Validation of heart rate extraction using video imaging on a built-in camera system of a smartphone

Abstract

As a smartphone is becoming very popular and its performance is being improved fast, a smartphone shows its potential as a low-cost physiological measurement solution which is accurate and can be used beyond the clinical environment. Because cardiac pulse leads the subtle color change of a skin, a pulsatile signal which can be described as photoplethysmographic (PPG) signal can be measured through recording facial video using a digital camera. In this paper, we explore the potential that the reliable heart rate can be measured remotely by the facial video recorded using smartphone camera. First, using the front facing-camera of a smartphone, facial video was recorded. We detected facial region on the image of each frame using face detection, and yielded the raw trace signal from the green channel of the image. To extract more accurate cardiac pulse signal, we applied independent component analysis (ICA) to the raw trace signal. The heart rate was extracted using frequency analysis of the raw trace signal and the analyzed signal from ICA. The accuracy of the estimated heart rate was evaluated by comparing with the heart rate from reference electrocardiogram (ECG) signal. Finally, we developed FaceBEAT, an iPhone application for remote heart rate measurement, based on this study.

Use of Machine Leaning Classifiers and Sensor Data to Detect Neurological Deficit in Stroke Patients

“…The use of mobile phones or general activity trackers elaborated the high accessibility of users. Recent studies demonstrated the validity of using accelerometer in iPhone for the physical activity monitoring [28], the extraction of heart rate [35], and applications for Parkinson and Holmes tremor [36]. …”

Non-contact measurement of emotional and physiological changes in heart rate from a webcam

“…More recently, a number of studies performed in biomedical engineering laboratories have demonstrated the feasibility of non-contact measuring of HR with a webcam (i.e., a digital video camera that streams its images to a computer). Poh et al (2010) demonstrated the validity of HR measurements from a webcam by comparing them with measurements obtained at the same time from (but not time synchronized with) a blood pulse oximetry sensor (also see Kwon et al, 2012; Poh et al, 2011a). Subsequent studies have used webcams to study changes in HR due to exercise (Sun et al, 2011, 2012) and the development of devices designed to aid with health monitoring (Poh et al, 2011b; Verkruysse et al, 2008).…”

Non-Contact Photoplethysmogram and Instantaneous Heart Rate Estimation from Infrared Face Video

“…This principle motivated the use of digital cameras to measure the plethysmographic signals from face videos under ambient light conditions [4][5][6]. Several methodologies for estimating heart rate from face videos have been developed over the years [7][8][9][10][11][12]. In particular, [13] provides a comprehensive overview of the history of the research done in this area and compares the performance of some of these approaches.…”