Economi cal Device to Highlight Respiratory Issues , [608282]

Economi cal Device to Highlight Respiratory Issues ,
Infection Warning and Patient Alarm ing
Ștefan -Radu Bala, Ionuț Banu, Tania -Ioana Cîmpeanu, Bogdan -Gabriel Duță
Petroleum -Gas University of Ploiesti, 39 Bucuresti Blvd, Ploiesti
E-mail: stefan.bala@upg -ploiesti.ro ; [anonimizat] ; [anonimizat] ;
[anonimizat]
Abstract
On January 30, 2020, World Health Organization declared the global 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID –
19) disease outbreak a public health emergency of international concern. The incidence of patients with
respiratory problems is increasing and may lead to worsening of general health or even death. Current
devices used to highlight respiratory problems used in medicine are not only ver y hard to come by, but
they are also very expensive . Coronavirus disease (COVID -19) caused by severe acute respiratory
syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS -CoV-2), is an infectious disease where the most common symptoms
include and are not limited to fever, dry cough and tiredness . This paper addresses the principle of
construction of such equipment from both systemically approach and recommendation of its practical
realization. It will also be approached an automatic ope ration algorithm of such a device that may result
in the el imination of major risks in use .

Key words: sensor; COVID -19; respiratory issue; body temperature; force sensitive resistor (FSR ).
Introduction
Since 31 December 2019 and as of 06 October 2020, 35 523 518 cases of COVID -19
(in accordance with the applied case definitions and testing strategies in the affected
countries) have been reported, including 1 042 398 deaths ..
Coronavirus disease (COVID -19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered
coronavirus.
Most people infected with the COVID -19 virus will experience mild to moderate respiratory
illness and recover without requiring special treatment. Older people, and those with underlying
medical problems like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and cancer
are more likely to develop serious illness.

The COVID -19 virus spreads primarily through droplets of saliva or discharge from the nose
when an infected person coughs or sneezes, so it’s important that you also practice respiratory
etiquette (for example, by coughing into a flexed elbow).

Lately, we witnessed an outstanding development in the sleep apnea field characterized by
multidisciplinary a pproaches that empowered us to get significant progress in our understanding
of sleep apnea condition . We quickly learned that one of the main sleep apnea forms,
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is fairly common in the general population and more precisely in
patients with cardiovascular diseases. Simil arly, central sleep apnea is a frequent sleep disorder
observed in patients with decompensate heart failure .
Apnea is a condition that causes people to stop breathing for more than 10 seconds or to
mobilize an air volume 10% lower than normal. Dyspnea is a condition that is installed due to
intense physical effort, but it can also be a pathological condition due to diseases, which are
manifested by heavy breathing, altering the rate of breathing. In 85% of cases when it comes to
a disease, it is due to either asthma, pneumonia, cardiac ischemia, congestive heart failure,
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or psychogenic causes, usually the treatment d epends on
the underlying cause.
Consistent evidence suggests that obstructive sleep apnea is associated with increased
cardiovasc ular risk. However, it is not clear yet whether obstructive sleep apnea is
underdiagnosed in the cardiology outpatient setting. It is also common in patients wi th coronary
artery disease , many of whom do not report daytime sleepiness .
Heart failure and sleep apnea are common disorders which frequently tend to coexist. Two main
types of apnea occur: one is obstructive which, through recurring episodes of hypoxemia,
snoring, large negative intra -thoracic pressures and arousals from sleep leading to downstream
inflammatory and autonomic nervous system changes, is believed to be one of the causin g
factor s of the development of systemic hypertension and heart failure . The other type of apnea ,
Cheyne -Stokes respiration with central sleep apnea , is characterized by an oscillatory pattern of
ventilation with a prevailing hyperventilation -induced hyper capnia , often in the absence of
significant hypoxemia and snoring, and is considered as being a consequence of advanced heart
failure -related low cardiac output, high sympathetic nervous system activation and pulmonary
congestion. Cheyne -Stokes respiration with central sleep apnea may be a compensatory
response to advanced heart failure . Rostral fluid shift during sleep may play an important role in
the pathogenesis of both obstructive sleep apnea and central sleep apnea . Studies of positive
airway pressure treatment of obstructive sleep apnea and central sleep apnea in heart failure
have shown short -term improvements in cardiac and autonomic function; however, there is no
evidence of improved survival. Loop gain may provide useful marker of continuous positive
airway pressure responsiveness in patients with central apnea .
Ideas / principles that led to this device
The respiratory system is responsible for the gas exchange between the body and the external
environment, providing oxygen and toxic CO 2 evacuation.
Although the respiratory process is not a bioelectric signal generator, the measurement,
monitoring and therapy of the respiratory system with electronic means have a special
importance for assisting this vital functional system. Furthermore, the measurement of body

temperature can help detect illness. It can also monitor whether or not treatment is working. A
high temperature is a fever .
COVID -19 is a type (strain) of coronavirus. A virus is a very small (microscopic) type of germ
that can cause an infection. It can only replicate in a host, such as a person or other living things.
You might not always feel sick from viruses. However, viruses can make you seriously ill and
cause disease.
Coronaviruses are a group (or family) of viruses that cause different illn esses. These illnesses
can range from the common cold to more severe diseases, such as Severe Acute Respiratory
Syndrome (SARS).
The device was designed to obtain a breathing and body temperature monitor.
The signal produced by the capacitive transducer is amplified by the AC amplifier (A), which
can highlight the useful signal to the impulses from the patient's movement, coughing etc. A
peak detector transforms the analogue signal into "breathing" pulses, which are transmitted
through the OC 2 optocoupler t o the central processing unit, UC.
Parasitic impulses like "agitation" have the same destination via OC 3. Optocoupler OC 1 roughly
describes the pneumogram of the investigated subject.
The transducer, of the capacitive type, is mounted under the patient. T he instantaneous value of
the transducer capacity, which depends on the position of the center of gravity of the body or on
a breathing cycle, is given by the formula:

C = C 0 + C S + C R sinωRt

ωR – breathing pulsation
C0 – transducer slack capacity
CS – the change in capacity due to the patient's weight
CR – amplitude capacity variation due to breathing capacity
The transducer can be doubled by a resistive type one, made with a thermistor that senses the
inspired / expired air temperature variations.

Fig. 1. Block diagram of the breathing monitor

Components of the device and their role

Fig. 2. Functional block diagram of the device
At the base of the device is a FSR.
FSRs have sensors that allow you to detect physical pressure, squeezing and weight. They are
simple to use and low cost.
A FSR was used to monitor the pressure resulting from the breathing process.
The process of changing the volume of the thorax is detect ed by a FSR transducer connected in
series with a resistor, so that the force -to-voltage conversion (at the divider level) takes place.
The signal conditioner creates a buffer floor (electrical repeater, i .e. a non -inverting operational
amplifier).
AO Operational Amplifiers are a category of analog amplifier circuits with outstanding
performance.
A temperature sensor that measures the body temperature and converts the input data into
electronic data to record, monitor or signal temperature changes.
The non -inverting amplifier has 2 resistors: Ri and Rf, where Rf is the reaction resistance,
connected between the output and the inverse input, and provides a negative feedback effect
with the reduction effect of amplification.

Fig. 3. Non-inverting amplifier
A non -inverting AO always has an amplification greater than 1 for non -zero values of Rf and Ri
resistors.
These were also used: CAN with successive approximations, LED VU METER and acoustic
alarm.

Fig. 4. Converter with successive approximations
– RAS – register of successive approximations ;
– COMP – comparator;
– CNA – analog numeric converter;
– REF – CAN reference source;
– RM – memory register ;

Register of successive approximations
SC – start conversion
CC – full conversion
T – tact
By overlaying the microcontroller pins, a daughter board was created. A daughterboard is a
board that extends the circuitry of another circuit board. Also, the daug hterboard plugs into it.
The LED VU METER (vu meter = volume unit meter) shows the breathing intensity but can
also be used by the user to check the device functioning.

Monitoring of the respiratory process and the body temperature evolution through an app lication
can be accessed directly by the user. It also creates a database of all events, which can be further
processed in an Excel table.
Thus, the user can track health data and by going to the doctor with the event database, they can
establish a diagnosis much quicker and easier.
Conclusion
The economical device to highlight respiratory issues, infection warning and patient alarming
presented in this paper tries to offer a solution to major flaw of the products currently available
on the market, which is price . It can be built with existent components (a ll parts are
commercially available) following instructions on white papers that are generously available
from device component manufacturers. Both the architecture and the algorithm can be further
developed and perfected.
Although the device ’s prognos tic is not to be trusted over the one of a doctor , its users are able
to monitor the evolution of the respiratory process and body temperature which are both among
the most common symptoms of COVID -19 and may prevent death . This device is mos tly
recommended to asymptomatic patients or mild symptoms, who due to the over crowded and
underequipped hospitals are sent home to fight against this disease .
References
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Dispozitiv economic pentru evidențierea problemelor respiratorii,
avertizare a în caz de infecție și alarmarea pacientului
Rezumat
La 30 ianuarie 2020, Organizația Mondială a Sănătății a declarat că noul focar de boală
coronavirus 2019 (COVID -19) este o urgență de sănătate publică de interes internațional. Incidența
pacienților cu probleme respiratorii este în creștere și poate duce la agravarea stării generale de
sănătate sau chiar la deces. Dispozitivele actuale utilizate pentru a evid enția problemele respiratorii
utilizate în medicină nu numai că sunt foarte greu de procurat , dar sunt și foarte scumpe. Coronavirusul
(COVID -19) cauzat de sindromul respirator acut sever coronavirus 2 (SARS -CoV-2), este o boală
infecțioasă în care cele ma i frecvente simptome includ și nu se limitează la febră, tuse uscată și oboseală.
Această lucrare abordează principiul construcției unor astfel de echipamente atât din abordarea
sistemică, cât și din recomandarea realizării sale practice. De asemenea, se v a aborda un algoritm de
funcționare automată a unui astfel de dispozitiv care poate duce la eliminarea riscurilor majore în
utilizare.