Heart Rate Monitor
Microwaves could replace electrodes for monitoring vital signs
In the not-so-distant future, patients having their heart rate or other vital signs monitored may not have to be wired up with electrodes. Scientists Atsushi Mase and Daisuke Nagae, at Kyushu University in Japan, have developed a method of remotely measuring such data using microwaves. This means that people would be free to move around as they were being monitored, or in some applications, would not even know that it was happening. Read More
Technology is delivering a array of health monitoring systems that can record a person’s blood pressure or perform an ECG on the go. Now researchers have turned their attention to monitoring cardiac pressure, an indicator of heart problems that can normally only be measured using an invasive procedure known as a coronary angiography. Read More
Six years ago, America’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) developed miniature sensors that each utilized about 100 billion rubidium atoms in gas form, a low-power infrared laser and optics to detect tiny magnetic fields. Until recently the sensors had been used almost exclusively for physics research, but now NIST has teamed up with the National Metrology Institute of Germany to successfully use one of the mini-sensors to track a human heartbeat – an accomplishment which could have medical applications down the road. Read More
Gone are the days when we simply used our mobile phones for calling people – now we can conduct our own ECGs. We’ve already seen iPhone and Android applications that can create ultrasound images and that measure air pollution. Now tech companies IMEC and the Holst Center, together with TASS software professionals, have released a new heart rate monitoring application. Read More
Sitting in front of your computer could soon be the fastest way to receive a medical check up, replacing visits to the local doctor. Massachusetts Institute of Technology student Ming-Zher Poh has created a pulse-monitoring system that works on a low-cost, low-resolution webcam. A version of the system built into a mirror has been developed which displays pulse rate at the bottom in real-time, and work is underway to add respiration and blood-oxygen level monitoring using the same technique. Read More
If you're a professional distance cyclist or even a dedicated off-road pleasure rider and you need an edge over your competitors or friends, then Garmin's new GPS navigator for cyclists could be just up your street. Weighing just 2oz, the low profile Edge 500 has an easy-fit bike mount and can assist with training by tracking a rider's distance, speed, location, elevation and can even wirelessly monitor pedal strokes per minute and heart rate. Read More
Elite athletes know that training smarter is much better than training harder, and to do that you need to know exactly what's happening in your body. Suunto has introduced its new Triathlon collection heart rate monitors which measure the time interval between heartbeats and its variations to produce seven different body parameters as well as analyze these readings to provide the information needed to maximize their training efforts. Read More
We have already professed our love for the Finis Swimmers Snorkel, eulogized about the antidote to lap-grinding boredom known as the bone-conduction SwiMP3 underwater music player and now we're gonna do it all over again for the USD$140 AquaPulse heart rate monitor, a workout accessory for swimmers wishing to optimize their water-based exercise routine through heart rate training. Are we just raging fanboys? No, we do however rejoice in the logical and practical application of technology to enable new and better ways of doing things, and Finis will again deliver just that (in May). Read More
