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ß Version - June 17, 2006
Duration: 01/09/2002 to 28/02/2005
Acknowledgement of the financial support of the European Commision
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Home Definition of Project ß Version Consortium Dissemination Partner Section

WEARABLE HEALTH CARE SYSTEM WEALTHY OBJECTIVES

3. Interface ß Version

Graphics and photos display the latest developments of WEALTHY.

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3.1. Elasticity of Garment

As it can be seen from Figure 1 and 2, the garment is elastic enough to fit the body shape, the conductive elements are all integrated in the textile to allow a perfect comfort during monitoring of signals.


Figure 1 shows the prototype model A, with electrodes and breathing sensors position, while Figure 2 shows the position of the movement sensors.

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3.2. Respiration Measurements

An alternative strategy to measure respiratory activity is the use of the impedance pneumography. In this case four electrodes are placed on thoracic position, as shown in Figure 3 (prototype B).

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3.2.1. The Impedance Pneumography

The two external ones are used to inject a high frequency current (50 kHz) and the other ones allow capturing the voltage variation caused by thoracic impedance change. The output signal is modulated by changes in the body impedance accompanying the respiratory cycle. The change in impedance corresponding to each respiratory cycle is of the order of 1-4 % of the base impedance. The relationship between impedance change ?Z and volume of air moved (?V) is approximately linear under most circumstances. Since the impedance changes are related to the volume of air moved, the method can be calibrated.

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3.3. Measurements of Core and Skin Temperature

Two non-textile microelectronic sensors (Figure 4) are used to gather core and skin temperature of the patient. The key specifications of these integrated circuits are temperature and accelerometer.

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3.3.1. Temperature

  • Accuracy: ±0.50°C (max)
  • Linearity ±0.5°C(max)
  • Resolution 0.0625°C
Several preliminary tests were performed relative to the choice of the location of the sensors for the skin temperature and the core temperature (location, insulation, ergonomic, robustness of measurements, etc.). These tests will be completed by the measurement on the WEALTHY prototype.

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3.4. Integration of sensors, electrodes and electrical wires

The potentiality of using textile facilities is linked to the implementation of functionalized fibers and yarns suitable to be used in the most sophisticated weaving machineries; the fineness, the composition, the mechano-elastic properties of yarns play a key role in this process. The final characteristics of the integrated textile structure are modulated by a series of factors, starting from the material, the combination of yarns, the textile process used, till to the final finishing step. An efficient, wearable, comfortable sensing system is the result of a balance among performance, number, position of the active elements, and lightness, comfort and conformability of the final cloth.

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3.5. Accelerometer

On the low abdomen (left side) is placed a 2D accelerometer in order to monitor body position (stand, supine, etc.). This accelerometer can measure both dynamic (e.g. vibration) and static acceleration (e.g. gravity). The measurement range is ±2g. The outputs are digital signals whose duty cycles (ratio of pulse width to period) are proportional to the acceleration in each of the 2 sensitive axes.

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3.6. Communication System

This chart illustrates the data flow.

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3.6.1. Mobile data media



A small portable electronic device includes all the electronics for the conditioning and acquisition of the sensors signals. Local pre-processing capabilities allow to extract some key parameters and so to reduce the amount of data to transmit. Data is transmitted in quasi real-time to the remote medical center using a GPRS link over the standard GSM infrastructure, allowing usage of the garment almost everywhere. The latest version of this Portable Patient Unit (shown on the right of the image) has a targeted weight of less than 250g, a size of 110mm x 70mm x 25mm and can so fit in a pocket of the garment. User interface has been kept as simple as possible and consists of some visual indicators, a button and a buzzer .

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3.7. Monitoring System

The WEALTHY Central Monitoring System is a software module interpreting physical sensor data received from the Portable Patient Unit (PPU) and representing them in simple, graphical forms.
The Central Monitoring System performs the following tasks:
  • Coordinates and controls the data flow between the different actors.
  • Collects and stores the data transmitted by the sensors integrated in the WEALTHY garment through the PPU.
  • Continuously monitors vital health parameters of the patients.
  • Generates alerts to inform doctors for critical health situations.
  • Gives access to the central database to doctors and other health professionals.
  • Presents to the qualified users the health situation of patients using different user-friendly interfaces.

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Last Updated June 17, 2006