Non-contact detection of human heartbeat based on measurement of current generated by electrostatic induction

In this study, we developed an effective non-contact technique of human electrocardiography by using wireless portable sensor. The electrocardiograph is obtained by the time derivative of the electrostatic induction current generated at an electrode placed a few centimeters away from the subject´s chest. We propose a detection principle for the electrocardiograph by considering the electrostatic induction current generated by variations in the electrical potential resulting from the instantaneous electric charge on the body´s surface. Furthermore, we obtained waveforms of the numerical time derivative of the electrostatic induction current generated due to heart´s electrical activity. Moreover, waveforms of the conventional ECG signal and the time derivative of the electrostatic induction currents were considerably similar. This confirms that we can detect the waveform similar to the electrocardiograph under non-contact conditions.