] Referring to FIG. 17, alternate embodiments of the described method are contemplated.

For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 16 and 18 - 38 may be applicable to the method described in conjunction with FIG. 17.

[0232] FIG. 18 illustrates another practical use of one or more of the sensor patches described above in conjunction with FIGS 1 - 17, according to an embodiment. Here, a wine bottle 1802 is tagged with an adhesive sensor patch 1800 and a temperature reading is taken by the user with a smartphone 1810 just before serving the wine. A level of precision of, for example, ±1.0 °C, can ensure that just the right temperature is achieved according to the kind of wine in the bottle 1802.

[0233] Temperature of an object, such as a wine bottle or baby bottle, and contents ( e.g wine, milk) of the object may also be of interest. And for micro waveable objects, the sensor patch 1800 can be made to be microwaveable. For example, one can heat a baby bottle filled with milk in the microwave, attach the sensor patch 1800 to the outside of the bottle, and use the sensor patch to determine the temperature of the milk before feeding the milk to a baby. If the milk is still not warm enough, then he/she can put the bottle of milk back in the microwave with the sensor patch 1800 still attached to the bottle, heat the bottle more, remove the bottle from the microwave, and use the same sensor patch to determine the temperature of the milk. The microwaveable version of the sensor patch 1800 allows a single sensor patch to be used for heating a bottle of milk multiple times instead of applying a new sensor patch each time the bottle is removed from the microwave oven.

[0234] Furthermore, a sensing apparatus that incorporates sensor-patch technology described above can be configured for use in an environment that can experience extreme conditions, such as under water or inside of a convection oven. For example, the sensor apparatus can be a swimming-pool or spa thermometer, or a meat thermometer, configured to operate in a manner similar to the above-described manner in which the sensor patches, such as the sensor patch 100 (FIG. 1) operate. Furthermore, an oral or rectal thermometer can be configured to operate in a manner similar to the above-described manner in which the sensor patches, such as the sensor patch 100, are configured to operate.

[0235] Still referring to FIG. 18, alternate embodiments of the described method of use of the sensor patch 1800 and the smart phone 1810 are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 17 and FIGS. 19 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 1800 and the method described in conjunction with FIG. 18.

[0236] FIG. 19 is a circuit diagram of a sensor patch 1900, according to an embodiment in which the sensor patch 1900 is similar in circuit topology, structure, and operation to the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1, and where like numbers reference components common to FIGS. 1 and 19. Differences between the sensor patch 1900 and the sensor patch 100 include that in the sensor patch 1900, the sensor(s) 1 10 (FIG. 1) include, or are replaced with, an object- temperature sensor 1902 and an ambient-temperature sensor 1904, and that the object- and ambient- temperature sensors, the RGB LED 124, and the reporter display 126 each receive a regulated supply voltage directly from the power-supply circuit 118 instead of, or in addition to, receiving a regulated supply voltage from the controller circuit 1 14.

[0237] The antenna 102, power circuit 104, communication circuit 106, memory circuit 108, reporter circuit 112, and controller circuit 114 each are the same as, or similar to, the

corresponding component as described above in conjunction with FIG. 1.

[0238] The object-temperature sensor 1902 is configured to sense the temperature of an object ( e.g ., human forehead, bottle of baby’s milk) to which the sensor patch 1900 is attached, to generate a sense signal that is related to a value of the sensed temperature, and to provide the sense signal to the controller circuit 114. For example, the object-temperature sensor 1902 can include the analog, thermistor-based temperature sensor 210 of FIG. 2 A, or can include a digital temperature sensor such as part STTS22H from STMicroelectronics, Inc. of Carrollton, TX. An analog object-temperature sensor can be calibrated during manufacture and test of the sensor patch 1900 in a manner similar to that described above in conjunction with the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1, and a digital object-temperature sensor can be calibrated, if needed, in any suitable manner.

[0239] The ambient-temperature sensor 1904 is configured to sense the ambient temperature, i.e., the temperature of the environment, or substance {e.g., air) in which the sensor patch 1900 is immersed. The environmental temperature may cause an error in the temperature of the object as sensed by the object-temperature sensor 1902, and, therefore, the controller circuit 114, or a smart device (not shown in FIG. 19) in communication with the sensor patch 1900, can correct the error in response to the ambient temperature sensed by the ambient-temperature sensor. For example, if a subject is lying out in the sun on a hot day, a region of the subject’s skin {e.g, the skin over the subject’s forehead) may be significantly warmer than the subject’s actual body temperature; or, the hot sun may“heat up” the sensor patch 1900, and, therefore, may heat up the object-temperature sensor 1902, such that the object- temperature sensor senses a temperature that is higher than the subject’s actual body temperature. Or, if a subject is skiing on a cold, cloudy day, a region of the subject’s skin {e.g, the skin over the subject’s forehead) may be cooler than the subject’s actual body temperature; or, the cold air may“cool down” the sensor patch 1900, and, therefore, may cool down the object- temperature sensor 1902, such that the object- temperature sensor senses a temperature that is lower than the subject’s actual body temperature. To correct an error in the temperature sensed by the object- temperature sensor 1902, one can develop an algorithm in which the resulting (accurate) temperature of the object is a function of the object temperature sensed by the object- temperature sensor 1902 and the ambient temperature sensed by the ambient- temperature sensor 1904. Coefficients and constants of one or more equations representing the algorithm can be stored in the memory circuit 108 or in a memory of a smart device in

communication with the sensor patch 1900, and the controller 1 14, or the smart device, can solve the one or more equations using the sensed values of the ambient and object temperatures to obtain an actual temperature of the object to which the patch sensor 1900 is attached.

[0240] Furthermore, the ambient-temperature sensor 1904 also can include the analog, thermistor- based temperature sensor 210 of FIG. 2 A, or can include a digital temperature sensor such as part STTS22H from STMicroelectronics, Inc. of Carrollton, TX An analog ambient-temperature sensor can be calibrated during manufacture and test of the sensor patch 1900 in a manner similar to that described above in conjunction with the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1, and a digital ambient- temperature sensor can be calibrated, if needed, in any suitable manner.

[0241] Still referring to FIG. 19, alternate embodiments of the described method are contemplated. For example, instead of or in addition to being configured for operating according to an NFC communication and power-transfer protocol, the sensor patch 1900 can be configured for operating according to an RFID communication and power-transfer protocol. Furthermore, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 18 and 20 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 1900 of FIG. 19.

[0242] FIG. 20 is an exploded view of the patch sensor 1900 of FIG. 19, according to an embodiment. In addition to the components described above in conjunction with FIG. 19, the patch sensor 1900 includes a cover 2000, an insulator layer 2002, a flexible and transparent substrate 2004, a protective sealing layer 2006, and an adhesive layer 2008.

[0243] Referring to FIGS. 19 - 20, the antenna 102 is looped around a perimeter 2010, and disposed over a surface 2012, of the substrate 2004, and conductive circuit-interconnection traces and conductive component-attachment pads are disposed over the surface within an inner region 2014 of the substrate bounded by the antenna.

[0244] Leads of an integrated circuit 2016, which includes the power circuit 104, communication circuit 106, and memory circuit 108 of FIG. 19, are connected to respective ones of the conductive pads within the region 2014 with a conductive glue. The connection of the leads can serve to mount the integrated circuit 2016 to the substrate 2004, although the package of the integrated circuit may be attached to the surface 2012 of the substrate 2004 with a nonconductive adhesive such as epoxy. [0245] Leads of the reporter circuit 1 12, controller circuit 114, object- temperature sensor 1902, and ambient-temperature sensor 1904 also are connected, with a conductive glue, to respective ones of the conductive pads formed over the surface 2012 of the substrate 2004 within the region 2014.

The connection of the leads can serve to mount these components to the substrate 2004, although the packages of these components may be attached to the surface 2012 of the substrate 2004 with a nonconductive adhesive such as epoxy.

[0246] The insulator layer 2002 is configured to provide a thermal barrier between the object- temperature sensor 1902 and the environment ( e.g ., the atmosphere) in which the sensor patch 1900 is immersed, can be made from any suitable thermally insulating material such as foam, and includes a portion 2018 of an ambient-temperature-sensor“heat pipe” 2020 that is aligned with the ambient-temperature sensor 1904. The heat pipe 2020 is a conduit that is configured to couple, thermally, the ambient-temperature sensor 1904 to the environment (e.g., the atmosphere) in which the sensor patch 1900 is immersed so that the ambient-temperature sensor can sense the ambient temperature, e.g, the temperature of the environment, more accurately as compared to a sensor patch without the heat pipe. The portion 2018 of the heat pipe 2020 is an opening formed in the layer 2002 and aligned with the ambient-temperature sensor 1904.

[0247] The cover 2000 is configured to protect the insulator layer 2002, can be configured to provide a further thermal barrier between the object-temperature sensor 1902 and the environment (e.g, the atmosphere) in which the sensor patch 1900 is immersed, can be made from any suitable material such as foam with a liquid-impervious (e.g, plastic) outer“skin,” and includes a portion 2022 of the ambient-temperature-sensor heat pipe 2020. The portion 2022 of the heat pipe 2020 is an opening formed in the cover 2000 and is aligned with the portion 2018 formed in the layer 2002 and with the ambient-temperature sensor 1904.

[0248] The protective sealing layer 2006 is configured to shield the circuit components and conductive traces disposed on the surface 2012 of the substrate 2004 from contaminants, such as from a conductive liquid such as water, and from problems caused by such contaminants, such as short circuiting. For example, the adhesive layer 2008 may absorb a conductive liquid, such as sweat from the skin of a subject to which the sensor patch 1900 is attached and condensation from another object (e.g., chilled bottle), and this absorbed liquid may migrate to the substrate surface 2012 and cause one or more problems such as the aforementioned short circuiting. The layer 2006 can be made from any suitable liquid-impervious material; for example, the layer can be a thin coating of sealant epoxy that is applied over the components and conductive traces disposed on the substrate surface 2012, and over exposed portions of the substate surface, before application of an adhesive to form the adhesive layer 2008. Furthermore, the layer 2006 includes a portion 2022 of an object-temperature-sensor heat pipe 2024 that is aligned with the object-temperature sensor 1902. The heat pipe 2024 can be similar to the heat pipe 2020; for example, the heat pipe 2024 is a conduit that is configured to couple, thermally, the object-temperature sensor 1902 to the object ( e.g ., skin region of a human subject) to which the sensor patch 1900 is attached so that the object- temperature sensor can sense the object temperature, e.g., the temperature of a human subject’s forehead, more accurately as compared to a sensor patch without the heat pipe 2024. The portion 2022 of the heat pipe 2024 is an opening formed in the layer 2006 and aligned with the object- temperature sensor 1902.

[0249] The adhesive layer 2008 is configured to attach the sensor patch 1900 to an object, can be made from any suitable material such as a non-electrically conducting adhesive, and includes a portion 2026 of the object-temperature-sensor heat pipe 2024. The portion 2026 of the heat pipe 2024 is an opening formed in the cover layer 2008 and aligned with the portion 2022 formed in the layer 2006 and with the object-temperature sensor 1902. Alternatively, due to the presence of the protective sealing layer 2006, the layer 2008 may include an electrically conducting adhesive, or an adhesive that may become electrically conductive due to, e.g., absorption of water such as found in sweat.

[0250] Still referring to FIG. 20, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 1900 are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 19 and 21 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 1900 of FIG. 20.

[0251] FIG. 21 is a plan view of a smart phone 2100 on which is installed a sensor-patch software application, or“app,” that, when executed by the smart phone, allows a user (not shown in FIG.

21) of the smart phone to use a sensor patch such as the sensor patch 1900 of FIG. 19, according to an embodiment. The smart phone 2100 includes a display screen 2102 on which the smart phone is configured to display a sensor-patch user interface 2104 in response to executing the software application. Furthermore, the smart phone 2100 includes an NFC antenna 2106.

[0252] FIG. 22 is a flow diagram 2200 of a method for downloading, installing, and setting up a sensor-patch software application on the smart phone 2100 of FIG. 21, according to an

embodiment.

[0253] Referring to FIGS. 21 - 22, described is a method for downloading, installing, and setting up a sensor-patch software application on the smart phone 2100, according to an embodiment. [0254] At a step 2202, a user first causes the smart phone 2100 to download, e.g., from the internet, and install, in a conventional manner, the sensor-patch software application. For example, the smart phone 2100 can download the sensor-patch software application from a website run by the sensor-patch provider, Google Play®, or the Apple Store®.

[0255] Next, at a step 2204, the user sets up the software app via the sensor-patch user interface 2104. For example, the smart phone 2100 runs a setup routine of the software app, and in response to the setup routine, generates and displays, on the display 2102, a menu or questionnaire that requests the user to enter one or more pieces of information, such as the user’s name and the type of the smart phone. A reason for the latter request is because each make and model of the smart phone 2100 may include an NFC antenna in a respective different relative location, and the software app, during at least a temperature- sensing mode, may cause the smart phone to display the location of the smart phone’s NFC antenna to a user so that the user can position the smart phone’s NFC antenna sufficiently proximate to the sensor patch to activate the sensor. For example, the smart phone 2100 may store a look-up table (LUT) that relates phone make and model to NFC antenna location, or the smart phone, as part of the setup protocol, may obtain the NFC antenna location via a database or other location accessible via the internet. Moreover, the menu may“walk” the user through setting up an internet or“cloud” account for storing

information such as temperature trends and other data for one or more subjects.

[0256] After installation, the smart phone 2100 may run the sensor-patch software application in the background while not being used or otherwise activated, or the smart phone may render the sensor-patch software application inactive until started by a user or otherwise.

[0257] Still referring to FIGS. 21 - 22, alternate embodiments of the method represented by the flow diagram 220 are contemplated. For example, the smart phone 2100 may sense at least some of the setup information (e.g, the make, model, and serial number of the smart phone)

automatically. Furthermore, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 20 and 23 - 38 may be applicable to the smart phone 2100 of FIG. 21 and the method represented by the flow diagram 2200 of FIG. 22.

[0258] FIG. 23 is a view of a caregiver 2300 taking a temperature of a child 2302 using the sensor patch 1900 and the smart phone 2100, according to an embodiment.

[0259] FIG. 24 is a flow diagram 2400 of a method for taking a temperature of the child 2302 of FIG. 23 using the sensor patch 1900 (FIGS. 19-20 and 23) and the smart phone 2100 (FIGS. 21 and 23), according to an embodiment. [0260] Referring to FIGS. 19-20 and 23-24, a method for using the sensor patch 1900 to take a temperature of the child 2302 is described, according to an embodiment.

[0261] At a step 2402 of the flow diagram 2400, the caregiver 2300 attaches the sensor patch 1900 to a region, here a forehead 2304, of the child 2302. For example, the caregiver peals, from the adhesive layer 2008, a plastic protector (although the plastic protector is not shown in FIGS. 20 and 23, the plastic protector can be similar to the plastic protector that one peals from the“sticky” part of an adhesive bandage before applying the bandage), places the sensor patch 1900 on the skin of the child 2302 such that the adhesive layer is against the skin, and presses the sensor patch against the child’s skin (here the skin of the forehead 2304) such that the adhesive layer affixes the sensor patch to the child’s forehead. Before placing the sensor patch 1900 on the forehead 2304 of the child 2302, the caregiver 2300 may wipe, or otherwise clean, the child’s forehead to remove, from the child’s skin, contaminants such as dirt, body oil, and sweat that may reduce the adhesion between the child’s skin and the adhesive layer 2008 as compared to the adhesion with fewer contaminants present.

[0262] Next, at a step 2404 of the flow diagram 2400, the caregiver 2300 activates the sensor-patch software application installed on the smart phone 2100. For example, the caregiver 2300 navigates to a menu ( e.g by“swiping” her finger) that the smart phone 2100 displays on the display 2102 and that includes an icon corresponding to the sensor-patch software application, and touches with her finger, or otherwise selects, the icon. In response to the caregiver 2300 selecting the icon, the smart phone 2100 loads the application into working (typically volatile) memory of the smart phone, and runs the application by fetching, from the working memory, and executing, one or more instructions that the application includes. The running application initially causes the smart phone 2100 to generate, on the display 2102, a user interface 2104, which provides information to the caregiver 2300. For example, the user interface 2104 shows the caregiver 2300 the relative location of the smart phone’s NFC antenna 2106, instructs the caregiver to position the smart phone 2100 near the sensor patch 1900 and includes an illustration as to how the caregiver should hold the smart phone relative to the sensor patch. Further in example, the user interface 2104 shows the caregiver 2300 a suitable distance, or suitable range of distances, between the smart phone and the sensor patch, and shows a suitable position, or a suitable range of positions, of the smart phone relative to the sensor patch, so as to facilitate suitable transferring of power and information from the smart phone to the sensor patch, and to facilitate suitable transferring of information from the sensor patch to the smart phone. Yet further in example, the user interface

2104 may indicate as a suitable distance and position holding the top (the location of the NFC antenna 2106) of the smart phone 2100 no more than approximately six inches from the sensor patch 1900.

[0263] Then, at a step 2406, the caregiver 2300 positions the smart phone 2100 relative to the sensor patch 1900 as indicated by the user interface 2104 and causes the smart phone to begin transmitting an NFC source signal that includes a carrier, or power, signal. For example, to cause the smart phone 2100 to begin transmitting the NFC source signal, the caregiver 2300 touches a “start” button of the user interface 2104 or issues a corresponding voice command.

[0264] Next, at a step 2408, in response to receiving the NFC source signal from the smart phone 2100, the sensor patch 1900 sends, to the smart phone, a“ready” or other acknowledgement signal ( e.g a handshake signal) to indicate that the sensor patch is powered and is ready to receive configuration data and one or more commands from the smart phone. For example, in response to receiving the source signal, the antenna 102 generates a corresponding receive signal. And in response to the receive signal, the energy harvester circuit 116 automatically begins generating a raw power signal, the power-supply circuit 128 automatically begins generating a regulated supply voltage in response to the raw power signal, and a POR circuit (not shown in FIG. 19) onboard the controller circuit 114, or elsewhere onboard the sensor patch 1900, automatically generates a POR signal having an enable level in response to the regulated supply voltage attaining a threshold level. Then, in response to the enable level of the POR signal, the controller circuit 114 generates an acknowledgement message and stores the message in the memory 108 or provides the message directly to the communication circuit 106. The modulator circuit 122 modulates the receive signal with the acknowledgement message, and the antenna 102 transmits the modulated receive signal; said another way, the modulator circuit effectively modulates the NFC source signal with the acknowledgement message from the controller circuit 114. In summary, in response to the antenna 102 receiving the NFC source signal from the smart phone 2100, the circuitry onboard the sensor patch 1900 powers up and sends, effectively via modulation of the NFC source signal, an acknowledgement/ready message or handshake to the smart phone so that the smart phone “knows” that the sensor patch is ready for the next step.

[0265] Then, at a step 2410 of the flow diagram 2400, the sensor-patch software application causes the smart phone 2100 to transmit configuration data and commands to the sensor patch 1900. For example, the configuration data may configure the sensor patch 1900 to activate a blue one of the RGB LEDs 124 in response to a sensed temperature being below a temperature threshold Thi , to activate a green one of the RGB LEDs in response to the sensed temperature being between Thi and another temperature threshold T¾2 inclusive, and to activate a red one of the RGB LEDs in response to the sensed temperature being greater than Th.2. Or, if the sensor patch 1900 has a numerical display as the reporter 126, then the configuration data configures the sensor patch 1900 to display the sensed temperature in °C or °F. The caregiver 2300 may be able to enter or to select such sensor-patch behavior (and also one or more of the temperature thresholds Thi and Thi) via a menu that the software application causes the smart phone 2100 to generate on the display 2102 while the application is running or during the setup procedure described above in conjunction with FIG. 22. In response to the sensor-patch behavior entered or selected by the caregiver 2300, the software application causes the smart phone 2100 to generate corresponding configuration data for the sensor patch 1900. And the commands may include respective commands to sense

temperature, to provide an indication of the sensed temperature locally ( e.g ., via the RGB LED 124 per the above-described sensor-patch behavior), and to transmit the sensed temperature to the smart phone 2100 for, e.g., display via the display screen 2102. To transmit the configuration data and commands to the sensor patch 1900, the smart phone generates one or more data and command signals and modulates the carrier of the NFC source signal with the data and command signals.

[0266] Next, at a step 2412, the sensor patch 1900 configures itself with the configuration data that the smart phone transmits per step 2410. The demodulator circuit 120 recovers the configuration data from the receive NFC receive signal from the antenna 102 by demodulating the NFC receive signal, digitizes the recovered configuration data, and provides the digital configuration data to the controller circuit 1 14 directly or via the memory circuit 108. In response to the configuration data and in a conventional manner, the controller circuit 114 configures itself and any of the other circuits that are configurable and that are to be configured in response to the configuration data.

For example, the controller circuit 114, in response to the configuration data, sets the level of the regulated supply voltage that one or both of the power-supply circuit 118 and power-supply circuit 128 generate, sets the voltage level of the power signal that the energy-harvester circuit 1 16 generates, and sets the intensities of the RGB LEDs 124, the clock rate of the controller circuit 114 and other circuits onboard the sensor patch 1900, and the precision of one or both of the temperature sensors 1902 and 1904, and may disable one or more circuits and components of the sensor patch 1900 such as the ambient temperature sensor 1904. The controller circuit 114 can perform such configuration by loading the configuration data into one or more configuration registers of the controller circuit, of the memory circuit 108, or of any other circuit of the sensor patch 1900. And, if needed, the controller circuit 114“reboots” or“restarts” itself, and possibly one or more other circuits of the sensor patch 1900, after loading of the configuration data.

[0267] Then, at a step 2414, the sensor patch 1900 executes any commands that the smart phone 2100 transmitted and that the demodulator circuit 120 recovered. For example, a recovered command instructs the controller circuit 1 14 to execute a temperature-sensing routine. Further in example, such a routine includes the controller circuit 114 causing the object-temperature sensor 1902 to generate an object-temperature-sense signal, determining the sensed object temperature in response to the object-temperature-sense signal, and activating the RGB LEDs 124 in a pattern corresponding to the determined object temperature. In another example, such a routine includes the controller circuit 114 causing the object-temperature sensor 1902 to generate an object- temperature- sense signal and determining the sensed object temperature without activating the RGB LEDs 124 or the display 128 until hearing back from the smart phone 2100 (see steps 2416 - 2418 below). In yet another example, such a temperature- sensing routine may include the controller circuit 1 14 causing both of the object- and ambient-temperature sensors 1902 and 1904 to generate respective object- and ambient-temperature-sense signals and determining the sensed object and ambient temperatures in response to the object- and ambient-temperature-sense signals, respectively, without activating the RGB LEDs 124 or the display 128 until hearing back from the smart phone 2100 (see steps 2416 - 2418 below).

[0268] Next, at a step 2416, the controller circuit 114 sends the determined value of the sensed object temperature to the smart phone 2100 via the modulator circuit 122 and the antenna 102 as described above in conjunction with FIGS. 1 and 19; if the controller circuit also determined a value of the sensed ambient temperature, then the controller circuit also sends the determined value of the sensed ambient temperature to the smart phone via the modulator circuit.

[0269] Then, at a step 2418, the smart phone 2100 processes the values of the sensed object temperature and sensed ambient temperature received from the sensor patch 1900. Further to an example in which the controller circuit 114 determined the sensed object temperature and activated the RGB LEDs 124 in a pattern corresponding to the determined object temperature, the smart phone 2100 displays the determined object temperature on the display 2102. Further to an example in which the sensor patch 1900 determined the sensed object temperature but did not activate a local display, the smart phone 2100 determines, in response to an algorithm executed by the smart phone, the temperature of the child 2302 in response to the sensed object temperature, and displays the child’s temperature on the display 2102; for example, the smart phone 2100 determines that the child’s temperature equals the value of the sensed object temperature as determined by, and received from, the sensor patch 1900, or determines that the child’s

temperature equals the value of the determined object temperature multiplied by a scalar or temperature-dependent factor. And further to an example in which the controller circuit 114 determined and sent values of both the sensed ambient and sensed object temperatures, the smart phone 2100 determines, in response to an algorithm executed by the smart phone, a temperature of the child 2302 in response to the determined ambient and determined object temperatures, and displays the determined temperature of the child on the display 2102. In the above examples, the algorithm executed by the smart phone 2100 may be coded as part of the software application as described above in conjunction with FIG. 19. And in addition to determining and displaying the child’s temperature on the display 2102, the smart phone 2100 also may save the child’s temperature and a time at which the child’s temperature was determined (the smart phone may provide the time or may receive a time stamp from the sensor patch 1900), and may generate and save a plot of the child’s temperature over time as described above in conjunction with FIG. 16B. Alternatively, the smart phone 2100 uploads the determined object and determined ambient temperature values, or the determined child’s temperature, to the“cloud” for performance of any one or more of the above- described determinations attributed to the smart phone. Furthermore, such uploading of this information to the“cloud” may facilitate remote diagnosis and treatment ( e.g telemedicine) by the child’s pediatrician or other medical professional.

[0270] Next, at a step 2420, the smart phone 2100 sends information and one or more commands to the sensor patch 1900. Further to an example in which the sensor 1900 did not activate a local display at the time that it determined one or both of the object and ambient temperatures, the smart phone 2100 sends the temperature of the child 2302 (as determined by the smart phone) to the sensor patch 1900 along with a command for the sensor patch to activate one or both of the RGB LEDs 124 and the display 126 to generate an indication of the child’s temperature. Further in example, in response to the command, the controller circuit 114 causes the RGB LEDs 124 to radiate blue light if the determined child’s temperature is below a first temperature threshold, to radiate a green light if the determined child’s temperature is between the first temperature threshold and a second temperature threshold inclusive, and to radiate a red light if the child’s temperature is greater than the second temperature threshold. The controller circuit 1 14 also may cause the display 126 to render the child’s temperature numerically instead of, or in addition to, activating the RGB LEDs per the preceding sentence. [0271] Referring to FIGS. 23 - 24, alternate embodiments of the method represented by the flow diagram 2400 are contemplated. For example, the controller circuit 114 (FIG. 19) of the sensor patch 1900 can be configured to perform some or all of the operations attributed to the smart phone 2100. Furthermore, the smart phone 2100 and the sensor patch 1900 may error-code

communications between them so that errors in a message can be detected or detected and corrected. Moreover, while running the sensor software application, the smart phone 2100 can use an onboard temperature sensor (not shown in FIGS. 23 - 24) to determine the ambient

temperature, in which embodiment the ambient temperature sensor 1904 may be omitted from the sensor patch 1900. In addition, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 22 and FIGS. 25 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 1900 of FIG. 24 and the method represented by the flow diagram 2400 of FIG. 24.

[0272] FIG. 25 is a diagram of smart-phone circuitry 2500 of the smart phone 2100 of FIG. 21, according to an embodiment.

[0273] The smart-phone circuitry 2500 includes a Bluetooth antenna 2502, a Bluetooth

communications circuit 2504, a Wi-Fi antenna 2506, a Wi-Fi communications circuit 2508, an NFC antenna 2510, an NFC communications circuit 2512, a cellular antenna 2514, a cellular communications circuit 2516, a memory circuit 2518, one or more input devices 2520, one or more output devices 2522, and a controller circuit 2524.

[0274] The Bluetooth antenna 2502 can be a conventional antenna that is configured to transmit and to receive information or other signals that are compatible with the Bluetooth protocol.

[0275] The Bluetooth communications circuit 2504 can be a conventional communications circuit that is configured to convert information ( e.g ., data, commands, acknowledgements, and status in the form of a message or packet) from the controller circuit 2524 into one or more information or other signals that are compatible with the Bluetooth protocol and to provide these signals to the Bluetooth antenna 2502 for transmission; the Bluetooth communications circuit also is configured to recover information (e.g., data, commands, acknowledgements, and status in the form of a message or packet) from information and other signals received from the Bluetooth antenna and to provide the recovered information to the controller circuit. The Bluetooth communications circuit 2504 may include modulation circuitry, demodulation circuitry, error-coding circuitry, error decoding circuitry, encrypting circuitry, and decrypting circuitry respectively configured to modulate a carrier signal with an information or other signal, to demodulate a carrier signal that is modulated with an information or other signal, to error code an information or other signal to be provided to the Bluetooth antenna 2502 for transmission, to error decode an information or other signal received from the Bluetooth antenna, to encrypt an information or other signal to be provided to the Bluetooth antenna for transmission, and to decrypt an information or other signal received from the Bluetooth antenna.

[0276] The Wi-Fi antenna 2506 can be a conventional antenna that is configured to transmit and to receive information or other signals that are compatible with the Wi-Fi protocol.

[0277] The W-Fi communications circuit 2508 can be a conventional communications circuit that is configured to convert information ( e.g ., data, commands, acknowledgements, and status in the form of a message or packet) from the controller circuit 2524 into one or more information or other signals that are compatible with the Wi-Fi protocol and to provide these signals to the Wi-Fi antenna 2506 for transmission; the Wi-Fi communications circuit also is configured to recover information (e.g., data, commands, acknowledgements, and status in the form of a message or packet) from information or other signals received from the Wi-Fi antenna and to provide the recovered information to the controller circuit. The Wi-Fi communications circuit 2504 may include modulation circuitry, demodulation circuitry, error-coding circuitry, error-decoding circuitry, encrypting circuitry, and decrypting circuitry respectively configured to modulate a carrier signal with an information or other signal, to demodulate a carrier signal that is modulated with an information or other signal, to error code an information or other signal to be provided to the Wi-Fi antenna 2506 for transmission, to error decode an information or other signal received from the Wi-Fi antenna, to encrypt an information or other signal to be provided to the Wi-Fi antenna for transmission, and to decrypt an information or other signal received from the Wi-Fi antenna.

[0278] The NFC antenna 2510 can be a conventional antenna that is configured to transmit and to receive information or other signals that are compatible with the NFC protocol; for example, the NFC antenna 2510 may be similar to the NFC antenna 2106 of FIG. 21.

[0279] The NFC communications circuit 25012 can be a conventional communications circuit that is configured to convert information (e.g, data, commands, acknowledgements, and status in the form of a message or packet) from the controller circuit 2524 into one or more information or other signals that are compatible with the NFC protocol and to provide these signals to the NFC antenna 2510 for transmission; for example, the NFC communications circuit may be similar to the NFC communications circuit described above in conjunction with the smart phone 2100 and in conjunction with FIGS. 1 and 19, and is configured to provide power to, and to communicate with, a sensor patch such as the sensor patch 1900 of FIGS. 19 - 20 and any of the other sensor patches described herein. The NFC communications circuit 2512 also is configured to recover information ( e.g ., data, commands, acknowledgements, and status in the form of a message or packet) from information or other signals received from the NFC antenna 2510 and to provide the recovered information to the controller circuit 2524. The NFC communications circuit 2512 may include modulation circuitry, demodulation circuitry, error-coding circuitry, error-decoding circuitry, encrypting circuitry, and decrypting circuitry respectively configured to modulate a carrier signal with an information or other signal, to demodulate a carrier signal that is modulated with an information or other signal, to error code an information or other signal to be provided to the NFC antenna 2510 for transmission, to error decode an information or other signal received from the NFC antenna, to encrypt an information or other signal to be provided to the NFC antenna for transmission, and to decrypt an information or other signal received from the NFC antenna.

[0280] The cellular antenna 2514 can be a conventional antenna that is configured to transmit and to receive information or other signals that are compatible with a cellular protocol.

[0281] The cellular communications circuit 2516 can be a conventional communications circuit that is configured to convert information (e.g., data, commands, acknowledgements, and status in the form of a message or packet) from the controller circuit 2524 into one or more information or other signals that are compatible with a cellular protocol and to provide these signals to the cellular antenna 2514 for transmission; the cellular communications circuit also is configured to recover information (e.g., data, commands, acknowledgements, and status in the form of a message or packet) from information or other signals received from the cellular antenna and to provide the recovered information to the controller circuit. The cellular communications circuit 2516 may include modulation circuitry, demodulation circuitry, error-coding circuitry, error-decoding circuitry, encrypting circuitry, and decrypting circuitry respectively configured to modulate a carrier signal with an information or other signal, to demodulate a carrier signal that is modulated with an information or other signal, to error code an information or other signal to be provided to the cellular antenna 2514 for transmission, to error decode an information or other signal received from the cellular antenna, to encrypt an information or other signal to be provided to the cellular antenna for transmission, and to decrypt an information or other signal received from the cellular antenna.

[0282] The memory circuit 2518 can include one or both of conventional non-volatile and volatile memory, and is configured to store information such as data, configuration data, and the code of an operating system and of one or more software applications that the controller circuit 2524 is configured to execute. Furthermore, the memory circuit 2518 can be configured as a message buffer between the controller circuit 2524 and one or more of the communications circuits 2504, 2508, 2512, and 2516.

[0283] The one or more input devices 2520 are configured to allow a user to input data to the controller circuit 2524. Examples of the one or more input devices 2520 include a keypad, microphone, touch screen, and a universal-serial-bus (USB) port.

[0284] The one or more output devices 2522 are configured to allow the controller circuit 2524 to provide a user with information. Examples of the one or more output devices 2522 include a display screen, speaker, haptic device, and a USB port.

[0285] The controller circuit 2524 can include a conventional controller circuit such as a microprocessor or microcontroller, and is configured to communicate with the memory circuit 2518, one or more input devices 2520, one or more output devices 2522, and communication circuits 2504, 2508, 2512, and 2516 either directly or via the memory circuit. And the controller circuit 2524 can be configured to control one or both of the configuration and operation of one or more of the memory circuit 2518, one or more input devices 2520, one or more output devices 2522, and communications circuits 2504, 2508, 2512, and 2516.

[0286] In operation, the controller circuit 2524 performs, our causes to be performed, the functions and operations herein attributed to a smart phone, such as the smart phone 2100 of FIG. 21.

Furthermore, the controller circuit 2524 performs other functions and operations performed by conventional smart phones.

[0287] Referring to FIG. 25, alternate embodiments of the smart phone 2100 (FIG. 21) and the smart-phone circuitry 2500 are contemplated. For example, the smart-phone circuitry 2500 may include an RFID antenna and an RFID communication circuit in place of, or in addition to, the NFC antenna 2510 and the NFC communication circuit 2512. Furthermore, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 24 and 26A - 38 may be applicable to the smart-phone circuit 2500 of FIG. 25.

[0288] FIGS. 26A through 26H are screenshots from a display on a portable smart device. FIG. 26A is a view of a representative screenshot 2600. In this view, a menu of program options are shown. The view also shows an email address 2602 corresponding to the name and account of the user. Each user runs a personal copy of the program on their smart device; here a smartphone is shown. The smart device is used to power and take temperature readings from the sensor patches.

[0289] The program, also sometimes termed an“application”, is installed on the device in a non transient computer memory. The application includes an instruction set, which when executed by a processor of the smart device, causes the display to show a graphical user interface (GUI). The GUI includes icons and information text and graphics useful in scanning the sensor patches to get temperature readings. The application also communicates the data to a central server, and may analyze the data collected using local computing resources or may display data analysis and interpretations received from the central server. The central server may use network resources and databases to issue notifications, alerts, reminders, and to log or archive data and will generally keep track of user account activity and any user-associated profile.

[0290] FIG. 26A shows several representative program functionalities. These include CHANGE ACCOUNT 2603, SCAN 2604, PROFILES 2605, FAQ 2606, USER MANUALS 2607, CHAT 2608, and REORDER 2609. The CHANGE ACCOUNT menu is useful if one user has several accounts or multiple users are set up to access the same NFC thermometers. Each account is named according to its email address 2602, according to one example.

[0291] The SCAN function is a command. Pressing the SCAN button 2604 causes the machine to cycle through a measurement cycle. A near field radio link is established with the sensor patch in proximity to the device, energy is exchanged, and the smart device extracts a temperature reading from the patch. But to perform a measurement, the patch is generally first associated with an individual profile, where the profile is constructed for each person for which temperature data will be collected.

So for example, a daughter or son would first have a profile entered and the smart device would then couple with the nearest sensor patch. It would remember that thermometer so that in the future, readings from that thermometer are associated with the corresponding profile.

[0292] The PROFILE menu is used to build an identity for each person who will receive a wearable sensor patch. A snapshot of the person 2610 can be included as a quick graphical icon for faster access to the profile, for example. The profile will build a chronology of the temperature measurements and can contain notes such as physician contact information. The profile and data may be shared with other caregivers and family members. User’s press the profile button 2605 to access personalized analytics capabilities of the system for each person wearing a sensor patch.

[0293] FAQ is a system resource, and the button 2606 actuates a browser. The browser displays answers to frequently asked questions that new users might have. Similarly, USER MANUALS is also a system resource, and accesses more detailed instructions and hardware specifications, including troubleshooting guides, for example.

[0294] Some users may need help, so a CHAT button 2608 may be provided. This provides the user with a shortcut to a cloud assistant, either an automated one or a human operator, who has familiarity with the device and can help with“How to?” questions or direct the user to other resources and also assist with account questions.

[0295] The user can use the REORDER button 2609 to order more patch sensors or accessories and to store credit card and shipping information. Generally, these services are provided by the cloud server to achieve an acceptable level of security. Biometric identity services or passwords may be required to access secure fields in the cloud server databases, according to one embodiment.

[0296] As indicated in FIG. 26B, profiles may also be accessed via a list of individual persons who have been assigned a sensor patch. Here each person is shown with a snapshot as an icon and the button next to the snapshot takes the user to a detailed view of the person’s history and any personal information stored by the system. Profile 2611 may correspond to a daughter of a family unit, for example, and other profiles 2612, 2613, 2614, 2615 may correspond to other family members.

Institutions may also assign profiles, and the profiles may be linked to custom software for direct charting into a central hospital database in another embodiment. A button 2615 takes the user to a GUI page designed for entering new profile data. Once the system profile is set up and an active profile is selected (as indicated by the star next to an icon), pressing the SCAN button 2616 will cause a temperature reading for the sensor patch in NFC proximity, and the temperature data to be associated with profile 2611, for example.

[0297] The profile screen can also be actuated with a new sticker is detected, as shown in FIG. 26C. In screenshot 2620, an alert 2622 pops up, advising the user that a new sensor patch has been detected, and asking the user to assign the patch to an existing profile selected from, for example, profiles 2624 or 2628, or create a new profile using button 2630. The star at 2626 indicates which active profile will receive the temperature data. Once the assignment is complete, a SCAN can be started by pressing button 2616 as shown in the earlier figures.

[0298] FIG. 26D is a view of the“START SCAN” screenshot 2640. As currently practiced, the sensor patch 2600 is applied to the shoulder of the subject of the measurement. The person for whom the temperature data will be scanned has a profile, and this screen now prepares the user to start the scan. Pressing button 2616 will take the user to screen 2640. Pressing button 2644 will start a scan and record a result. [0299] In FIG. 26D, a tutorial is demonstrated. The user is shown how to hold the smart device (2642, which supplies near field energy to the sensor patch 2601). The upper edge of the device 2641 is held near the patch 2601 so that the patch remains visible and the excitation and receiving coils can electromagnetically couple. While smart devices may have alternative NFC coil architecture, commonly available smart devices such as the Samsung Galaxy smartphones position the large NFC transceiver in about the center of the back panel of the device. So that the position shown provides unobstructed transmission of radio energy between the coils in the smart device and the coil in the patch sensor, the smart device may be held by the bottom edges if desired, but it is useful to be able to monitor both the screen of the smart device and to observe the patch sensor during a measurement.

[0300] Display element 2645 can be an instruction to hold the device closer. The arrow can pulse. Or in another embodiment, the arrow can pulse more quickly if the energy coupling is insufficient, and can become green and steady when coupling is sufficient. Similarly, the display area 2641 can provide feedback to the user if the coupling is sufficient or not sufficient by a change in color. More

information or help can be accessed by pressing the INSTRUCTIONS button 2646. If the user has to abort the measurement because measuring conditions are inadequate or the sensor patch has to be replaced, for example, the user can cancel the procedure by pressing CANCEL button 2648. Generally, once a user has successfully completed a couple measurements, the procedure is simple enough, and the user can simply bring the smart device close to the sensor patch in one hand and press the SCAN button 2644 in the other hand. In a few seconds, once the measurement is completed, a temperature result screen will be displayed.

[0301] FIGS. 26E and 26F show temperature result screens 2650a, 2650b, respectively. In a first view, FIG. 26E shows a“normal” temperature reading. Ideal normal body temperature is 98.6 °F (37 °C).

The display 2650 reports a temperature of 96.2 °F (Fahrenheit mode 2651, is selected in the upper right corner). A plot of recent temperature measurements in the profile may also be displayed if data is available. The user has the option to repeat the measurement (2652, SCAN AGAIN) or to go BACK TO PROFILE (button 2653) in order to complete the reporting and analysis of the result. The color of the screen can correspond to an overall clinical interpretation of the result, green for example can indicate a temperature lacking in suspicion of fever, and orange or red can indicate a fever or condition raising concern. Thus, for comparison, screenshot 2650a can be green, and screenshot 2650b can be red, the red indicating a fever. In FIG. 26F, a temperature of 103.4 °F is demonstrated. When a measurement is made, the time and location is also recorded in the corresponding profile. [0302] FIG. 26G shows a REMINDER screenshot 2660. In this instance, following doctor’s orders, the caregiver has been instructed to measure a boy’s temperature at 3 hr intervals. The smart device enables the user to set an alarm so that a reminder notification will be displayed at about 6AM. The pot shows temperature results on the previous day at 9PM, 12PM, and 3AM in white. When the 6AM measurement is completed, it will be plotted as the next datapoint 2662. Data is also tabulated for reference. Here the system causes the smart device (or data may be stored in local memory) to display the 9PM temperature 2664, the midnight temperature 2666, the 3 AM temperature 2668, and also provides room for an INTERPRETATION panel 2670 or notes. Functions include a button 2672 that will cause the data and plot to be sent to the family’s doctor and another button 2674 to that will start the 6AM scan when the smart device is in position next to the sensor patch and the user is ready.

[0303] FIG. 26H is a view of a RESOURCE CENTER screenshot 2680. The screen includes a sample plot 2681 and guides to interpretation 2682, including references for more reading. More information 2684 may also be provided about the sensor patch 2601, as demonstrated here affixed on the shoulder of a model.

[0304] The sensor patch 2601 may include an LED that will illuminate during or at the completion of the measurement. The color of the LED may be indicative of the temperature, as when an RGB-LED is used. The LED illumination is transitory, because it depends on power received from the smart device. In more advanced embodiments, the patch may have memory, such as Z-RAM, that enables the device to store a limited number of subsequent measurements in its memory. That enables the user to access a series of measurement without the need to identify the correct profile, or serves as a check that the profile selected corresponds to the sensor patch selected.

[0305] In another option, screenshot 2680 shows a button 2686 that is a shortcut to starting a conversation, either as a virtual chat or as a live consultation, with a nurse practitioner or other healthcare practitioner, if advice is needed about how to manage the person’s condition. This might be displayed if the temperature result is abnormal, if there are predisposing conditions such as asthma that complicate clinical management, and if there is staff available to help relieve user’s concerns.

[0306] Referring to FIGS. 26A - 26H, alternate embodiments of the described software

application and smart phone are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in

conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 25 and 27 - 38 may be applicable to the software application and smart phone of FIGS. 26A - 26H.

[0307] FIG. 27 is a view of cloud services enabled by deployment of NFC sensor devices as an adjunct to an IOT world as part of 5G and 6G hetero-networks. A cloud host aggregates data from NFC sensor devices and provides intelligent cloud services based on the data. The NFC sensor device data is communicated to the cloud host at a designated IP Address from a plurality of smart devices having NFC communications capability. Each time a user scans temperature, the data is also shared with the cloud host. The cloud host also obtains paired location from the user’s smart device and can map de- identified data with a preset level of resolution, low enough that individual houses cannot be identified, but high enough so that neighborhoods, town, counties, states or countries are readily mapped, for example. Fever data can then be mapped by location in a 4G, 5G or 6G network. NFC data are communicated through intermediary Bluetooth, Manet, or Cellular network transceivers to the cloud host. A variety of sensor data may be collected from the IOT in this way, but in this figure, fever data from the NFC body temperature sensors is reported and pooled from a large number of users. Machine learning may be used to analyze the data.

[0308] In FIGS. 27 and 28, the data is sliced by time and by location, and a map is prepared that can be zoomed. Then as an overlay, a user’s contact list is added as a screen. Dot 2710 is my cousin in Westport; dot 2712 is a family friend in Seattle. The map zoom function, shown here as a magnifying glass (which functions as a“cursor”), shows the number of fever cases in a defined radius around each contact location. Your cousin in Seattle may have only 5 cases in his neighborhood, but your friend in Seattle has 1388 confirmed cases in a 3-mile radius of their current location. Each contact location is known from a profile or is collected from their smart device. The data is presented graphically as a map here, but also can be tabulated. You can then do what is the proactive version of“contact tracing” (the identification of persons with whom an infected person has been in contact). Because many diseases are transmitted by proximity and contact, the infections tend to be clustered by area. With a map of this kind, you can judge which of your contacts has the highest probability of carrying the infection or being in the early stage of infection, even if your contact does not have a fever yet. Using the same data, alternate routes to and from a meeting can be compared.

[0309] Contact-order tertiary maps can also be constructed using the contact lists of your contacts, such as a hierarchy of contacts (first level links and tertiary links) as known on the networking site Linkedln. By assessing contacts of contacts, links, making a map based on current location, and then overlaying that on a fever map of user -reported data collected by measuring temperatures of patients who are ill in those general areas, the overlap in the map shows the ways in which the infection is most likely to reach you through your contacts. This is proactive or reverse“contact tracing” and provides a social benefit by sharing information about fevers with an NFC thermometer. [0310] Similarly, if you have a list of errands to run, and each errand takes you to a location, by listing all the locations, you can display a map showing what areas on your route have the highest number of potential infections. The fever data can be complied with data from other sources, such as

epidemiological data that has been de-identified, to provide a convincing picture of where the hotspots and infection clusters are. The contact data offers a more personal way of showing where the higher risks are and where the needs are for social distancing there is in your personal network. Areas that do not associate with higher levels of fever incidence, for example, can be identified where businesses can open and people can do errands or have meetings with on a low risk. This cloud contact tracing can be proactive or retroactive. Conversely, any sudden emergence of a new fever cluster can be mapped onto the route you or your associates have taken over the past several days, so that the likely points of transmission can be identified. You can then notify friends who may have come into contact with an infected person, in one embodiment. Alternatively, you can quickly assess fever distribution by nation, county, city or state.

[0311] At a high level, the system predicts your risk if you go somewhere (you scan over the area), if you meet someone (you scan the contact dot), or if you type in a destination (for an errand to run). And if you find out that someone you know has become ill, you can backcheck where they have been by waytracing their path electronically, check where your paths may have crossed, and predict where the infection could have been spread to others. Chains of transmission can be identified. The decisions about what data to maintain as private and what level of detail to provide to users and to authorities is made at the administrative level and users can opt in or out in some embodiments. A scan over the contact dot will show the current location of a contact and the local incidence of the disease, but the system can toggle to the contact’s travel itinerary or history so as to get a chronology of exposure over time, or a predicted exposure going forward. You can do this for yourself based on where you have been and who you have met, or you can do this for others you will be meeting, depending on system permissions.

[0312] In FIG. 27, a map 2700 of Washington State (USA) is shown. Individual cities are identified, including Vancouver, Canada. A magnifying glass 2701 is moved along dotted line 2711 from

Westport WA (2710) to Seattle WA (2712). At the base of the magnifying glass, the number of fevers within the outline of the magnifying glass installed. For example, 5 cases/mile ² is reported in Westport, and 1388 cases/mile ² is reported in downtown Seattle as of 9AM, for example. A detail view of the magnification cursor operation is shown in FIG. 28. Numbers can be recovered from system memory so that a chronology of fevers in a location can be tabulated for the last few days, for example. The numbers are updated in real time and are taken from pooled fever data reported from the NFC thermometers (or Bluetooth thermometers) by smart devices to the cloud host. The overlay (black dots) shows locations of my network connections. These are individuals who have given me (or the system) their smart device IMEI number or an equivalent, and who have consented to share their location. By going through my contact list, the black dots and their location search show one of my friends or associates. By scanning the magnifying glass over each black dot, as shown in FIG.28 (for dot 2712), the tally of fevers is updated according to the real time system data. The updated total appears at the base on the magnifying glass (2703, underlined). Accessing dot 2712 accesses the data from the vicinity of a family friend in Seattle. These examples are only representative of the social benefit potential of cloud services, and many other possible applications are immediately apparent by linking a local area of NFC-powered sensors to the cloud host via smart devices. The smart devices power the sensors, remind people to take sensor readings, and communicate the data to the designated IP address for aggregation, analysis, and for reporting notifications to the public or to appropriate authorities.

Thus, the NFC devices are part of a system that includes the smart device layer or network and the cloud host. Multiple cloud resources are also accessed by an AI in using the data to make

recommendations, display notifications and alerts, or to issue commands to remote machines, for example.

[0313] Referring to FIGS. 27 - 28, alternate embodiments of the described functions, operations, services, and structures are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 26H and 29 - 38 may be applicable to the functions, operations, services, and structures described in conjunction with FIGS. 27 - 28.

[0314] FIG. 29 is a cutaway side view of the bridge 520 of FIG. 5 taken along lines A-A,

according to an embodiment. The bridge 520 is configured so that the patch sensor 500 can be constructed with components and one or more layers of metal only one one side of the substrate 514. Such a single-side construction can be less complex and less expensive than a dual-side construction in which components and metal layers are on both sides of the substrate 514.

[0315] The antenna loops 516, the outer conductive landing 521, and the inner conductive landing 523 are disposed over the substrate 514 in a first conductive layer 2900 of, for example, a a metal such as copper.

[0316] A first electrical insulator layer 2902 is disposed over the antenna loops 516 and respective portions of the outer and inner landings 521 and 523. The insulator layer 2902 may be made from any suitably flexible dielectric material such as polyimide. [0317] A second electrically conductive layer 2904 is disposed over the outer conductive landing 521, the inner conductive landing 523, and the second insulator layer 2902, and electrically couples the outer conductive landing to the inner conductive landing. The second conductive layer 2902 may be made from any suitable electrically conductive material such as silver.

[0318] And a second electrical insulator layer 2906 is disposed over the second conductive layer 2904 and the outer and inner conductive landings 521 and 523. The insulator layer 2906 can be made from any suitably flexible dielectric material such as an epoxy, polyimide, or AI2O3.

[0319] Still referring to FIG. 29, a method for forming the sensor patch 500, including the bridge 520, according to an embodiment.

[0320] First, the conductive layer 2900 is formed over the substrate 514. For example, a layer 2900 of copper is conventionally formed over the substrate 514 to a thickness in an approximate range of 1 - 20 thousandths of an inch (mils).

[0321] Next, the conductive layer 2900 is conventionally patterned and etched to form the antenna loops 516, the outer and inner landings 521 and 523, and the traces and component pads {see FIG.

5).

[0322] Then, the insulator layer 2902 is conventionally formed over the conductive layer 2900 so as to leave respective portions of the outer and inner landings 521 and 523 exposed. For example, a suitable insulator material such as an epoxy, polyimide, or AI2O3, is printed over the conductive layer 2900.

[0323] Next, the second conductive layer 2904 is conventionally formed over the insulator layer 2902 and respective exposed portions of the outer and inner landings 521 and 523 such that the second conductive layer electrically couples the outer and inner landings to one another. For example, a suitable metal such as silver, in a suitable form such as flakes, is printed over the insulator layer 2902 and the respective exposed portions of the other and inner landings 521 and 523.

[0324] Then, the second insulator layer 2906 is conventionally formed over the second conductive layer 2904 and respective exposed portions of the outer and inner landings 521 and 523, and protects the second conductive layer and the covered portions of the outer and inner landings. For example, a suitable insulator material such as an epoxy, polyimide, or AI2O3 is printed over the second conductive layer 2904. [0325] Referring to FIG. 29, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 500 are contemplated. For example, the loops 516 of the antenna may be disposed over the conductive layer 2904 in the bridge 520. Furthermore, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 28 and 30 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 500 of FIG. 29.

[0326] FIG. 30 is a plan view of a sensor patch 3000 having an antenna 3002 coupled to circuitry 118 (FIG. 5) and a bridge 3004, according to another embodiment. But for the inclusion of the bridge 3004 and omission of the bridge 520, the sensor patch 3000 can be configured, can operate, and can function similarly to any one or more of the other sensor patches described herein.

[0327] Unlike the bridge 520 of FIGS. 5 and 28, the bridge 3004 has at least a portion disposed on a side 3006 (bottom side in FIG. 30) of a substrate 3008 other than a side 3010 (top side in FIG. 30) on which the antenna is disposed. An outer node 3012 of the antenna 3002 is coupled to a node 3014 of the bridge 3004 by way of a conductive via 3016, and an inner node 3018 of the antenna is coupled to a node 3020 of the bridge by way of a conductive via 3022. The antenna 3002 and the bridge 3004 can be formed in any conventional manner ( e.g ., deposit and etch) from any suitable conductor such as copper or aluminum.

[0328] Referring to FIG. 30, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 3000 are contemplated.

For example, the bridge 3004 can be omitted, and the antenna 3002 can extend through the via 3016, spiral on the side 3006 of the substrate 3008, and extend back to the side 3010 through the via 3022. Furthermore, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 29 and 31 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 3000 of FIG. 30.

[0329] FIG. 31 is a diagram of a sensor patch 3100 having at least one component disposed outside of a region 3102 of a substrate 3104 bounded by an antenna 3106, according to an embodiment. For example, a sensor, such as a temperature sensor 3108, is disposed outside of the region 3102.

[0330] In addition to the antenna 3106 and the temperature sensor 3108, the sensor patch 3100 includes circuitry 3110, which may be similar to the circuitry of any of the other sensor patches described herein, such as the circuitry of FIGS. 1, 6, and 19. For example, the sensor patch 3100 includes a communications-and-energy-harvesting circuit 3112, a controller circuit (e.g., a microcontroller or microprocessor) 31 14, and a reporting circuit, here one or more LEDs, 31 16 disposed over the substrate 3104 in the region 3102. [0331] The temperature sensor 3108, which includes a thermistor 3118 and a resistor 3120, is coupled to the controller circuit 3114 by one or more conductive traces 3122, which extend over a crossing, or bridge, 3124.

[0332] The bridge 3124 includes a region 3126 of the substrate 3104 lacking conductive traces that form loops 3128 of the antenna 3104. Yias 3130 route the antenna loops 3128 from a front side to a rear side of the substrate 3104, the loops are disposed over the rear side of the substrate under the region 3126, and vias 3132 route the antenna loops from the rear side of the substrate back to the front side of the substrate.

[0333] In addition to the conductive traces 3122, a trace 3134 is disposed over the region 3126 of the substrate 3104 and couples, by way of a via 3136, an outer node 3138 (on the rear side of the substrate 3104) of the antenna 3106 to the communications-and-energy-harvesting circuit 3112.

[0334] Placing the temperature sensor 3108 outside of the region 3102 allows construction of a sensor patch, or other temperature-sensing-and-measuring device, in which the temperature sensor is remote from the antenna 3104. For example, such a sensor patch 3100 can be configured for placement of the temperature sensor 3108 in or near one’s armpit and placement of the antenna 3104 in a location ( e.g ., on an accessible region of the upper arm or chest wall) that is accessible for an NFC enabled device (e.g., a smart phone) to power, activate, and communicate with the sensor patch.

[0335] Referring to FIG. 31, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 3100 are contemplated.

For example, a sensor, such as a pressure sensor, or a component, such as the LED, other than the temperature sensor 3108 can be disposed outside of the region 3102 bounded by the antenna 3104. Furthermore, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 30 and 32 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 3100 of FIG. 31.

[0336] FIG. 32 is a diagram of a sensor bandage 3200, which includes an antenna 3202, circuitry 3204, and temperature sensor 3206, which can be, respectively, similar to the antenna 3104, circuitry 3110, and temperature sensor 3108 of the sensor patch 3100 of FIG. 31, according to an embodiment.

[0337] In addition to the antenna 3202, circuitry 3204, and temperature sensor 3206, the sensor bandage 3200 includes a bandage portion 3208 and a protrusion 3210, which include one or more layers (not shown in FIG. 32), for example protective and adhesive layers. For example, the sensor bandage 3200 can have the same layered structure as any one of the structures described in conjunction with FIGS. 7A-7B, 8, 9A-9B, 10A-10B, 11, 12, 13, and 20 but with the layers shaped as a bandage with a protrusion. Furthermore, the length / of the sensor bandage 3200 is in the approximate range of 1 - 12 inches, and the height h of the protrusion 3210 and width w of the bandage portion 3208 are in an approximate range of 0.5 - 1 inch.

[0338] The temperature sensor 3206 is disposed on the protrusion 3210, which is configured for disposition in a location that is, or may be, signal inaccessible to an NFC enabled device such as a smart phone (not shown in FIG. 32). For example, the protrusion 3210 can be configured for disposition under a subject’s armpit (not shown in FIG. 32) for accurate sensing of the subject’s temperature while the antenna 3202 is positioned in an NFC accessible region outside of the subject’s arm pit. For example, the sensor bandage 3200 can be configured for wrapping around (partially or fully) a subject’s upper arm or thorax such that the protrusion 3210 is disposed under the subject’s arm pit and the antenna 3202 is disposed on the subject’s upper arm or chest wall in a region that is accessible to an NFC capable device such as a smart phone.

[0339] Referring to FIG. 32, alternate embodiments of the sensor bandage 3200 are contemplated. For example, the protrusion 3210 may be omitted and the sensor 3206 may be disposed elsewhere on the sensor bandage outside of, or inside of, a region bounded by the antenna 3202.

Furthermore, the antenna 3202 may be located in a location of the sensor bandage 3200 other than the location shown in FIG. 32. Moreover, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 31 and 33 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor bandage 3200 of FIG. 32.

[0340] FIG. 33 is a circuit diagram of a sensor patch or bandage 3300 (hereinafter“sensor patch 3300”), according to an embodiment in which the sensor patch 3300 is similar in circuit topology, structure, and operation to the sensor patch 1900 of FIG. 19, and where like numbers reference components common to FIGS. 19 and 33. Differences between the sensor patch 3300 and the sensor patch 1900 include that the sensor patch 3300 includes a battery circuit 3302.

[0341] The battery circuit 3302 includes a battery and a charging circuit configured to charge and recharge the battery. For example, the battery can be a thin-film printed manganese or other type of battery. And the charging circuit can be configured to generate a charging signal in response to the regulated supply voltage that the power-supply circuit 118 generates while the energy-harvester circuit 116 is extracting power from an NFC source signal, and to charge and recharge the battery with the charging signal. For example, the charging circuit can be configured to limit the charging current to a suitable value (include zero) that is dependent on the voltage across the battery while being charged or recharged. And in response to the absence of an NFC source signal, the battery circuit 3302 is configured to disable the charging circuit and to couple the battery to the power supply circuit 118, which is configured to generate the regulated supply voltage from the battery voltage.

[0342] Referring to FIG. 33, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 3300 are contemplated.

For example, the battery circuit 3302 also can be configured to provide the battery voltage to the power supply 128 of the controller circuit 112 in response to the absence of an NFC source signal. Furthermore, the battery circuit 3302 can be omitted such that the battery is coupled to the power supply circuit 118, which can be configured to generate a regulated supply voltage in response to the battery voltage in the absence of the NFC source signal or in an embodiment in which the sensor patch 3300 is powered only by the battery and not by any wireless source signal. Moreover, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 32 and 34 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 3300 of FIG. 33.

[0343] FIG. 34 is a diagram of a sensor system 3400 configured for use in a clinical setting such as a doctor’s office or hospital, and a patient 3402 on which the system is being used, according to an embodiment.

[0344] The system 3400 includes a sensing device such as a sensor patch 3404 and a sensor-power- and-reader device 3406, such as an NFC or RFID enabled device, remote from the sensor patch.

For example, the sensor patch 3404 can include a temperature sensor and be configured for measuring and reporting the temperature of the patient 3402. For example, the sensor patch 3404 can be similar to any of the sensor patches described herein.

[0345] The device 3406 is configured to automatically, or on command, power, activate, and receive sensor readings from the sensor patch 3404. Although a medical professional, such as a doctor or a nurse, can power, activate, and receive sensor readings from the sensor patch 3404 with a hand-held smart device such as a smart phone, this may be manpower intensive and increases the number of times that the medical professional is in close proximity to the patient 3402 (limiting physical proximity between a medical professional and a patient may be desirable if, for example, the patient is infected with a communicable contagion such as COVID19). The device 3406 allows remote sensing and reporting of a measured quantity or condition ( e.g ., body temperature) of the patient 3402 on command or automatically.

[0346] Consequently, the device 3406 allows remote monitoring one or more conditions (e.g., temperature, other vital signs) of the patient 3402 without cumbersome leads that are connected between the device and the patient and that limit patient movement and comfort, and with a sensor patch 3400 configured to have an indefinite shelf life ( e.g ., lifetime not limited by battery life), to operate indefinitely without worry of failure due to a“dead” battery or battery fire, to be disposable, and to have a relatively low cost.

[0347] Still referring to FIG. 34, alternate embodiments of the system 3400 are contemplated. For example, although shown including only one sensor patch 3402, the system 3400 can include multiple sensor patches or other sensor devices such as the sensor bandage 3200 of FIG. 32.

Furthermore, although shown as being mounted to an IV stand, the sensor-power-and-reader device 3406 can be configured for any suitable location such as under a bed, in, or under, a mattress (location 3408), attached to a bed frame, in, or under, a pillow (location 3410), or on a shelf. In addition, the circuitry of the device 3406 can be integrated into other medical equipment such as a heart-rate and pulse-oxygen-level monitor. Furthermore, the embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 33 and 35 - 38 may be applicable to the system 3400 of FIG. 34.

[0348] FIG. 35 is a diagram of a sensor bandage 3500, which includes an antenna 3502, circuitry 3504, and a temperature sensor 3506, which can be, respectively, similar to the antenna 3104, circuitry 3110, and temperature sensor 3108 of the sensor patch 3100 of FIG. 31, according to an embodiment.

[0349] The sensor bandage 3500 can be similar to the sensor bandage 3200 of FIG. 32 except that the protrusion 3210 is omitted and the temperature sensor 3506 is disposed approximately at a center of the sensor bandage.

[0350] Furthermore, the sensor bandage 3500 can include a battery 3512 (e.g., a printed battery), which can be rechargeable, and the circuitry 3504 can include battery-charging circuitry similar to the battery-charging circuitry described above in conjunction with the battery circuit 3302 of FIG. 33.

[0351] Referring to FIG. 35, alternate embodiments of the sensor bandage 3500 are contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 34 and 36 - 38 may be applicable to the sensor bandage 3500 of FIG. 35.

[0352] FIG. 36 is a plan view of a sensor patch 3600, which can include circuitry similar to the circuitry of the sensor patch 3300 of FIG. 33, according to an embodiment.

[0353] The sensor patch 3600 measures about 2 centimeters (cm) in width and may be about three to ten centimeters in length. The device may be less than 1 millimeter (mm) in thickness or may be encapsulated in rigid housing 2 to 6 mm thick. The circuit board 3600 in one embodiment is a flexible printed circuit board or substrate and includes an antenna coil 3604, integrated microcontroller 3606 with transceiver and NFC power subcircuits (connections on pads), an RGB LED 3608, a temperature sensor 3610 with thermistor 3611 and reference resistor 3612, and a cover layer or layers 3614. Illustrated are several pads 3616, 3617 used for quality assurance testing, for example.

[0354] Also shown is an onboard supercapacitor 3620 or printed battery (dashed line). Onboard power storage connections are shown at 3622 and 3624. The battery may be rechargeable from a voltage doubler in the microcontroller. A capacitor may be supplied as a low pass filter between the RF coil and the microcontroller.

[0355] The antenna coil 3604 includes conductive loops disposed around a periphery of the flexible substrate. While the resonant loops are shown here to be circular, the closed spiral may follow another shape if desired. Power from the antenna coil drives the measurement cycle.

[0356] The temperature sensor 3610 is coupled to the microcontroller 3606 by conductive traces formed on the substrate. The thermistor 3611 and reference resistor 3612 form a voltage divider. The temperature sensor may be similar to the temperature sensor 210 of FIG. 2A. A heat conduit may be formed in the substrate under the thermistor and may be air-filled or filled with a solid heat conductor.

[0357] The microcontroller package may also include a memory circuit with firmware configured so that when powered from the superconductor 3620 or onboard battery, the device can function as a data logger, reporting a chronology of recorded temperatures when interrogated by a smart device.

[0358] The RGB LED 3608 can be similar to the RGB LED 124 of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1 and is shown here with four leads. The RGB LED is selected for good visibility as a reporter. A two-leaded LED may be substituted for simplicity if desired. In other embodiments, a piezo beeper can be substituted for the visual reporter device.

[0359] The flexible substrate 3602 is formed from a translucent and flexible plastic such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate (PC), nylon, a fluoropolymer, polyimide (e.g., KAPTON®), polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) or other higher dielectric plastic. The substrate 3602 is coated with an aluminum or copper film, and then is masked, etched, and otherwise processed in a conventional manner to form the antenna coil 3604 loops, other conductive traces, conductive pads, and conductive connection points that interconnect the components of the circuitry, the substrate serving as a single-sided flexible circuit board with conductive vias connecting to the superconductor or battery on the opposite side of the film, for example.

[0360] A“chip” side (i.e., the side on which the components are mounted (the chip side is facing up out of the page of FIG. 36) of the substrate 3602 can be sealed from water, salt, corrosion, and other impurities, contamination, and degradation by a liquid-impermeable protection film or layer, such as a passivation layer, formed over the chip side of the substrate.

[0361] Over the chip side is disposed a non-conductive sealing layer 3614 optionally with a sanitary fabric or rubbery exterior surface as familiar in bandages. The bottom side of the substrate, shown here facing down, may be coated with an adhesive layer ( e.g ., polyacrylate, methacrylate, acrylamide, or a silastic gel layer). The adhesive layer may be 1 to 2 mils thick and is of a kind approved for skin contact.

[0362] A release backing may also be applied over the adhesive layer for protecting the adhesive from contaminants and for removal just prior to adhering the sensor patch 3600 to a surface in need of a temperature measurement, for example a forehead of a human subject.

[0363] The substrate 3602 also can include a neck 3618, which is configured to isolate, thermally, the temperature sensor 3610 from a region of the substrate bounded by (e.g., inside of) the antenna 3604.

[0364] Furthermore, the sensor patch 3600 can be disposable and, as described above in

conjunction with FIG. 1, no onboard power source may be required because the sensor patch may be configured to be powered entirely by an NFC emission from a smart device, such as a smart phone by holding the NFC antenna of the smart device in radio proximity to the antenna coil 3604.

[0365] Still referring to FIG. 36, alternate embodiments of the device 3600 are contemplated as discussed in conjunction with FIG. 33. For example, the circuit board 3602 and components may be assembled into a housing having similar but slightly expanded dimensions and an internal cavity in which the circuitry fits. In use, a device in a sealed housing is compatible with internal surfaces of the mouth, for example, such that the temperature sensor 3610 is inserted under a tongue, for example, and the coil is allowed to rest outside the lip. The smart device, which acts as a reader and an energy source for the device, is brought near the coil and the measurement is performed under control of instructions executed by the smart device logic circuitry. In this way, a battery-less device is realized that is either disposable or can be washed and reused. Alternatively, a supercapacitor or battery is in operative linkage to the NFC circuit and microprocessor and the battery is rechargeable. Furthermore, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 35 and 37 - 38 may be applicable to the device 3600 of FIG. 36.

[0366] FIG. 37 is a plan view of a sensor patch 3700, which can include circuitry related to the circuitry of the sensor patch 100 of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment.

[0367] The sensor patch 3700 measures about 2 centimeters (cm) in width and may be about three to ten centimeters in length. The device may be less than 1 millimeter (mm) in thickness or may be encapsulated in a rigid housing 2 to 6 mm thick. The circuit board 3702 in one embodiment is a flexible printed circuit board or substrate and includes an antenna coil 3704, microcontroller 3606, integrated transceiver and NFC power circuit 3707, an RGB LED 3708, a temperature sensor 3710 with thermistor 371 1 and reference resistor 3712 forming a voltage divider, and a cover layer or layers 3714. Other pads may be included for quality assurance testing, for example. One side of the device may be layered with an adhesive. The length can be configured as needed.

[0368] The antenna coil 3704 includes conductive loops disposed around a periphery of the flexible substrate. While the resonant loops are shown here to be circular, the closed spiral may follow another shape if desired. The antenna coil is a closed spiral, and includes a crossover or bridge 3720 that crosses from pad 3720a to pad 3720b to complete the resonant loop without “short circuiting” any two or more of the antenna loops together. From the inner pad 3720b, the continuous conductive trace that forms the spiral loops of the antenna coil winds around the periphery of the substrate to the outer node 3720a of the antenna, and the bridge 3720. The bridge 3720 is isolated from the antenna coil loops by a dielectric layer under the bridge. The bridge may be printed with silver ink for example; the dielectric printed layer with dielectric ink. Dielectric inks include SU8, a cationic/thermally cured epoxy insulator and nanoparticle AI2O3 inks. An inkjet printing process may be used to form the bridge 3720. Polyimide film may also be used as a dielectric layer to isolate the silver crossover.

[0369] A capacitor may be supplied as a low pass filter between the RF coil and the

microcontroller. The NFC power chip 3703 may include a capacitor.

[0370] Power from the antenna coil drives the measurement cycle.

[0371] The temperature sensor 3710 is coupled to the microcontroller 3706 by conductive traces formed on the substrate. Thermistor 3711 and reference resistor 3712 form a voltage divider. The temperature sensor may be similar to the temperature sensor 210 of FIG. 2 A. A heat conduit may be formed in the substrate under the thermistor and may be air-filled or filled with a solid heat conductor.

[0372] In alternate embodiments, the microcontroller 3706 may include a memory circuit with firmware configured so that when powered from a superconductor or onboard battery (not shown), the device can function as a data logger, reporting a chronology of recorded temperatures when interrogated by a smart device.

[0373] LED 3708 is shown here with two leads and is selected for a low power draw with good visibility as a reporter. In other embodiments, a piezo beeper can be substituted for the visual reporter device.

[0374] The flexible substrate 3702 is formed from a translucent and flexible plastic such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonate (PC), nylon, a fluoropolymer, polyimide (e.g., KAPTON®), polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) or other higher dielectric plastic. The substrate 3702 is coated with an aluminum or copper film, and then is masked, etched, and otherwise processed in a conventional manner to form the antenna coil 3704 loops, other conductive traces, conductive pads, and conductive connection points such as pads at 3720a and 3720b that interconnect the components of the circuitry. In this embodiment, the substrate is a single-sided flexible circuit board. Conductive vias may be used to connect a superconductor or battery on the opposite side of the film, for example.

[0375] A“chip” side (i.e., the side on which the components are mounted (the chip side is facing up out of the page of FIG. 37) of the substrate 3702 can be sealed from water, salt, corrosion, and other impurities, contamination, and degradation by a liquid-impermeable protection film or layer, such as a passivation layer, formed over the chip side of the substrate.

[0376] Over the chip side is disposed a non-conductive sealing layer 3614, optionally with a sanitary fabric or rubbery exterior surface as is familiar in bandages. The bottom side of the substrate, shown here facing down, may be coated with an adhesive layer (e.g., polyacrylate, methacrylate, acrylamide, or a silastic gel layer). The adhesive layer may be 1 to 2 mils thick and is of a kind approved for skin contact.

[0377] A release backing (not shown) may also be applied over the adhesive layer for protecting the adhesive from contaminants and for removal just prior to adhering the sensor patch 3700 to an surface in need of a temperature measurement, for example a forehead or arm of a human subject. [0378] Furthermore, in one embodiment the sensor patch 3700 can be disposable and, as described above in conjunction with FIG. 1, no onboard power source may be required because the sensor patch may be configured to be powered entirely by an NFC emission from a smart device, such as a smart phone by holding the NFC antenna of the smart device in radio proximity to the antenna coil 3604.

[0379] Still referring to FIG. 37, alternate embodiments of the device 3700 are contemplated. For example, the circuit board 3602 and components may be assembled into a housing having similar but slightly expanded dimensions and an internal cavity in which the circuitry fits. In use, the device in a sealed housing is compatible with internal surfaces of the mouth, for example, such that the temperature sensor 3610 is inserted under a tongue, for example, and the coil is allowed to rest outside the lip. A smart device, which acts as a data reader and an energy source for the device, is brought near the coil and the measurement is performed under control of instructions executed by the smart device logic circuitry. In this way, a battery-less device is realized that is either disposable or can be washed and reused.

[0380] Alternatively, the housing may contain a supercapacitor or battery in operative linkage to the NFC circuit and microprocessor. In one embodiment, the battery is rechargeable. A

supercapacitor or battery is not shown in FIG. 37, but the circuit can be modified to include one inside the antenna coil or on the underside of the circuit board.

[0381] Referring to FIG. 37, alternate embodiments of the sensor patch 3700 are contemplated.

For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 36 and 38 may be applicable to the sensor patch 3700 of FIG. 37.

[0382] FIG. 38 is a diagram of an oral thermometer 3800, which includes an antenna 3802, circuitry 3804, and a temperature sensor 3806, which can be, respectively, similar to the antenna 3104, circuitry 3110, and temperature sensor 3108 of the sensor patch 3100 of FIG. 31, according to an embodiment.

[0383] In addition to the antenna 3802, circuitry 3804, and temperature sensor 3806, the oral thermometer 3800 includes a housing 3808, a stem 3810, and an optional disposable stem cover 3812 configured to be disposed after a single use. Furthermore, the length / of the oral

thermometer 3800 is in the approximate range of 1 - 6 inches, the width Wh of the housing 3808 is in an approximate range of 0.5 - 1 inch, the width w _s of the stem 3810 is in an approximate range of 0.1 - 0.3 inches, and the width of the stem cover 3812 is in an approximate range of 0.1 - 0.2 inches wider than the width w _s. [0384] The temperature sensor 3806 is disposed at or near a tip 3814 of the stem 3810, which is configured for disposition in a location that is, or may be, signal inaccessible to an NFC enabled device such as a smart phone (not shown in FIG. 38). For example, the tip 3814 can be configured for disposition in a subject’s mouth or rectum (not shown in FIG. 38) for accurate sensing of the subject’s temperature while the antenna 3802 is positioned in an NFC accessible region outside of the subject’s mouth or rectum.

[0385] Referring to FIG. 38, alternate embodiments of the oral thermometer 3800 are

contemplated. For example, embodiments described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 - 37 may be applicable to the oral thermometer 3800 of FIG. 38.

[0386] EXAMPLE I

[0387] Connection is made between two NFC devices when they are brought together so there is no difficulty in associating two devices. One device for temperature measurement is a passive NFC device mounted in a bandage that can be applied to the skin. Energization and temperature measurement occur when the two devices are brought to less than about 4 centimeters of one another, although actual distances will depend upon a variety of factors.

[0388] In a simple example, a bandage adherent to a wound will broadcast a first temperature during the initial stage of the healing process but may broadcast a higher temperature if

inflammation indicative of infection develops.

[0389] INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

[0390] All of the U.S. Patents, U.S. Patent application publications, U.S. Patent applications, foreign patents, foreign patent applications and non-patent publications referred to in this specification and related filings are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for all purposes.

[0391] The disclosure set forth herein of certain exemplary embodiments, including all text, drawings, annotations, and graphs, is sufficient to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to practice the teachings disclosed herein. Various alternatives, modifications and equivalents are possible, as will readily occur to those skilled in the art in practice of the teachings of the disclosure. The examples and embodiments described herein are not limited to particularly exemplified materials, methods, or structures and various changes may be made in the size, shape, type, materials, steps, number and arrangement of parts described herein. For example, one, or a device, may omit one or more steps of a disclosed embodiment of a method, or may add one or more steps to a disclosed embodiment of a method. All embodiments, alternatives, modifications and equivalents may be combined to provide further embodiments of the present disclosure without departing from the true spirit and scope of the disclosed subject matter.

[0392] In general, in the following claims, the terms used in the written description should not be construed to limit the claims to specific embodiments described herein for illustration, but should be construed to include all possible embodiments, both specific and generic, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. Accordingly, the claims are not limited in haec verba by the disclosure.

EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

[0393] Example 1 includes an apparatus, comprising: a package configured for attachment to an object; a sensor disposed in the package, configured to sense a condition related to the object, and configured to generate a sense signal that is related to the sensed condition; an antenna configured to receive a source signal from a remote source; and a power circuit configured to power the sensor in response to the source signal.

[0394] Example 2 include the apparatus of Example 1 wherein the sensor and the power circuit are disposed within a region bounded by the antenna.

[0395] Example 3 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1 -2 wherein at least one of the sensor and the power circuit is disposed outside of a region bounded by the antenna.

[0396] Example 4 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-3 wherein the sensor is thermally isolated from a region bounded by the antenna.

[0397] Example 5 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-4 wherein the package includes a thermally insulative region between the sensor and the antenna.

[0398] Example 6 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-5, further comprising a substrate over which the sensor and the antenna are disposed, the substrate having a neck between the sensor and the antenna.

[0399] Example 7 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-6, further comprising: a substrate having first and second nonoverlapping regions and a neck between the first and second regions; wherein the antenna is disposed over, and bounds, the first region; and wherein the sensor is disposed over the second region.

[0400] Example 8 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-7, further comprising: a flexible substrate; and wherein the sensor, antenna, and power circuit are disposed over a same side of the substrate. [0401] Example 9 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-8, further comprising: a flexible substrate; wherein the sensor, antenna, and power circuit are disposed over a same side of the substrate and the antenna bounds a region of the substrate; wherein the power circuit is disposed over the region of the flexible substrate; wherein the antenna includes an inner terminal, an outer terminal, and at least one loop; and a bridge disposed over the at least one loop of the antenna and over the same side of the substrate, and including an electrical conductor configured to couple, electrically, the outer terminal of the antenna to the power circuit.

[0402] Example 10 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-9, further comprising: a flexible substrate; conductive traces disposed only one side of the substrate and configured to interconnect, electrically, the sensor, antenna, and power circuit; and wherein the sensor, antenna, and power circuit are disposed only on the one side of the substrate.

[0403] Example 1 1 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-10, further comprising: a flexible substrate; wherein antenna is disposed over a side of the substrate; and wherein the power circuit is disposed over the antenna and the side of the substrate.

[0404] Example 12 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-11 wherein the package is flexible.

[0405] Example 13 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-12 wherein the package is configured for adhering to the object.

[0406] Example 14 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-13, further comprising an adhesive configured for adhering the package to the object.

[0407] Example 15 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-14, further comprising a thermally conductive adhesive configured for adhering the package to the object.

[0408] Example 16 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-15 wherein the object includes an inanimate object.

[0409] Example 17 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-16 wherein the object includes a living being.

[0410] Example 18 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-17 wherein the object includes a body of a living being.

[0411] Example 19 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-18 wherein the sensor includes a temperature sensor.

[0412] Example 20 includes the apparatus of Examples 1-19 wherein the package includes a heat conduit coupled to the temperature sensor. [0413] Example 21 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-20 wherein the sensor is selected from a group consisting of a pressure sensor, an oxygen sensor, a pulse sensor, a heart-rate sensor, a glucose sensor, a blood-pressure sensor, a humidity sensor, and a chemical sensor.

[0414] Example 22 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-21, further comprising an indicator disposed in the package and configured to indicate a value of the sensed condition in response to the sensor signal.

[0415] Example 23 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-22, further comprising: an indicator disposed in the package and configured to indicate a value of the sensed condition in response to the sensor signal; and wherein the power circuit is configured to power the indicator in response to the source signal.

[0416] Example 24 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-23 wherein the indicator is disposed in a region bounded by the antenna.

[0417] Example 25 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-24 wherein the indicator is disposed outside of a region bounded by the antenna.

[0418] Example 26 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-25 wherein the indicator includes a light-emitting diode.

[0419] Example 27 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-26 wherein the indicator includes a light-emitting-diode circuit configured to emit multiple colors of light.

[0420] Example 28 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-27 wherein the indicator includes a numerical display.

[0421] Example 29 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-28 wherein: the sensor includes a temperature sensor; and the indicator is configured to display a numeric value of a temperature sensed by the temperature sensor.

[0422] Example 30 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-29 wherein: the sensor includes a temperature sensor; and the indicator is configured to display an alphanumeric value of a temperature sensed by the temperature sensor.

[0423] Example 31 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-30 wherein: the sensor includes a temperature sensor; and the indicator is configured to display a color related to a temperature sensed by the temperature sensor.

[0424] Example 32 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-31, further comprising a controller circuit configured to determine a value of the sensed condition in response to the sense signal.

[0425] Example 33 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-32 wherein the power circuit is configured to power then controller circuit in response to the source signal. [0426] Example 34 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-33, further comprising: wherein the sensor includes a first temperature sensor configured to sense a first temperature of the object and to generate a first sense signal that is related to the sensed first temperature; a second temperature sensor configured to sense a second temperature of an environment around the object and to generate a second sense signal that is related to the sensed second temperature; and a controller circuit configured to determine a value of the first temperature in response to the first and second sense signals.

[0427] Example 35 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-34 wherein the antenna includes a loop antenna.

[0428] Example 36 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-35 wherein the antenna includes a loop antenna having multiple turns.

[0429] Example 37 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-36 wherein the power circuit further comprises: an energy harvester configured to generate a power signal in response to the source signal; a power supply configured to generate power-supply signal in response to the power signal; and wherein the sensor is coupled to receive the power-supply signal.

[0430] Example 38 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-37, further comprising a communication circuit configured to recover information carried by the source signal.

[0431] Example 39 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-38, further comprising a communication circuit configured to recover information carried by the source signal by demodulating the source signal.

[0432] Example 40 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-39, further comprising a communication circuit configured to cause the source signal to carry information to the remote source.

[0433] Example 41 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-40, further comprising a communication circuit configured to modulate the source signal with information.

[0434] Example 42 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-41, further comprising a communication circuit configured to modulate the source signal with an information signal.

[0435] Example 43 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-42, further comprising a communication circuit configured to cause the source signal to carry, to the remote source, information that is related to the sensed condition.

[0436] Example 44 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 1-43, further comprising a communication circuit configured to modulate the source signal with an information signal that is related to the sensed condition. [0437] Example 45 includes a device, comprising: an antenna; and a generator configured to power a remote condition-sensor apparatus by generating, and by driving the antenna with, a source signal.

[0438] Example 46 includes the device of Example 45 wherein the generator includes a near-field- signal generator.

[0439] Example 47 includes the device of any of Examples 45-46 wherein the antenna includes a loop antenna.

[0440] Example 48 includes the device of any of Examples 45-47, further comprising a

communication circuit configured to cause the source signal to carry information to the remote sensor apparatus.

[0441] Example 49 includes the device of Example 45-48 wherein the information includes a command for the remote sensor apparatus.

[0442] Example 50 includes the device of any of Examples 45-49 wherein the information includes configuration information for the remote sensor apparatus.

[0443] Example 51 includes the device of any of Examples 45-50, further comprising a

communication circuit configured to modulate the source signal with information for the sensor apparatus.

[0444] Example 52 includes the device of any of Examples 45-51, further comprising a

communication circuit configured to modulate the source signal with an information signal representing information for the sensor apparatus.

[0445] Example 53 includes the device of any of Examples 45-52, further comprising a

communication circuit configured to recover, from the source signal, information from the remote sensor.

[0446] Example 54 includes the device of any of Examples 45-53 wherein the information includes a value of a condition sensed by the remote sensor.

[0447] Example 55 includes the device of any of Examples 45-54 wherein the information includes a value of a temperature sensed by the remote sensor.

[0448] Example 56 includes the device of any of Examples 45-55, further comprising a

communication circuit configured to demodulate the source signal to recover information from the remote sensor.

[0449] Example 57 includes the device of any of Examples 45-56, further comprising: a control circuit coupled to the generator; and a memory circuit coupled to the control circuit. [0450] Example 58 includes a system, comprising: a device configured to generate a source signal; and an apparatus, including a package configured for attachment to an object, a sensor onboard the package, configured to sense a condition related to the object, and configured to generate a sense signal that is related to the sensed condition, an antenna onboard the package and configured to receive the source signal, and a power circuit onboard the package and configured to power the sensor in response to the source signal.

[0451] Example 59 includes the system of Example 58 wherein the device includes a smart device.

[0452] Example 60 includes the system of any of Examples 58-59 wherein the device includes a smart phone.

[0453] Example 61 includes the system of any of Examples 58-60 wherein the sensor includes a temperature sensor configured to sense a temperature of the object.

[0454] Example 62 includes the system of any of Examples 58-61 wherein the sensor includes a temperature sensor configured to sense a temperature of a region of the object to which the package is attached.

[0455] Example 63 includes the system of any of Examples 58-62 wherein the package is configured for attachment to a human body.

[0456] Example 64 includes a tangible, non-transient computer-readable medium storing instructions that when executed by a device, cause the device: to generate a source signal; and to power a condition-sensor apparatus remote from the device by driving an antenna with the source signal.

[0457] Example 65 includes a method, comprising: powering a sensing apparatus with a wireless signal; sensing, with the powered sensing apparatus, a condition of an object to which the powered sensing apparatus is attached; and indicating a value of the sensed condition.

[0458] Example 66 includes the method of Example 65 wherein powering includes generating the wireless signal with a device that is remote from the sensing apparatus.

[0459] Example 67 includes the method of any of Example 65-66 wherein powering includes generating the wireless signal with a smart phone.

[0460] Example 68 includes the method of any of Example 65-67 wherein sensing includes sensing the temperature of the object.

[0461] Example 69 includes the method of any of Examples 65-68 wherein indicating includes indicating the value of the sensed condition with the sensing apparatus.

[0462] Example 70 includes the method of any of Examples 65-69 wherein indicating includes indicating the value of the sensed condition with a device that generates the wireless signal. [0463] Example 71 includes the method of any of Examples 65-70 wherein indicating includes generating, with the sensing device, a color that is related to the value of the sensed condition.

[0464] Example 72 includes the method of any of Examples 65-71 wherein indicating includes displaying, with the sensing device, the value of the sensed condition.

[0465] Example 73 includes the method of any of Examples 65-72 wherein indicating includes generating, with the sensing device, a vibration that is related to the value of the sensed condition.

[0466] Example 74 includes the method of any of Examples 65-73 wherein indicating includes generating, with the sensing device, a sound that is related to the value of the sensed condition.

[0467] Example 75 includes the method of any of Examples 65-74 wherein: powering includes generating the wireless signal with a device that is remote from the sensing apparatus; and indicating includes indicating the value of the sensed condition with the device.

[0468] Example 76 includes the method of any of Examples 65-75 wherein: powering includes generating the wireless signal with a device that is remote from the sensing apparatus; and indicating includes displaying the value of the sensed condition with the device.

[0469] Example 77 includes the method of any of Examples 65-76, further comprising: wherein powering includes generating the wireless signal with a device that is remote from the sensing apparatus; sending the value of the sensed condition from the sensing apparatus to the device over the wireless signal; and indicating the sent value of the sensed condition with the device.

[0470] Example 78 includes the method of any of Examples 65-77, further comprising: wherein powering includes generating the wireless signal with a device that is remote from the sensing apparatus; sending the value of the sensed condition from the sensing apparatus to the device over the wireless signal; and storing the sent value of the sensed condition with the device.

[0471] Example 79 includes the method of any of Examples 65-78, further comprising: wherein powering includes generating the wireless signal with a device that is remote from the sensing apparatus; sending values of the sensed condition, and times respectively corresponding to the values, from the sensing apparatus to the device over the wireless signal; and storing the sent values of the sensed condition and the corresponding times with the device.

[0472] Example 80 includes the method of any of Examples 65-79, further comprising: wherein sensing includes generating a sense signal related to the condition; determining a value of the sensed condition in response to the sense signal; and wherein indicating the value includes indicating the determined value of the sensed condition.

[0473] Example 81 includes a method, comprising: attaching a temperature-sensor apparatus to an object; powering the temperature-sensor apparatus with a signal from a device remote from the temperature-sensor apparatus; sensing a temperature of the object with the temperature-sensor apparatus; and indicating a value of the sensed temperature with at least one of the temperature sensor apparatus and the device.

[0474] Example 82 includes a device, comprising: a package configured for attachment to an object; a sensor disposed in the package, configured to sense a condition of the object, and configured to generate a sensor signal that is related to the sensed condition; an indicator disposed in the package and configured to generate an indication in response to the sensor signal; and a power supply configured to harvest energy and to convert the harvested energy into power for the sensor and the notifier.

[0475] Example 83 includes a device for aggregating fever data over an area, which comprises: (a) a substrate that supports a circuit having a microcontroller, an NFC antenna loop with inside pole and outside pole, an NFC transceiver and NFC power component, a temperature sensor operatively coupled to the microcontroller, wherein: (b) the NFC power component draws power passively from an NFC field when in radio proximity thereto and supplies power to the circuit, the NFC transceiver receives and transmits NFC radio signals containing data, the temperature sensor, under control of the microcontroller, reports a temperature, the microcontroller receives the reported temperature as data and transmits the data in an NFC radio signal; and, (c) the temperature sensor is disposed outside of the NFC antenna loop, the NFC power component comprises two contact pads, a first contact pad electronically connected to the inside pole of the NFC antenna loop and a second contact pad electronically connected to the outside pole of the NFC antenna loop such that the NFC power component crosses over the NFC antenna loop.

[0476] Example 84 includes a system for aggregating fever data over an area, which comprises: (a) a non-transitory computer-readable memory configured to store unique identifiers for a plurality of digital thermometers, each unique identifier assignable to a unique digital thermometer, each digital thermometer emits an NFC radio signal transmitting data when the digital thermometer is passively excited by a proximate NFC field, the digital thermometer data includes the unique identifier associated with each digital thermometer; (b) a non-transitory computer-readable memory configured to store location data for a community of smart devices, each smart device knows its own location, stores the location data as computer-readable location data, emits an NFC field, receives NFC radio signals having digital thermometer data, and transmits broad area radio signals (“radio messages”) having data, the data includes the computer-readable location data and the digital thermometer data; (c) an application installable in a non-transitory computer-readable memory of a smart device; wherein the application, when executed by a processor on a smart device, enables the smart device to transmit radio messages containing computer-readable location data paired with digital thermometer data (“paired digital thermometer data”) to a designated IP address; and, (d) a cloud host designated by the IP address, each cloud host receives and transmits broad area radio signals containing data, aggregates data (‘aggregated paired digital thermometer data”) and processes the aggregated paired digital thermometer data to identify a condition or conditions, and transmits a programmable command or commands to a designated smart device or a designated remote machine, the programmable command or commands are associated with the condition or conditions by programmable rules-based logic.

[0477] Example 85 includes the system of Example 84, wherein the nontransitory computer-readable memory is configured to store digital thermometer data comprising computer-readable sensor output data, each digital thermometer has a sensor or sensors and encodes the sensor output data for transmission in the NFC radio signal.

[0478] Example 86 includes the system of any of Examples 84-85, wherein the application comprises a graphical user interface configured, when executed on a user’s smart device, to enable programming of a rule or rules in a user profile in said cloud host, and the cloud host is configured to execute the rule or rules if a radio message received at the cloud host contains a computer-readable digital thermometer unique identifier associated with the user profile.

[0479] Example 87 includes the system of any of Examples 84-86, wherein the nontransitory computer- readable memory is configured to store digital thermometer data comprising a computer-readable community identifier common to a plurality of digital thermometers, each community identifier assignable to a digital thermometer device, each digital thermometer emits an NFC radio signal transmitting data when the digital thermometer is passively excited by a proximate NFC field, each digital thermometer has a sensor or sensors and encodes the sensor output data for transmission in the transmitted data, the data includes the unique identifier associated with each digital thermometer and the community identifier associated with each digital thermometer.

[0480] Example 88 includes the system of Example 87, wherein the condition or conditions identifiable in paired digital thermometer data is sensor output data.

[0481] Example 89 includes the system of Example 88, wherein the condition or conditions identifiable in paired radiotag data is location data.

[0482] Example 90 includes the system of Example 89, wherein the cloud host is configured to execute a community rule or rules by aggregating paired radiotag data in radio messages received from a community of smart devices by a process of identifying a condition or conditions identifiable in the paired radiotag data, and transmitting a programmable command or commands to the community of smart devices or to a designated remote machine, the programmable command or commands are associated with the condition or conditions identified in the paired radiotag data by programmable rules- based logic.

[0483] Example 91 includes the system of Example 90, wherein the programmable command associated with the condition or conditions by programmable rules-based logic is a command to make a notification to a smart device or a remote machine, the notification containing analysis of the aggregated paired digital thermometer data.

[0484] Example 92 includes the system of Example 91, wherein the programmable command associated with the condition or conditions by programmable rules-based logic is a command to make a notification to a community of smart devices, the notification containing analysis of the aggregated paired digital thermometer data.

[0485] Example 93 includes the system of Example 92, wherein said application is configured to receive from said cloud host a map or plot that aggregates the paired digital thermometer by location, time, condition, and make a display thereof.

[0486] Example 94 includes the system of Example 93, wherein the system is configured to enable any one of: a display of a fever map according to location; a cursor in the form of a magnifying glass directed at an underlying map, wherein the number of fevers, as reported in the paired digital thermometer data, is tallied according to an area on the map defined by the outline of the magnifying glass, the cursor summing the total fever incidence as the cursor is moved across the map; a display of a fever map according to chronology and waypoints, wherein a set of waypoints defining a trip is superimposed on a map, and the fever incidence is tabulated for each waypoint of the trip as a function of date; a display of a fever map extrapolation according to chronology and waypoints, wherein a set of waypoints defining a trip is superimposed on a map, and the fever incidence is extrapolated for each waypoint of the trip as a function of future date; or, a display of a fever map according to a contact list and waypoints, wherein a location of individuals from a contact list is superimposed on a map, and the fever incidence in a defined radius of proximity to each member of the contact list is tabulated for each member according to current location or according to a past location or location of each member, wherein the past locations are drawn from an archived chronology of locations determined for each member.

[0487] Example 95 includes the device of any of Examples 1-94, wherein the antenna is configured for bidirectional exchange of modulated and demodulated data with a smart device when a carrier wave is powered by harvested emission energy; and, wherein the indicator is an RGB LED.

[0488] Example 96 includes the device of any of Examples 1-95, wherein the indicator is a peripheral device configured to emit at least one of a graded optical, acoustic or haptic notification, wherein the graded indication is perceptible by a user, and is graded in semi-quantitative correlation to a sensor output strength detected by the sensor.

[0489] Example 97 includes the device of any of Examples 1-96, wherein the NFC radioset with a modulator is configured to broadcast a notification comprising a digitally encoded data

transmission encoding the sensor output and a unique identifier associated with the sensor patch.

[0490] Example 98 includes the device of any of Examples 1-97, wherein the NFC radioset comprises a demodulator configured to receive and decode a digitally encoded data signal on the NFC antenna from a remote smart device.

[0491] Example 99 includes the device of any of Examples 1-98, wherein the circuit comprises a peripheral device configured to make a local notification to a user, wherein the peripheral device is configured to emit at least one of an optical notification, an acoustic notification, a haptic notification, or a combination thereof in response to the sensor output.

[0492] Example 100 includes the device of any of Examples 1-99, wherein the sensor is a temperature sensor.

[0493] Example 101 includes the device of any of Examples 1-100, wherein the temperature sensor is a thermistor.

[0494] Example 102 includes the device of any of Examples 1-101, wherein the circuit comprises a reference resistor operable in parallel to the thermistor, the reference resistor defining a calibration voltage or current for the sensor output.

[0495] Example 103 includes the device of any of Examples 1-102, wherein the circuit comprises a processor and an instruction set in nonvolatile memory, wherein the instruction set is configured to, when executed, cause the processor to: wake up when an external NFC field strength has an intensity that exceeds a threshold and to sleep when the external NFC field strength is less than a threshold; command the sensor to sense a condition and generate a sensor output that is related to or proportionate to the sensed condition; and command the notifier to generate a notification in response to the sensor output.

[0496] Example 104 includes the device of any of Examples 1-103, wherein the instruction set is configured to cause the processor to encode the sensor output as sensor data and to transmit the sensor data as a modulated NFC radio transmission to a proximate smart device.

[0497] Example 105 includes the device of any of Examples 1-104, wherein the instruction set is configured to cause the processor to demodulate an NFC radio transmission from a proximate smart device and read any data or instructions contained in the transmission. [0498] Example 106 includes the device of any of Examples 1-105, wherein the package further comprises a protective capsule and the circuit is embedded in the capsule.

[0499] Example 107 includes the device of any of Examples 1-106, wherein the capsule is a clear silastic or acrylate gel.

[0500] Example 108 includes the device of any of Examples 1-107, wherein the circuit comprises an integrated circuit die and the antenna comprises a flexible circuit board; further characterized in that the integrated circuit die is a flip chip having a plurality of electrical connections as bonded to the flexible circuit board; having an underfill as bonded, the underfill configured to protect the electrical connections against strain and moisture, and wherein the flexible circuit board and flip chip are disposed between a top layer of a pliant material and a bottom layer of a pliant material that define the package top and bottom surfaces, the package having an adhesive coating on the bottom surface; and, wherein the adhesive coating is provided with a removable peel-off mask.

[0501] Example 109 includes a device, comprising: a package configured for attachment to a surface of an object; a circuit disposed in the package, a sensor disposed in the circuit, configured to sense a condition of the object, and configured to generate a sensor output that is related to the sensed condition; a notifier disposed in the circuit and configured to generate a notification in response to the sensor output; and a means for passively harvesting energy from the environment.

[0502] Example 1 10 includes the device of Example 109, wherein the means for passively harvesting energy from the environment is selected from: an electret energy harvesting device, a thermoelectric energy harvesting device (TEC); a triboelectric energy harvesting device; a piezoelectric energy harvesting device; a magnetic-induction energy harvesting device; or, a radiowave energy harvesting device.

[0503] Example 1 11 includes the device of Example 110, wherein the circuit comprises an antenna configured to receive and send radio signals from and to a remote device.

[0504] Example 1 12 includes the device of any of Examples 1 10-1 11, wherein the circuit comprises an NFC radioset with a modulator configured to broadcast a digitally encoded data transmission on the NFC antenna to a remote smart device, and the digitally encoded data transmission comprises a unique identifier associated with the device.

[0505] Example 1 13 includes the device of any of Examples 110-112, wherein the unique identifier associated with the device is configured to be linked to an archival record of sensor output data transmitted by the device. [0506] Example 1 14 includes the device of any of Examples 110-113, wherein the NFC radioset comprises a demodulator configured to receive and decode a digitally encoded data signal on the NFC antenna from radio signal sent by a remote smart device.

[0507] Example 1 15 includes the device of any of Examples 1 10-114, comprising a data circuit coupled to the NFC antenna and configured to read data from an input radio signal.

[0508] Example 1 16 includes the device of any of Examples 1 10-115, wherein the antenna is configured to broadcast, to a remote device, an output radio signal encoding a parameter of the sensor signal.

[0509] Example 1 17 includes the device of any of Examples 110-116, wherein the notifier is a peripheral device configured to emit at least one of an optical notification, an acoustic notification, a haptic notification, or a combination thereof in response to the sensor output.

[0510] Example 1 18 includes the device of any of Examples 110-117, wherein the notifier is a peripheral device configured to emit at least one of a graded optical, acoustic or haptic notification, wherein the graded notification is perceptible by a user, and is graded in semi-quantitative correlation to a sensor output strength detected by the sensor.

[0511] Example 1 19 includes the device of any of Examples 110-118, wherein the notifier is an NFC radioset with a modulator configured to broadcast a digitally encoded data transmission encoding the sensor output on the NFC antenna, and wherein the digitally encoded data

transmission comprises a unique identifier associated with the device.

[0512] Example 120 includes the device of any of Examples 110-119, wherein the NFC radioset comprises a demodulator configured to receive and decode a digitally encoded data signal on the NFC antenna from a remote smart device.

[0513] Example 121 includes the device of any of Examples 1 10-120, wherein the circuit comprises a peripheral device configured to make a local notification to a user, wherein the peripheral device is configured to emit at least one of an optical notification, an acoustic

notification, a haptic notification, or a combination thereof in response to the sensor output.

[0514] Example 122 includes the device of any of Examples 1 10-121, wherein the sensor is a temperature sensor.

[0515] Example 123 includes the device of any of Examples 1 10-122, wherein the temperature sensor is a thermistor.

[0516] Example 124 includes the device of any of Examples 1 10-123, wherein the circuit comprises a reference resistor operable in parallel to the thermistor, the reference resistor defining a calibration voltage or current for the sensor output. [0517] Example 125 includes the device of any of Examples 1 10-124, wherein the circuit comprises a processor and an instruction set in nonvolatile memory, wherein the instruction set is configured to, when executed, cause the processor to: wake up when an external NFC field strength has an intensity that exceeds a threshold and to sleep when the external NFC field strength is less than a threshold; command the sensor to sense a condition and generate a sensor output that is related to or proportionate to the sensed condition; and, command the notifier to generate a notification in response to the sensor output.

[0518] Example 126 includes the device of any of Examples 110-125, wherein the instruction set is configured to cause the processor to encode the sensor output as sensor data and to transmit the sensor data as a modulated NFC radio transmission to a proximate smart device.

[0519] Example 127 includes the device of any of Examples 110-126, wherein the instruction set is configured to cause the processor to demodulate an NFC radio transmission from a proximate smart device and read any data or instructions contained in the transmission.

[0520] Example 128 includes the device of any of Examples 110-127, wherein the package further comprises a protective capsule and the circuit is embedded in the capsule.

[0521] Example 129 includes the device of any of Examples 110-128, wherein the capsule is a silastic or acrylate gel.

[0522] Example 130 includes the device of any of Examples 1 10-129, wherein the circuit comprises an integrated circuit die and the antenna comprises a flexible circuit board; further characterized in that the integrated circuit die is a flip chip having a plurality of electrical connections as bonded to the top of a dual sided flexible circuit board and the sensor is a solid state device operatively connected to the bottom of the flexible circuit board; the flip chip and sensor having an underfill as bonded, and wherein the flip chip and the sensor are embedded in a gel capsule between a top layer of a pliant material and a bottom layer of a pliant material that define the device package top and bottom surfaces, the bottom layer of a pliant material having an adhesive coating on the bottom surface; and, wherein the adhesive coating is provided with a removable peel-off mask.

[0523] Example 131 includes the device of any of Examples 110-130, wherein the device package comprises a flexible gel capsule having an LED embedded therein.

[0524] Example 132 includes a system for detecting a temperature condition of a body at a point of care and for making a remote and a local notification of the temperature condition, which comprises: an adhesive package containing an embedded circuit, the embedded circuit having an antenna; wherein the adhesive package is capable of adhering to a body and the embedded circuit with antenna is capable of: receiving power wirelessly from a proximate external radio field emitted by a remote smart device, and for wirelessly exchanging data with the remote smart device when powered; a temperature sensor operably linked to the circuit, wherein the temperature sensor is capable of: detecting a temperature condition of a body when the package is in thermal contact with a body; generating a sensor output indicative of the temperature condition; and, a notifier device operably linked to the circuit, wherein the notifier is capable of: wirelessly transmitting the sensor output to the remote smart device; presenting a perceptible signal at the point of care, wherein the signal is related to a temperature condition of a body and is at least one of an optical notification, an acoustic notification, a haptic notification, or a combination thereof.

[0525] Example 133 includes a system for detecting a temperature condition of an object at a point of use and for making a remote and a local notification of the temperature condition, which comprises: an adhesive package containing an embedded circuit, the embedded circuit having an antenna; wherein the adhesive package is capable of adhering to an object in need of temperature monitoring and the embedded circuit with antenna are configured for receiving power wirelessly from a proximate external radio field emitted by a remote device and for wirelessly exchanging data with the remote device when powered; a temperature sensor operably linked to the circuit, wherein the temperature sensor is capable of: detecting a temperature condition of an object when the package is in thermal contact with the object; generating a sensor output indicative of the temperature condition; and, a notifier device operably linked to the circuit, wherein the notifier is capable of: wirelessly transmitting the sensor output to a remote device; presenting a perceptible signal at the point of care, wherein the signal is related to a temperature condition of an object and is at least one of an optical notification, an acoustic notification, a haptic notification, or a combination thereof.

[0526] Example 134 includes a system for detecting a temperature condition of a body at a point of care, and for making a remote and a local notification of the temperature condition, which comprises: an adhesive package containing an embedded circuit, the embedded circuit having an antenna; wherein the adhesive package is capable of adhering to a body and the embedded circuit with antenna are configured for wirelessly exchanging data with the remote device when powered; a passive energy harvesting device selected from: an electret energy harvesting device, a thermoelectric energy harvesting device (TEC); a triboelectric energy harvesting device; a piezoelectric energy harvesting device; a magnetic-induction energy harvesting device; or, a radiowave energy harvesting device; a temperature sensor operably linked to the circuit, wherein the temperature sensor is capable of: detecting a temperature condition of a body when the package is in thermal contact with a body; generating a sensor output indicative of the temperature condition; and, a notifier device operably linked to the circuit, wherein the notifier is capable of: wirelessly transmitting the sensor output to a remote device; presenting a perceptible signal at the point of care, wherein the signal is related to a temperature condition of a body and is at least one of an optical notification, an acoustic notification, a haptic notification, or a combination thereof.

[0527] Example 135 includes the system of Examples 133 or 134, further comprising an application installable in a smart device, the application defining an instruction set for actuating and operating the circuit in the sensor element device, wherein the instruction set, when executed by a processor of the smart device, is configured to cause the smart device to: by a radioset of the smart device, emit an external proximate NFC radio field strength having an intensity configured to wake up the sensor device package; by a radioset in the smart device, send and receive modulated radio signals to and from the embedded circuit, demodulate and decode received radio signals to extract sensor output, and extract a unique identifier associated uniquely with the sensor element device; and further process any temperature characteristic and unique identifier according to preferences and permissions programmed in the smart device; and, by the smart device, actuate a notifier to generate a notification in response to the characteristic or characteristics of the sensor output.

[0528] Example 136 includes a system for detecting a sensor condition of an object, and for making a remote and a local notification of the sensor condition, which comprises: an adhesive package containing an embedded circuit, the embedded circuit having an antenna; wherein the adhesive package is capable of adhering to an object and the embedded circuit with antenna are configured for wirelessly exchanging data with the remote device when powered; a passive energy harvesting device selected from: an electret energy harvesting device, a thermoelectric energy harvesting device (TEC); a triboelectric energy harvesting device; a piezoelectric energy harvesting device; a magnetic-induction energy harvesting device; or, a radiowave energy harvesting device; a sensor operably linked to the circuit, wherein the sensor is capable of:

detecting a sensor condition of a body when the package is in contact with an object; generating a sensor output indicative of the sensor condition; and, a notifier device operably linked to the circuit, wherein the notifier is capable of: wirelessly transmitting the sensor output to a remote device; presenting a perceptible signal at the point of care, wherein the signal is related to a sensor condition of a body and is at least one of an optical notification, an acoustic notification, a haptic notification, or a combination thereof. [0529] Example 137 includes the system of Example 136, wherein the smart device is configured with a network connection and the instruction set is configured for transmitting and receiving sensor element device data to a network and for relaying smart device data and network data to the sensor element device by radio signal transmission and reception.

[0530] Example 138 includes the system of any of Examples 136-137, wherein the notifier is configured to present a local notification of the temperature characteristic or characteristics, and further wherein the display is selected from at least one of an LED, an LCD, a photocell, a speaker, a piezo device, or a haptic device.

[0531] Example 139 includes the system of any of Examples 136-138, wherein the local display is configured to be visible, audible or haptically perceptible.

[0532] Example 140 includes the system of any of Examples 136-139, wherein the local display comprises an LED or a pair of colored LEDs.

[0533] Example 141 includes the system of any of Examples 136-140, wherein the local display is an RGB-LED.

[0534] Example 142 includes the system of any of Examples 136-141, wherein the temperature sensor is a thermistor.

[0535] Example 143 includes the system of any of Examples 136-142, wherein the thermistor is a solid-state thermistor as part of an integrated circuit die.

[0536] Example 144 includes the system of any of Examples 136-143, wherein the sensor element device comprises a capacitor or a battery configured to store energy harvested from the energy harvester and to discharge that energy through the sensor, the notifier.

[0537] Example 145 includes the system of any of Examples 136-144, wherein the sensor element device comprises a capacitor or a battery configured to store energy harvested from the nearfield radio energy harvester and to discharge that energy through the sensor, the notifier, and the nearfield communication radioset.

[0538] Example 146 includes the system of any of Examples 136-145 wherein the sensor element device comprises a local nonvolatile memory and the nearfield communications radioset is configured to transmit a unique identifier.

[0539] Example 147 includes the system of any of Examples 136-146, wherein the sensor element device comprises a local memory; the nearfield communications radioset is configured to transmit a unique identifier to the smart device, the smart device is configured with a network connection to a server and the application is configured for transmitting and receiving data over a network and for relaying the data to and from the device package over a nearfield radio channel; and further characterized in that the server is configured to receive the data and to associate the unique identifier with a user profile, said user profile having capacity for storing permissions, preferences, archiving the data, and analyzing or displaying the data according to user preferences.

[0540] Example 148 includes the system of any of Examples 136-147, wherein the server is configured as part of a network enabled to evaluate the sensor data, make notifications, or cause remote actions according to user preferences stored in the server or the smart device.

[0541] Example 149 includes the system of any of Examples 136-148, wherein the smart device comprises an instruction set that that defined an "application", wherein the application when executed by a processor causes operations in the smart device the sensor element device to turn on when activated by a radio field of the smart device and to perform a sensor measurement cycle enabled to power up and harvest radio energy from the applied radio field; make a temperature measurement; and, transmit the temperature measurement to the smart device over the nearfield communication radio set.

[0542] Example 150 includes the system of any of Examples 136-149, wherein the smart device is configured with a network connection and the instruction set is configured for transmitting and receiving data over a network and for relaying the data to and from the device package over a nearfield radio channel.

[0543] Example 151 includes the device of any of Examples 104-150, wherein the instruction set is configured to cause the processor to encode the sensor output as sensor data and to transmit the sensor data as a modulated NFC radio transmission to a proximate smart device.

[0544] Example 152 includes the device of any of Examples 104-151, wherein the instruction set is configured to cause the processor to demodulate an NFC radio transmission from a proximate smart device and read any data or instructions contained in the transmission.

[0545] Example 153 includes the device of any of Examples 104-152, wherein the means for passively harvesting energy from the environment is selected from: an electric energy harvesting device, a thermoelectric energy harvesting device (TEC); a triboelectric energy harvesting device; a piezoelectric energy harvesting device; a magnetic-induction energy harvesting device; or, a radiowave energy harvesting device.

[0546] Example 154 includes the device of any of Examples 104-153, wherein the circuit comprises an antenna configured to receive and send radio signals from and to a remote device.

[0547] Example 155 includes the apparatus of any of Examples 104-154, wherein the proximate smart device comprises an instruction set that that defines an "application", wherein the application when executed by a processor causes operations in the smart device that cause the smart device to emit an applied nearfield radio field and the device package to turn on when activated by a nearfield radio field.

[0548] Example 156 includes the system of any of Examples 1-155, wherein the radiowave energy harvester comprises a rectifier in electrical contact with an antenna, a capacitor, and a switch, the switch for discharging radiowave energy-induced capacitive charge through the sensor device, the display or the near-field communication radioset when the nearfield radio emission field is absent.

[0549] Example 157 includes the system of any of Examples 1-156, wherein the temperature sensor is an integrated circuit, the nearfield communications radioset is an integrated circuit, and the antenna is mounted on a flexible circuit backing.

[0550] Example 158 includes the system of any of Examples 1-157, further wherein the capacitor or battery comprises a switch, the switch for discharging electrical charge through the sensor device, the display, or the near-field communication radioset when the nearfield radio emission field is absent.

[0551] Example 159 includes the system of any of Examples 1-158, wherein the sensor is a silicon bandgap temperature sensor.

[0552] Example 160 includes the system of any of the preceding Examples, wherein the package is assembled in a patch or bandage for application to skin.

[0553] Example 161 includes the system of Example 160, wherein the device package comprises a flexible gel capsule that defines a top side and a bottom side, the top side comprises a radiolucent cover over the capsule, the bottom side is thermally conductive and comprises a backing with adhesive for application of the sensor patch to a surface in need of a temperature measurement.

[0554] Example 162 includes a patch sensor device, comprising: a processor with supporting circuitry and an instruction set, which when executed by the processor, cause the device to execute a sensor measurement; an antenna configured to resonate at an NFC frequency and generate an induced current; rectifier circuitry and NFC circuitry each concurrently coupled to the induced current, the rectifier circuitry configured to rectify the induced current into DC power for the electronic device and the NFC circuitry configured to demodulate any data on the induced current; and, a sensor, the sensor having a sensor output, wherein the sensor output is displayed as a color and pulse-coded LED having color variable according to the sensor output and the instruction set.

[0555] Example 163 includes the device of Example 162, wherein the instruction set comprises programmable rules and variables.

[0556] Example 164 includes a method for concurrent reception of wireless power and NFC, comprising: providing a device of any of Examples 162-163; receiving an induced current from the antenna; rectifying the induced current into DC power for use by the circuitry; demodulating the induced current concurrent with rectifying to determine any data for the device; making a sensor measurement when powered and processing an output from the sensor measurement to cause an RGB LED to display a color, a pulse sequence, or a combination thereof, wherein the color and/or pulse sequence are coded according to the sensor measurement output.