Study on Non-contact Measurement of Respiratory Rate

Abstract

Respiratory rate can be measured in a variety of ways such as nasal temperature, breath sounds, and chest and abdominal movements. However, many instruments used in clinical practice today are of the type that attach sensors to the body. Therefore, when a screening test for sleep apnea syndrome (SAS) is performed at home, for example, the subject may not sleep well because the sensor is attached, and there is a concern that no symptoms appear. Further, especially in the case of a child, there is a possibility that the sensor or the wiring is disconnected or entangled due to turning over. Therefore, in this research, we aim to develop a device that can measure the respiratory rate of patients without contact. This time, using an infrared camera, we measured the temperature change of the body surface or blanket due to respiration, and examined whether the respiration rate could be measured.