U-healthcare system using smart headband

Abstract

The wearable healthcare system should be not only small and easy for users to wear them but accurate in measuring physiological signals in daily life without any inconvenience. To meet these requirements, we propose the U-healthcare System which consists of a Smart Headband and a Health-state Monitor program. It can monitor the health-state in walking and running. The Smart Headband measures a photo-plethysmography (PPG) signal at the forehead for monitoring the heart rate and acceleration signals. The Health-state Monitor program is developed to show the health-state. Health-state Monitor program is operated in the handheld computer, such like (Ultra Mobile Personal Computer (UMPC). It provides the user PPG, heart rate and steps for the precise measurement, Adaptive Noise Cancellation (ANC) is introduced. The Smart Headband and the Health-state Monitor program are communicated by the WPAN using Zigbee protocol. If the heart rate is higher or lower than usual, the Health-state Monitor program sends the SMS message to the designated person, such as family or the attending physician in the medical center, to inform the emergency situation. © 2008 IEEE.