Seat to beat: Novel capacitive ECG integration for in-car cardiovascular measurement

Abstract

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are a leading cause of global mortality, responsible for approximately one in five deaths. In response to these concerning statistics, there is a growing need for innovative solutions enabling cardiac monitoring beyond medical facilities. This paper demonstrates the fabrication and development of a novel system designed to be integrated into passenger car seats, facilitating continuous monitoring of passengers’ cardiac activity. The system comprises a capacitive electrode prototype, a custom-designed analog signal processing circuit, and a computing unit. Two ultrathin capacitive electrodes were fabricated with a diameter of 56.42 mm protected by a guard layer to reduce noise. The amplification circuitry was comprised of operational amplifiers tasked with filtering and conditioning the electrocardiogram (ECG) signal. Heart rates calculated from our measurements were comparable with clinical ECG. The experimental setup underwent testing on human subjects while they were in a state of tranquil sitting within passenger cars and also in laboratory conditions. The proposed system offers the flexibility for single and dual power supplies in full capacitive or hybrid mode. Our experimental results confirm the system’s feasibility and its capability to record high-quality signals from weak biopotentials, highlighting its potential for real-world applications.