Measures pulse in as little as five seconds using built-in
cameras in PCs or smartphones, enabling ongoing health tracking
Fujitsu Laboratories Limited today announced that it has
developed a technology to measure a person's pulse in real time using a
built-in camera or webcam in a PC, smartphone or tablet.
Fujitsu Laboratories has developed a technology that detects
a person's pulse by measuring variations in the brightness of the person's face
thought to be caused by the flow of blood. It is based on the characteristic of
hemoglobin in blood, which absorbs green light. It requires no special hardware
and can measure pulse rate simply by pointing a camera at a person's face for
as little as five seconds. It also automatically chooses moments when the
person's body and face are relatively still to minimize the effects of
irrelevant data on measurements. This technology has a wide range of potential
uses, including health monitoring and maintenance as well as security
applications.