A Novel Method of Measurement of Oxygen Saturation in Arterial Blood

Existing methods of pulse oximetry rely on a calibration curve for the estimation of oxygen saturation in arterial blood (SpO₂). A novel method of computation of SpO₂ that does not require the use of a calibration curve is presented in this paper. Based on a model proposed here for the propagation of light through skin, tissue, bone and blood, suitable processing steps are identified so that the analytical expression derived for the estimation of SpO₂ becomes free of patient and sensor dependent parameters. Experimental results presented herein establish the efficacy of the proposed method.