Nellcor

The creation of Dr. William NEw, Jack LLoyd and Jim CORenman, NELLCOR introduced the first clinically and commercially viable pulse oximeter in 1983, the now famous N-100, based on a technology originally developed in 1972, by Aoyagi at Nihon Kohden using the ratio of red to infrared light absorption of pulsating components at the measuring site and first commercialized by BIOX/Ohmeda in 1981. In 1987, Nellcor developed the N-200 with ECG C-Lock which could read through patient motion, although this technology was later ruled to have infringed on a competitor's patents.

The human body can withstand only a very brief period of insufficient oxygenation. A few minutes without air can result in death. Anesthesia, for all of its clinical benefits, can be a dangerous procedure because of the possibility of inadvertent asphyxiation. Pulse oximetry reduced this danger. Using non-invasive optical technology coupled with intuitive visual and audio alarms, the N-100 warned clinicians of impending ventilation disaster sufficiently ahead of time to allow for the correction of errors before patient safety was compromised. It brought about a new standard of care.

Nellcor went on to pioneer pulse oximetry beyond the anesthesia suite. Recently, using modern digital memory chips, Nellcor introduced sensors that the company claimed could read through motion and low perfusion with high accuracy that were later found to infringe on patents of rival oximetry manufacturer MASIMO Corporation.

In 2006, Nellcor settled a patent infringement lawsuit brought by Masimo, that claimed Nellcor infringed on Masimo patents, specifically in the technology's ability to read through motion and low perfusion. As a result of the settlement, Nellcor paid Masimo $265 million in 2006 for damages in addition to royalty payment of $65 million related to sales of Nellcor's new products during the remainder of calendar 2006. As of January 31, 2006, Nellcor can no longer ship its patent infringing pulse oximetry platform. Masimo granted Nellcor the right to sell Nellcor's new line of pulse oximetry products in exchange for an ongoing royalty.