Model of an inductive sensor of cardiac activity attached to patient

Abstract

An electric circuit model describing an inductive sensor of cardiac mechanical activity in its working condition has been developed. The sensor comprises a single-turn coil which is fed by 7.7 MHz constant current and induces probing eddy currents in the body. The inductor is considered to be attached to the thoracic surface of a normal human male, in front of the heart. A simple axial-symmetric model of the thorax, formed of tightly packed circular current tubes, has been used to calculate the resistances, self-inductances and mutual inductances within the human body. Then the inductor and the eddy currents in the body were reduced to a system of two inductively coupled coils; estimates of the parameters and frequency response of the system have been found; the active and reactive contributions of the human body to the resulting impedance of the inductor were calculated. © 2010 IOP Publishing Ltd.