ECG Image Encoding for Analog-to-Digital Waveform Conversion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ECG recorders often output analog data that cannot be easily digitized or shared with ECG analysis tools, limiting their integration and accessibility for digital processing and evaluation.
Innovation Solution
An ECG digitizing system that processes scans of printed or displayed ECGs to generate digital files, utilizing optical character recognition, grid line identification, and machine learning techniques to encode ECG data into standard formats like DICOM, enabling integration with analysis tools.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If ECG recorders output analog data for visual display, then the ECG can be displayed and evaluated by physicians, but the data cannot be easily digitized or shared with ECG analysis tools
Solution Approach 1:
The system creates a digital copy of the analog ECG data by scanning the printed ECG image and using optical character recognition to extract the waveform data. This digital copy can then be shared and analyzed without affecting the original analog display capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary conversion system that bridges the analog ECG output and digital analysis tools. The system scans the analog ECG, identifies grid lines and waveform features, and converts them into digital format that can be processed by analysis software
2Adaptability or versatility
If ECG data is converted to digital format using scanning and recognition, then data sharing and analysis integration are enabled, but the conversion process complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The conversion process is divided into distinct segments: scanning the ECG image, identifying grid lines, detecting waveform features, and exporting to digital format. This segmentation allows each step to be optimized independently and simplifies the overall process
3Adaptability or versatility
If standard ECG encoding formats are used, then compatibility with analysis tools is improved, but the encoding process requires precise grid line identification and processing
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses feedback mechanisms to refine grid line identification and waveform detection. By analyzing the scanned image, identifying grid patterns, and adjusting the recognition algorithms based on detected features, the system improves accuracy in converting analog ECG to standard digital formats
Data Source
AI summary
A system for generating an encoding of a lead of electrocardiogram (ECG) represented as an ECG image. The system identifies a reference pulse of the ECG image having a reference width pixel count, a reference height pixel count, a reference time, and a reference voltage. The system identifies a baseline pixel-row of a plotline of the ECG image that contains a graph of the lead. The system encodes per-pixel timing information based on the reference time and the reference width pixel count. The system, for a plurality of pixel-columns, identifies a voltage pixel-row of that pixel-column that has an ECG value of the graph and encodes a voltage based on distance between the baseline pixel-row and the voltage pixel-row and based on the reference voltage and the reference height pixel count.