Non-contact Thermal Imaging Respiratory Monitoring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current respiratory status examination and sleep disorder treatment methods are inaccurate and uncomfortable for patients, leading to poor sleep quality due to obstruction and discomfort during examination and treatment.
Innovation Solution
A respiratory status monitoring apparatus using near-infrared or infrared cameras to capture thermal images, combined with motion sensors, to determine respiratory status non-invasively, and a sleep disorder control device that adjusts mandibular advancement based on biometric and sleep satisfaction data to improve sleep quality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional contact-type examination methods are used, then measurement precision may be improved, but patient discomfort increases and reliability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces contact-type mechanical examination methods with non-contact thermal imaging technology. The thermal image acquisition unit captures temperature distribution patterns of the patient's body surface without physical contact, thereby maintaining measurement precision while eliminating patient discomfort and obstruction issues associated with conventional contact methods
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces thermal radiation as an intermediary medium to obtain respiratory status information. By detecting the thermal radiation pattern from the patient's body surface, the system can determine respiratory status without direct contact, thus resolving the contradiction between measurement accuracy and patient comfort
2Reliability
If mandibular advancement is increased to treat sleep apnea, then treatment effectiveness improves, but patient arousal increases and sleep quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic adjustment of mandibular advancement degree based on real-time respiratory status monitoring. The system continuously monitors the patient's respiratory state during sleep and dynamically adjusts the mandibular advancement level to maintain optimal treatment effectiveness while minimizing patient arousal and preserving sleep quality
Solution Approach 2:
The patent establishes a feedback control loop where respiratory status information is continuously fed back to adjust mandibular advancement settings. This feedback mechanism enables the system to optimize treatment effectiveness by adjusting the advancement degree according to the patient's actual respiratory needs, thereby reducing unnecessary arousal
3Measurement precision
If more learning data is collected to improve AI model accuracy, then measurement precision improves, but examination time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential thermal radiation pattern features from the thermal images for AI analysis, rather than processing complete raw thermal image data. This extraction of key characteristic information maintains high reading accuracy while significantly reducing the computational time required for AI model processing
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses pre-trained AI models with previously collected learning data to perform rapid analysis during actual examinations. The model has already learned from extensive training data, enabling it to provide accurate respiratory status readings during clinical use without requiring time-consuming real-time data collection and processing
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
The solution provides precise and comfortable respiratory status monitoring and effective sleep disorder treatment by reducing discomfort and improving sleep quality through non-contact thermal imaging and data-driven mandibular adjustment.
Implementation Method 1
at least one image capturing unit which is movably arranged to adjust a distance with respect to a subject and is configured to obtain a thermal image by photographing the subject
Data Source
AI summary
A respiratory status examination apparatus and method, and a sleep disorder control device and method are proposed. The apparatus may include at least one image capturing unit that is movably arranged to adjust a distance with respect to a subject and configured to obtain a thermal image by photographing the subject. The apparatus may also include a motion sensor unit configured to detect a motion of the subject to generate motion information, and a temperature information extracting unit configured to specify at least one examination region from the thermal image obtained by the image capturing unit and extract temperature information from the examination region. The apparatus may further include a respiratory status examining unit configured to determine a respiratory status of the subject based on the temperature information extracted by the temperature information extracting unit and the motion information generated by the motion sensor unit.