QRS Diagnostic Secures International Approvals on Key Patent
QRS Extends Patents on the Design of Medical Devices in PC Cards
MINNEAPOLIS – September 26, 2002 – QRS Diagnostic, leader in innovative design and development of software-based medical devices, announces that the first of its two patents on the design of medical devices contained entirely in computer cards, such as PCMCIA PC Cards and Compact Flash (CF) Cards, has been approved in Canada, Mexico, Australia, and China. The international approvals apply to Patent No. 5,827,179, filed on February 17, 1997 and approved by the United States Patent and Trademark Office on October 27, 1998. Additional approvals are pending in Europe, Japan, South Korea, and Israel.
On December 12, 2000, QRS also received Patent No. 6,159,147, a continuation-in-part of the October 1998 patent. Approvals of the second patent are now pending in Canada, Mexico, Europe, Australia, and China.
"With our patented technology, QRS encodes the intelligence of physiological data acquisition and analysis into PC Cards," says Patrick Lichter, chief technology officer, QRS. "QRS PC Cards, with integrated sensors, slide right into the PC Card drives of desktop, laptop and Pocket PCs, like the Compaq iPAQ(TM). This makes off-the-shelf computers work as fully functioning medical devices, and thats the key to the mobility and affordability of our devices."
"Extending our patents internationally strengthens our intellectual property rights," says Bradley Sorenson, president and chief operations officer, QRS. "The allowed claims on QRS patents cover our existing spirometry, pulse oximetry, and electrcardiography PC Card devices, our forthcoming blood pressure and vital signs cards, as well as a wide variety of other physiological sensing parameters and procedures."
In addition, QRS recently announced that it has entered into a strategic alliance with Dolphin Medical, Inc. (www.dolphinmedical.com), a subsidiary of OSI Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: OSIS), Hawthorne, Calif. The agreement with OSI validates QRS patents on the design of medical devices in computer cards and enables Dolphin to license the QRS patents for use in certain markets.
About QRS Diagnostic
Founded in 1994, QRS Diagnostic, Plymouth, Minn., uses innovative software technology to design and develop FDA-approved medical devices that simplify and reduce the costs of diagnostic testing and patient monitoring. With our patented PC Card technology platform, QRS turns standard desktop, laptop and Pocket PCs into modular, upgradeable medical devices and streamlines the collection and communication of precise physiological data. We enable primary care physicians to cost-effectively practice high-tech medicine while delivering the accuracy that specialists and hospitals demand. The affordability, durability and mobility of QRS devices also advance diagnostic testing and patient monitoring for disease management, home healthcare and personal health management. For more information on QRS, please visit www.QRSdiagnostic.com.
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Note to Editors: PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association) is an international standards body and trade association founded in 1989 to establish standards for integrated circuit cards and to promote interchangeability among mobile computers. QRS executives are available for interview, and an updated QRS corporate backgrounder is available to the media upon request.
QRS Diagnostic Media Contacts:
David Aquilina
Communications Consultant
612-922-5551
davidaquilina@msn.com
Amy Ptak
Marketing Manager
763-559-8492, ext. 949
amyp@QRSdiagnostic.com
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