Non-contact UWB radar technology to assess tremor

Abstract

This work quantifies and analyzes tremor using Ultra Wide Band (UWB) radio technology. The UWB technology provides a new technology for non contact tremor assessment with extremely low radiation and penetration through walls. Tremor is the target symptom in the treatment of many neurological disorders such as Parkinson's disease (PD), midbrain tremor, essential tremor (ET) and epilepsy. The common instrumental approaches for the assessment of tremor are motion capture devices and video tracking systems. The new tremor acquisition system is based on transmission of a wideband electromagnetic signal with extremely low radiation, and analysis of the received signal composed of many propagation paths reflected from the patient and its surroundings. An efficient UWB radar detection technique adapted to tremor detection is developed. Periodicity in the time of arrival of the received signal is detected to obtain tremor characteristics. For a feasibility test we built an UWB acquisition system and examined the performance with an arm model that fluctuated in the range of clinical tremor frequencies (3-12 Hz). A devlpoment of this work can lead to a monitoring system installed at any home, hospital or school to continuously asses and report tremor conditions during daily life activities. © 2010 International Federation for Medical and Biological Engineering.