Rectangular and yellow-beige plastic, marked "CardioBeeper Pacer Monitor." Three buttons are located on the front of the monitor, respectively marked "Test," "Beep," and "ECG." On the upper right side of the CardioBeeper is a red light recessed into a red triangle, and just below is a green light recessed into a green square. On the back, there are two black electrodes attached to wires- One black wire is marked "left," and one white wire is marked "right." The battery pack cover is marked "Survival Technology Inc: Bethesda MD." The CardioBeeper is stored in a white cardboard box.
The CardioBeeper was Invented by Stanley J. Sarnoff, M.D. (1917-1990). His most recognized invention is the Epi-Pen. Sarnoff founded the Rodana Research Corporation and its successor Survival Technology Inc. The CardioBeeper is a product of Survival Technology, Inc, a subsidiary of Meridian Technologies, which itself is a subsidiary of Pfizer. Patented in 1976 and produced and manufactured during the 1980s, the CardioBeeper was used by patients to monitor their heart rate. As a battery powered, handheld device, the CardioBeeper could be used by patients to transmit their heart rate, rhythm, or ECG via a telephone to their doctor. The two electrodes are placed under the armpits of the patient, and the patient and physician stay in constant phone contact while the data is transmitted.
With a CardioBeeper, patients could monitor their heart rate and transmit their data via the telephone to their doctor. An inscription on the case of this this example reads “Survival Technology, Inc. Bethesda, Md.” This firm was established in 1964 by Stanley J. Sarnoff (1917-1990), a Harvard Medical School graduate who helped establish the Laboratory of Cardiology Physiology at the National Heart Institute in Bethesda. Dr. Sarnoff also founded the Rodana Research Corp. in 1958 and invented the Epi-Pen.
Ref: “Stanley J. Sarnoff, 72, Cardiologist and Inventor,” New York Times (May 25, 1990), p. D18.
“Stanley J. Sarnoff, Founder of Heart Research Lab, Dies,” Washington Post (May 25, 1990), p. C8.
“Survival Tech Gets a Shot in the Arm,” Washington Post (July 25, 1983), pp. WB1 and 32.
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