Design of a Low-cost Physiological Parameter Measurement and Monitoring Device

Abstract

In this paper we present the design of a low-cost system that can be used to monitor physiological parameters, such as temperature and heart rate, ofa human subject. The system consists of an electronic device which is worn on the wrist andfinger, by an elderly or at-risk person. Using several sensors to measure different vital signs, the person is wirelessly monitored within his own home. An impact sensor has been used to detectfalls. The device detects if a person is medically distressed and sends an alarm to a receiver unit that is connected to a computer. This sets offan alarm, allowing help to be provided to the patient. The device is battery poweredfor use indoors. The device can be easily adapted to monitor athletes and infants. The low cost ofthe device will help to lower the cost of home monitoring ofpatients recoveringfrom illness. A prototype of the device has beenfabricated and extensively tested with very good results.

Wearable Sensors for Human Activity Monitoring: A Review

“…Issues such as user acceptance, reduction of motion artifact, low power design, on-node processing, and distributed interference in wireless networks still need to be addressed to enhance the usability and functions of these devices for practical use. The challenges for design, development and fabrication of sensors for monitoring continuous activities in a home environment for determination of wellness of elderly are reported [74]- [88]. The enormous amount of data obtained from the sensors put a huge burden on the system in terms of storage, analysis and future use.…”

Sensing Technologies for Intelligent Environments: A Review

“…Usually there is no one to help during fall. The monitoring system based on impact sensor is very useful to detect fall of elderly person [55]. The system in [59] measures the physiological parameters and other additional parameter such as fall detection by accelerometer and position recognition by PIR sensor.…”

Wireless Sensors for Home Monitoring - A Review

“…Fig. (1) shows the block diagram of a wireless sensor network for monitoring of electrical appliances in a home [1,2]. The sensing units (SUs) not only have the necessary transducers to monitor an electrical device, they also house the RF transceiver modules to communicate with the central controller unit (CCU).…”