A portable system for multiple parameters monitoring: Towards assessment of health conditions and stress level in the automotive field

Abstract

In this work, an electronic portable combo system able to synchronously acquire multiple signals, e.g. electrocardiographic (ECG), photoplethysmographic (PPG) and breathing waveforms, is presented. The realized system is also capable of showing in real time some physiological parameters which can be used for assessing health/stress status of the volunteer, such as heart rate and breathing frequency and their trends over time. Thanks to the use of non-invasive PPG probes, of batteries as power supply, and to the possibility to add in the future additional sensors to acquire other signals, the system could also be employed inside vehicles for assessing the status of the driver. Finally, the results of simultaneous acquisition of ECG and PPG signals are presented, also comparing, in terms of speed and accuracy, different algorithms to obtain the pulse-pulse interval for calculating the heart rate and the heart rate variability.