Technology Inquirer,
AFP, March 18th, 2013
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| A Fujitsu engineer demonstrates new technology, a the real-time pulse monitor system with facial imaging technology, that ustilises a web-camera in PCs or smartphones, at the company’s headquarters in Tokyo on March 18, 2013. AFP / YOSHIKAZU TSUNO |
TOKYO — A
smartphone that can take the pulse of a user just by looking at his or her face
was unveiled in Japan on Monday.
Technology
giant Fujitsu plans to put the invention to practical use within a year,
enabling people at work or at home to track their health and collect data for
analysis without wearing special devices.
The
smartphone works by measuring variations in the brightness of a person’s face
caused by the flow of blood.
Researchers
say countless tiny blood vessels run through the face, enabling monitoring of
haemoglobin which absorbs green light. Haemoglobin is a protein found in red
blood cells that contains iron and transports oxygen.
Simply
pointing a camera at a person’s face for as little as five seconds will enable
pulse-taking, while the technology automatically filters out the effect of head
movements or changes caused by standing up quickly.
“Even at a
busy workplace, or any time a person is sitting in front of a PC, whether for
teleconferencing or writing e-mails, their pulse can be measured during brief
moments of quiet,” the company said in a press release.
“At home, a
camera built into a TV can measure the pulse of people relaxing in front of it,
or a mirror, for when people are getting ready in the morning,” it said.
“Pulse
detectors built into gates at event sites or control points at airports could
be a possible security application by detecting people in ill health and people
acting suspiciously.”
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