Hi, I'm new to the world of Arduino (though, I do have programming and electronics experience!) and need some guidance on a remote heart rate monitoring system I'd like to create.
Here's the problem I'm facing:
A friend of mine has recently developed a whole host of rare health issues, and is having a hard time sleeping by her self. She fears she will stop breathing while she is asleep, and wont be able to call 911 in time. So, I thought to myself, why not build a heart rate monitor that she can wear at night, which will alert me if her heart rate drops below a certain threshold?
I have written up some ideas (see below) on how to go about this, but I'd like to get some advice / input / feedback from some seasoned professionals (or non-seasoned)! Am I going about this the right way? What hardware should I use? Is there anything I'm missing, concept-wise?
# Arduino Remote Heart Rate Monitor
## Concept
To design a wearable heart rate monitor that will alert specific individuals if the wearer's heart rate goes below or above a pre-defined threshold. It should also allow for remote monitoring of the wearers pulse at any given time.
## Design Parameters and Considerations
- Must be comfortable enough to wear overnight
- Must be light weight
- Must be able to withstand being slept on, and rolled around on
- Battery must be able to last overnight (the longer the better), and ideally should be rechargable
- Ideally, it should be able to differentiate between no pulse, and being disconnected from the wearer
- Must be able to reliably send data to a remote server
## Current Idea
- Pulse sensor straps to finger
- Pulse sensor connects to a miniature arduino affixed to a wrist strap
- Mini Arduino wirelessly broadcasts a signal to either:
- An arduino with ethernet capabilities, if broadcast range will allow (approx. 15 ft)
- An arduino with wifi capabilities, if broadcast range is too short
- Receiving arduino connects to a remote server:
- Every 10 minutes and sends an average BPM
- Every time the BPM goes above or below threshold
- Every 10 seconds, for 10 minutes, after the threshold has been crossed
- Remote server will:
- Log average BPM
- Display BPM graph to users who log in
- Alert pre-defined individuals if the BPM threshold has been crossed via text message, or push notification
## Concerns and Questions
- Accuracy of BPM information
- Reliability and latency of text messages, or push notifications
- Are there better ways to determine if someone has stopped breathing?
- Accelerometer?
## Technologies
- Pulse Sensor
- Arduino pulse sensor
- Pushing Box
- Can send push notifications to phone
- TelAPI
- Can send text messages
- cosm
- Data logging