1. jfieb, Today at 4:16 PMEditDeleteReport

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   jfiebMember

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   this part is very interesting to read
   
   
   
   
   
   Philips developed unobtrusive technology for continuous heart rate and activity monitoring
   
   
   Philips has developed a breakthrough technology that can measure heart rate and activity reliably, continuously and unobtrusively at any place on the body. It has been developed and tested for use in a consumer setting, but now the company is looking at potential applications further afield – in the wellness and healthcare domain. Such technology can be used in various other application or product domains like sports, gaming, protective wear, civil services and jobs including hazard. The latter domains can potentially be explored in partnership. In fact, the first release of the Philips technology is integrated in the recently introduced Mio Alpha sports watch. 
   
   Comfortable heart rate and activity monitoring 
   Philips has developed a breakthrough innovative technology that can measure heart rate and activity continuously and unobtrusively – without the need of a chest strap or glued electrodes.
   It was developed and tested in a consumer setting and it is capable of measuring heart rate and activity any place on the body as long as in stable contact with the skin. Compact and lightweight, the technology is low-cost and does not need calibration or user actions before use.
   
   How does it work?
   The technology consists of a sensing unit, which can be incorporated into a watch, band, clothing or other embodiment which can ensure stable contact with the skin during the use. It essentially combines two sensors (one to sense the heart signals and one to sense the motion) and an advanced algorithm that uses both data streams to extract a heart rate reading by compensating for distortions due to movement.
   
   

   • - “Seeing” the heart signals
     To detect the heart-related signals, two tiny green LEDs embedded in the back of the sensing unit shine through the skin onto the blood vessels just below the surface. At the same time, a small light sensor registers exactly how much light from the LEDs is reflected by the blood vessels. The darker the veins, the less light is reflected. The veins darken briefly with each surge of blood caused by the heartbeat. The sensor continuously measures exactly how much light it receives, and all variations are amplified, digitized and processed to produce a clear heart-signal reading.
     
   • - Compensating for movement
     The technology on its own would provide an accurate reading – but only if the patient stays still. This is because movements of blood due to major body movements can be far greater than the regular pulses detected for the heart rate measurement. To solve this problem, Philips’ researchers introduced a motion sensor. The motion data is then fed into specially developed software, which combines the information from both sensors to filter out motion artifacts and produce an accurate and reliable heart rate measurement.
     Robust – and affordable
     Philips developed this combination of light-sensing and motion detection for a heart rate monitor aimed at consumers (mainly athletes or healthy people wanting to keep fit). “We’ve thoroughly tested the accuracy of the technology for various sport activities, like running and cycling,” says Giuseppe Coppola, Sr. Director Emerging Business and Strategic Partnership at Philips Research. “The high sensitivity of the electronics and the advanced software give us a solid basis to cope also with other movements, like most normal household movements. What’s more, because it was designed as a consumer product, it can easily be produced in commercial quantities and at a competitive price.”
     
     
     
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       Other uses?
       The unobtrusive heart rate monitoring technology has been integrated in the Alpha sports watch, brought to the market by Mio in Jan 2013. This novel product has been honored soon after launch with the CES Innovations 2013 Design And Engineering Award and the ISPO 2013 Performance Product of the Year.
       
       Philips is currently refining the present technology and exploring ways this could be usefully extended to other contexts. “There are significant opportunities out there,” says Giuseppe, “for example, for monitoring cardio-respiratory and activity related parameters across the whole spectrum of Personal Health applications, in remote or home healthcare, wellness, as well as other application or product domains such as sports, gaming, protective wear, civil services and jobs including hazard.”