Last Updated on January 20, 2023 by pg@petergamma.org
To start with, we can take Garmin Venu2 watches for instance for resting heart rate. To increase accuracy, we can use four watches on hands and feets. We can copy and paste some data from Garmin Connect to LibreOffice, and process it with SQLite. This is for resting heart rate to start with.
For a minimal configuration, we need a heart rate monitor which has an accuracy which is not controversial. Many papers about sports sensor accuracy are controversial, if they are cited by physiologists to study the effect of practicing mediation on physiological parameters. ECG devices are less controversial for physiologists. Scott Hardens sound card ECG is a single lead ECG.
Is the DFROBOT ECG module with Arduino based on Scott Hardens Sound Card ECG? Is the iWorx ROAM Wireless ECG and Respiration based on Scotts device, are the many instructions which can be found on YouTube with the AD8232 based on Scotts device? Whatever. Do we need ESP32, Home Assistant, InfluxDB and Grafana to start with? No.
Scotts device offers a real-time Windows software. We can start with that. There, we have ECG raw data. Then, we can try to use HeartPy with it to get physiological parameters.
But we want sooner or later a 3 lead ECG with 3 separate channels which are amplified independently from each other in three separate digital channels, and study papers from cardiologists who demand this in more in detail. We can buy an iWorx channel recorder for 1500 USD on ebay and the iWorx ECG toolbox, which allows no scripting for 1000 USD. But do we need this, can we built this not by ourselves? We can combine 3 Scott Harden modules over a 16 bit A/D converter, ESP32, Home Assistant in InfluxDB.
OpenBCI offers an easier solution. It has a 3 lead ECG instruction. OpenBCI cable version modules with 8 channels which are amplified independently from each other can be bought on for 230 USD on Aliexpress, cable version. Then, we can try HeartPy with it.
Our setup causes constant anger in our brain. But the longer the anger lasts, the easier the setup becomes.