PPG Data Quality Filtering for Health Marker Accuracy

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Solution Overview

Problem

Portable devices equipped with photoplethysmogram (PPG) sensors face challenges in accurately determining health markers due to noise sensitivity, particularly from motion artifacts, which renders the data unusable and limits their effectiveness in monitoring user health.

Innovation Solution

A method and device that assess the quality of PPG data segments, filter and correct them based on periodicity estimates, and validate health markers using prior determinations to ensure accuracy, thereby discarding low-quality data and providing notifications for improved data quality.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If PPG sensor is used in portable devices to monitor user health, then health monitoring capability is improved, but data reliability deteriorates due to noise sensitivity and motion artifacts

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvehealth monitoring capabilityVSAvoiddata reliability
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary quality assessment on PPG data segments before processing them for health marker determination. By evaluating data quality in advance and identifying segments with motion artifacts or noise, the system can selectively process only high-quality data, thereby preventing unreliable data from compromising health monitoring results

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system introduces an intermediary quality assessment mechanism between the PPG sensor and health marker determination. This intermediary layer evaluates data quality metrics and filters out contaminated segments, acting as a mediator that protects the health monitoring function from noisy input data while preserving the overall system capability

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Ease of operation

If motion artifacts are present in PPG data, then ease of operation is improved (portable device can move freely), but measurement precision deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedevice mobilityVSAvoidPPG data precision
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system converts the harmful effect of motion artifacts into a beneficial filtering opportunity. By detecting motion artifacts through quality assessment, the system identifies and removes contaminated segments, transforming what would be unusable noisy data into a signal for improving measurement precision through selective processing of clean segments

Inventive Principle:
Principle #22Blessing in disguise (Convert harm into benefit)

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

This approach enhances the accuracy of health marker determination by filtering out noise and motion artifacts, leading to more reliable health monitoring and management of conditions like diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases.

Implementation Method 1

A PPG sensor is an optical sensor that is capable of generating a volumetric measurement of an organ. For example, a PPG sensor is capable of measuring the modulation of blood flow within a human body in response to the beat-to-beat ejection of blood by the heart into the aorta.

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectPhotoplethysmography: Absorption (EM radiation)

Data Source

PatentEP3570736B1Determining health markers using portable devices
Publication Date: 2024.05.08 SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO LTD
  • EP3570736B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3570736B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3570736B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4

AI summary

Processing PPG data using a device can include determining a quality estimate for a segment of PPG data and, in response to determining that the quality estimate exceeds a quality threshold, filtering the segment of the PPG data based upon an estimate of periodicity of the segment of the PPG data. A health marker can be determined for the segment of PPG data. The health marker can be validated based upon a prior determination of the health marker from PPG data. In response to the validation, the health marker can be output.