A multi-channel opto-electronic sensor to accurately monitor heart rate against motion artefact during exercise

This study presents the use of a multi-channel opto-electronic sensor (OEPS) to effectively monitor critical physiological parameters whilst preventing motion artefact as increasingly demanded by personal healthcare. The aim of this work was to study how to capture the heart rate (HR) efficiently through a well-constructed OEPS and a 3-axis accelerometer with wireless communication. A protocol was designed to incorporate sitting, standing, walking, running and cycling. The datasets collected from these activities were processed to elaborate sport physiological effects. t-test, Bland-Altman Agreement (BAA), and correlation to evaluate the performance of the OEPS were used against Polar and Mio-Alpha HR monitors. No differences in the HR were found between OEPS, and either Polar or Mio-Alpha (both p > 0.05); a strong correlation was found between Polar and OEPS (r: 0.96, p < 0.001); the bias of BAA 0.85 bpm, the standard deviation (SD) 9.20 bpm, and the limits of agreement (LOA) from −17.18 bpm to +18.88 bpm. For the Mio-Alpha and OEPS, a strong correlation was found (r: 0.96, p < 0.001); the bias of BAA 1.63 bpm, SD 8.62 bpm, LOA from −15.27 bpm to +18.58 bpm. These results demonstrate the OEPS to be capable of carrying out real time and remote monitoring of heart rate

Enhancement of absorption and resistance of motion utilizing a multi-channel opto-electronic sensor to effectively monitor physiological signs during sport exercise

This study presents an effective engineering approach for human vital signs monitoring as increasingly demanded by personal healthcare. The aim of this work is to study how to capture critical physiological parameters efficiently through a well-constructed electronic system and a robust multi-channel opto-electronic patch sensor (OEPS), together with a wireless communication. A unique design comprising multi-wavelength illumination sources and a rapid response photo sensor with a 3-axis accelerometer enables to recover pulsatile features, compensate motion and increase signal-to-noise ratio. An approved protocol with designated tests was implemented at Loughborough University a UK leader in sport and exercise assessment. The results of sport physiological effects were extracted from the datasets of physical movements, i.e. sitting, standing, waking, running and cycling. t-test, Bland-Altman and correlation analysis were applied to evaluate the performance of the OEPS system against Acti-Graph and Mio-Alpha.There was no difference in heart rate measured using OEPS and both Acti-Graph and Mio-Alpha (both p<0.05). Strong correlations were observed between HR measured from the OEPS and both the Acti-graph and Mio-Alpha (r = 0.96, p < 0.001). Bland-Altman analysis for the Acti-Graph and OEPS found the bias 0.85 bpm, the standard deviation 9.20 bpm, and the limits of agreement (LOA) -17.18 bpm to+18.88 bpm for lower and upper limits of agreement respectively, for the Mio-Alpha and OEPS the bias is 1.63 bpm, standard deviation SD8.62 bpm, lower and upper limits of agreement, - 15.27 bpm and +18.58 bpm respectively. The OEPS demonstrates a real time, robust and remote monitoring of cardiovascular function