The Portable Electrocardiograph with GSM Module for Telemedicine

Abstract

Urgency of the research. The principles of telemedicine need to be put into practice of emergency medical care and family medicine, so there is a need for diagnostic medical equipment with the ability of data transfer and remote consulting with subject matter experts. Target setting. Currently, ECG testing consumes time to prepare the device for work, needs the personal computer as the additional equipment and requires highly skilled staff. The development of portable electrocardiographic equipment with built-in means of communication is a task of current importance for biomedical engineering. Actual scientific researches and issues analysis. The current research in the development of portable cardiograph for primary preclinical diagnostics are focused on the choice of optimal design parameters of device and the incensement of noise immunity of medical equipment. Uninvestigated parts of general matters defining. This article focuses on the design development of the portable electrocardiograph with built-in GSM module for operation in telemedicine systems. The research objective is the design of the portable electrocardiograph for telemedicine that has a convenient interface for device control, is equipped with means of communication with cardiac care centers, has universal ports for information output to external drives and connection of additional devices, is as ergonomic as possible, operates in compliance with safety, reliability and energy efficiency requirements. The statement of basic materials. The main design requirements to portable electrocardiographic equipment are formulated. The device constructive parameters that are most consistent with the requirements of telemedicine are defined. The basic functional units of the device are chosen and its electronic block diagram is synthesized. The computer simulation of processes and parameters of the circuitry of the instrumentation amplifier functionality at given operating temperatures proved the validity of proposed circuit design solutions. Conclusions. The key features of the designed portable electrocardiograph with GSM module are: the embodiment in folding form-factor, the availability of GSM module, the constant connection of ECG electrodes via integrated ECG cable. The embodiment in folding form-factor optimizes ergonomic characteristics of the device. The replacement of non-integral ECG cable with integrated one reduces the intensity of internal noise and reduces time to prepare the device for work. Built-in GSM module provides affordable communication with specialized medical facilities, thus reducing the duration of the diagnostics and increasing the efficiency of the medical care in non-ambulatory out-hospital an outpatient setting.