Design of a wireless footswitch for medical applications

A wireless communication system was designed to replace the umbilical wiring of the footswitch of the UroView™ system manufactured by GE Healthcare®. This wireless system consists of a transmitter and a receiver that allows the user to operate the footswitch at a distance less than 20 yards, and through 4 inches of lead. The device complies with UL 60601-1 international standards. The Microchip® rfPIC12F675K™ was selected for transmission, and the Microchip® rfRXDO420™ was selected for reception. Using Keeloq® technology, the system is capable of secure transmission that helps to eliminate any false triggering of the UroView™ device. The communication system was included into the existing hardware of the UroView™ using Altera® Field Programmable Gate Arrays, that were programmed using Verilog design technology. The fully functioning wireless footswitch can be used to control the GE UroView™ system and can also act as a stepping stone to help convert other GE Healthcare® devices to communicate wirelessly in the future.