Real-time low cost infrared vein imaging system

Vein detection is one of the latest biomedical techniques researched today. While the concept behind the method is simple, there are various challenges to be found throughout the design and implementation of a device concerning the lighting system and the image processing algorithms at a very low price. While a very few devices based on the infrared technique have been implemented, there still exists a strong need to develop such medical devices. The major problem faced by the doctors today is difficulty in accessing veins for intra-venous drug delivery. With improper detection of veins, several problems like bruises, rashes, blood clot etc. occur. Therefore a non-invasive subcutaneous vein detection system has been developed success-fully based on near infrared imaging and interfaced to a laptop. A customized webcam is used for capturing the vein images and Computer Vision is used for the processing. The pilot study details are also provided in this paper. This also has application in treatment of varicose veins, deep vein thrombosis and vascular ailments. The two key characteristics of this device discussed in the paper are portability and low cost.