This paper introduces a novel respiratory detection system based on diaphragm wall motion tracking using an embedded ultrasound sensory system. We assess the utility and accuracy of this method in evaluating the function of the diaphragm and its contribution to respiratory workload. The developed system is able to monitor the diaphragm wall activity when the sensor is placed in the zone of apposition (ZOA). This system allows for direct measurements with only one ultrasound PZT5 piezo transducer. The system generates pulsed ultrasound waves at 2.2 MHz and amplifies reflected echoes. An added benefit of this system is that due to its design, the respiratory signal is less subject to motion artefacts. Promising results were obtained from six subjects performing six tests per subject with an average respiration detection sensitivity and specificity of 84% and 93%, respectively. Measurements were compared to a gold standard commercial spirometer. In this study, we also compared our measurements to other conventional methods such as inertial and photoplethysmography (PPG) sensors.

Biomedical wearable sensors enable long-term monitoring applications and provide instantaneous diagnostic capabilities. Physiological monitoring can help in both the diagnosis and the ongoing treatment of a vast number of cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases such as hypertension, dysrhythmia, and asthma. In this paper, we present a system capable of monitoring several vital signals and physiological variables that determine the cardiopulmonary activity status. We explore direct measurements of multiple vital parameters with only one sensor and without special constraints. The system employs a PZT-4 piezo transducer stimulated by a suitable analog front-end. The system both generates pulsed ultrasound waves at 1 MHz and amplifies reflected echoes to track internal organ motions, mainly that of the heart apex. According to the respiratory motion of the heart, the proposed system provides respiratory and heart cycles information. Promising results were obtained from six subjects with an average accuracy of 96.7% in heartbeats per minute (BPM) measurement, referenced to a commercial photoplethysmography sensor. It also exhibits 94.5% sensitivity and 94.0% specificity in respiration detection compared to a SPR-BTA spirometer signal as a reference.

The ability to assess the respiratory rate reliably is vital in the application of remote health monitoring. A newly developed pulmonary monitoring system based on diaphragm wall motion tracking is evaluated under human physical activity. Diaphragm excursions are tracked by a designed ultrasound sensory system utilizing three ultrasound PZT5 piezo transducers. We assess the accuracy and reliability of this system in monitoring the diaphragmatic function and its contribution to the respiratory workload. We also examine inertial and pulse-oximetry sensors as two alternative methods. Measurements are compared to a spirometer as the gold standard. The tests are designed in this study to investigate the performance of employed sensors in both the stationary and non-stationary human body situations. We conclude that by the direct tracking of the diaphragm motion, the proposed ultrasound system is fundamentally robust to motion artifacts. Outstanding results were obtained for the proposed system from six subjects in six different test models with an average sensitivity, specificity and false alarm of 89.7%, 93.1% and 6.3%, respectively.

This paper considers the debug needs of IoT devices and systems throughout their lifecycle, that also aims to preserve security required for IoT. A generic wireless debugging infrastructure over Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) is proposed. We show how it is possible to balance the conflicting needs of security and visibility in a coherent framework based on leveraging an Android-powered device with protocol stack access. The concept of “virtual fuses” is employed that allows selective access to the debug interface based on trust at stages starting from individual node development to the deployment and update of the system. The debug and security needs are solved with suitable trust management which allows selective activation or deactivation of debug resources throughout the system life. Lastly, the proposed system is implemented in a practical experiment.

This paper introduces a novel respiratory detection system based on diaphragm wall motion tracking using an embedded ultrasound sensory system. We assess the utility and accuracy of this method in evaluating diaphragmatic function and its contribution to respiratory workload. The developed system is able to monitor the diaphragm wall activities when the sensor is placed in the zone of apposition (ZOA). This system allows the direct measurements with only one ultrasound PZT5 piezo transducer. The system both generates pulsed ultrasound waves at 2.2 MHz and amplifies reflected echoes. According to the diaphragmatic motions, the respiratory signals of the proposed system is insensitive to human motion artifacts. Promising results were obtained from six subjects on six different tests with an average sensitivity and specificity of 84% and 93% of respiration detection, respectively. Measurements are referenced to a SPR-BTA commercial spirometer. In this study, we also evaluated inertial and photoplethysmography (PPG) sensors as other conventional methods in this area.