An Ear-Worn Vital Signs Monitor

Author

Da He, David ; Winokur, Eric S. ; Sodini, Charles G.

Volume

62

Issue

11

fYear

2015

Firstpage

2547

Lastpage

2552

Abstract

This paper presents a wearable vital signs monitor at the ear. The monitor measures the electrocardiogram (ECG), ballistocardiogram (BCG), and photoplethysmogram (PPG) to obtain pre-ejection period (PEP), stroke volume (SV), cardiac output (CO), and pulse transit time (PTT). The ear is demonstrated as a natural anchoring point for the integrated sensing of physiological signals. All three signals measured can be used to obtain heart rate (HR). Combining the ECG and BCG allows for the estimation of the PEP, while combining the BCG and PPG allows for the measurement of PTT. Additionally, the J-wave amplitude of the BCG is correlated with the SV and, when combined with HR, yields CO. Results from a clinical human study on 13 subjects demonstrate this proof-of-concept device.

Keywords

blood pressure measurement; ear; electrocardiography; photoplethysmography; J-wave amplitude; ballistocardiogram; cardiac output; ear; electrocardiogram; heart rate; photoplethysmogram; preejection period; pulse transit time; stroke volume; wearable vital signs monitor; Biomedical monitoring; Ear; Electrocardiography; Heart rate; Monitoring; Ballistocardiogram (BCG); ballistocardiogram; blood pressure; cardiac output; cardiac output (CO); continuous monitoring; electrocardiogram; electrocardiogram (ECG); heart rate; heart rate (HR); photoplethysmogram; photoplethysmogram (PPG); pre-ejection period; pre-ejection period (PEP); pulse transit time; pulse transit time (PTT); stroke volume; stroke volume (SV);

fLanguage

English

Journal_Title

Biomedical Engineering, IEEE Transactions on

Publisher

ieee

ISSN

0018-9294

Type

jour

DOI

10.1109/TBME.2015.2459061

Filename

7163528