Meridian Digital Pulse Analyzer

Cardiovascular Testing

Meridian DPA TroubleShooting.

DPA Not Connecting to the Laptop

Leave the DPA switched on and connected. Make sure the front panel is illuminated, which shows the DPA is powered. Without touching the DPA or the connection to the laptop, close the software, the re-open the software. Sometimes this allows the software to reconnect to the machine.
 
If this does not work, then try closing the software, then remove the usb plug and plug in back in to a different USB port. Then re-open the software.
 
If this does not work, we recommend getting a USB printer cord from one of the printers in your office and changing out the USB cord that connected the DPA and the laptop. (DPA uses a standard printer cable to connect to the laptop).  If the printer cord being used to connect the laptop and the DPA is defective, you can buy a new one and replace it out. Purchase a standard printer USB cable.
 

Changing the Date and Time on the Machine.

When used with a laptop, the Meridian DPA will take the date and time from the laptop. 

However when used in stand alone mode, with no laptop the on-board date is changed using the dial. The dial can be used two ways. You can press it down, to turn on the menu and to make selections. You can also turn it left and right to scroll through options. Using the dial in this way you can change date and time settings on the device.

Recognition Rate and Invalid Test Results. On the Meridian DPA, The recognition rate is how many heart beats did the machine detect, and of those beats, how many could be interpreted. Since the machine runs a little more than a 1 minute test, the number of beats detected should be in the 60-80 range, and the number interpreted should be exactly the same. Example – 72/72 would be a perfect recognition rate. If a patient has cold hands, artificial nails, or some other reason that prevents the machine from reading the results, then the recognition rate might still show 100% of the beats were interpreted, but the number of beats will be impossibly low. For example recognition rate of 40/40 means that the heart beat only 40 times in a little over a minute. That is impossible, but the results comes about because something is preventing the machine from reading the results. Check closely for cold hands, artificial nails etc.

The other thing that can happen is when the number of heart beats is correct, but there is a low number recognized. For example 48/72. That means the heart beat 72 times but the machine was only able to recognize 48 of the heart beats. That could indicate arrhythmia that needs to be looked into more carefully.

Using the Thermal Printer:

The paper that comes with the machine is A4 size paper, which means it is 210mm wide (normal US paper is 215mm wide). If you would like to replace the paper with the exact type, then search for fax paper that is 210mm wide. This is available on Amazon. Some customers have reported that regular fax paper does work, but for the exact fit use 210mm wide paper.
 
Error Message – Invalid Use of Token
 
This happens when the database has been changed. To fix this error, click on the folder button called OPEN. Normally you should never click this, but one the database has been changed this is the way to correct the error. Once the OPEN button has been selected, you will see the computer directory. Navigate to C:DPAExpert/db  in the folder called db you will find a number of databases. Select the database call “Patient”. It should be the largest database, more than the normal 4KB that the other options show. That should cause all your patient information to propogate.