Remote Vital Sign Monitoring With Vehicle Vibration Compensation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing vital sign monitoring technologies face challenges in providing accurate data in vehicle environments due to vibrations, which are not effectively addressed by contact-based or contactless methods, leading to discomfort and unreliable readings.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing a movement sensor positioned remotely within a vehicle to generate movement data for a selected body location, processed by a machine learning system, such as a neural network, to remove noise and accurately identify vital signs like heart rate or respiration rate, without requiring contact with the user.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If contact-based sensors are used to monitor vital signs, then measurement precision is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to discomfort and cumbersomeness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces contact-based mechanical sensors (photoplethysmography sensors, ECG electrodes, respiration belts) with a contactless optical system using a laser vibrometer to measure skin displacement for determining heart rate and respiration rate, thereby maintaining measurement precision while eliminating user discomfort
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary processing system that includes a vibration sensor to detect vehicle vibrations and a processor that compensates for these vibrations in the skin displacement measurements, enabling accurate contactless vital sign monitoring in the vibrating vehicle environment
2Ease of operation
If contactless technologies like laser vibrometers are used, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to vulnerability to vehicle vibrations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary vibration compensation system that uses a vibration sensor to detect vehicle vibrations and a processor to compensate for these vibrations in the skin displacement measurements, thereby maintaining reliability despite the contactless approach
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where vibration data from the vibration sensor is continuously fed back to the processor, which uses this information to dynamically compensate for vibration effects on the skin displacement measurements, ensuring reliable vital sign detection
3Reliability
If vibration compensation mechanisms are added to contactless systems, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent integrates multiple functions into a single processing unit that performs both vibration detection and vibration compensation, as well as skin displacement measurement and vital sign calculation, thereby improving reliability while minimizing the increase in device complexity
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
Enables comfortable and accurate remote monitoring of vital signs in a vehicle environment, providing reliable data that can inform medical actions or fitness tracking, with a desired level of accuracy greater than or equal to 90%.
Implementation Method 1
a laser vibrometer may be used to measure skin displacement in the sub-millimeter (sub-mm) range for use in determining heart rate based on chest expansion
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatuses and methods for monitoring vital signs. Movement data for a selected body location of a person in a vehicle is generated using a movement sensor positioned remotely with respect to the person. Input data is formed for a machine learning system using the movement data. The input data is processed using the machine learning system to remove noise from the input data and generate a target output that identifies a vital sign of the person.