Medical Cyber-Physical Systems

Abstract

Summary form only given. We discuss current trends in the development and use of high-confidence medical cyber-physical systems (MCPS). These trends, including increased reliance on software to deliver new functionality, wider use of network connectivity in MCPS, and demand for continuous patient monitoring, bring new challenges into the process of MCPS development and at the same time create new opportunities for research and development. We use several recent and on-going projects to illustrate the diverse challenges presented by MCPS design and highlight possible future research directions. The projects address a wide range of problems, representative of the diverse MCPS area. Design of high-confidence software for individual medical devices, such as infusion pumps and vital sign monitors, is an important pre-requisite for building larger systems. Interoperability of medical devices is another requirement. It should be based on precisely specified information exchange protocols and trusted middleware. In order to reason about safety of medical devices systems constructed using these two building blocks, we also need to specify clinical scenarios in which the system is going to be used. Evidence-based certification of safety-critical devices is critical for the regulatory approval of complex MCPS. Finally, modeling of patient physiology and decision-making based on the monitoring of multiple vital sign streams are the basis for physiological closed-loop control systems that require tying together all aspects of MCPS design described above.