Method and apparatus for measuring heart rate
AssigneePolar Electro Oy
InventorManne Hannula
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An arrangement for detecting a heart beat and calculating heart rate on the basis of the detected heart beats, comprising means for measuring an EKG signal from a person's hands, a computer for detecting a heart beat from the measured signal and for performing a rationality analysis to verify a heart beat detection and for calculating the heart rate on the basis of the detected heart beats, the arrangement further comprising means for displaying the calculated heart rate and connected to the computer.
Claims22
A method for detecting a heart beat and calculating heart rate on the basis of the detected heart beats, the method comprising:
- forming an EKG signal on the basis of signals measured from the skin of a person,
- detecting from the EKG signal a heart beat candidate to which a rationality analysis is performed, in which rationality analysis:
- the time difference between the heart beat candidate and the heart beat detection preceding it is calculated and on the basis of the time difference, a momentary heart rate value is calculated,
- the calculated momentary heart rate value is compared with a median value of the heart rate, which is a median of two or more earlier heart rate values,
- the heart beat candidate is accepted as a heart beat detection, if the momentary heart rate value calculated on the basis of the heart beat candidate is, when compared with the median value, within threshold values of the median value, and
- updating as the heart rate value the momentary heart rate value calculated on the basis of the accepted heart beat detection.
An arrangement for detecting a heart beat and calculating heart rate on the basis of the detected heart beats, comprising:
- at least one measuring electrode for measuring a signal from the skin of one hand of a person, and at least one measuring electrode for measuring a signal from the skin of the other hand,
- an amplifier connected to said measuring electrodes for amplifying the potential difference of the signals measured by the measuring electrodes for the purpose of forming an EKG signal,
- an analog-to-digital converter for receiving the signal from the amplifier and for converting the signal into digital format to be a sample signal containing samples, and
- a computer which is arranged:
- to read the digital signal and to detect from the sample signal a heart beat candidate,
- to perform a rationality analysis for the heart beat detection, in which the computer is arranged:
- to calculate a time difference between the heart beat candidate and the heart beat detection preceding it, and to calculate on the basis of the time difference, a momentary heart rate value,
- to compare the calculated momentary heart rate value with a median value of the heart rate, which is a median of two or more earlier calculated heart rate values,
- to accept the heart beat candidate as a heart beat detection, if the momentary heart rate value calculated on the basis of the heart beat candidate is, when compared with the median value, within threshold values of the median value, and
- to update as the heart rate value the momentary heart rate value calculated on the basis of the accepted heart beat detection,
- the arrangement further comprising display means connected to the computer and displaying the calculated heart rate value on the basis of the accepted heart beat detections.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.