Accurate, Auditory-Based Blood Pressure Monitor
The ACCURATE, AUDITORY-BASED BLOOD PRESSURE MONITOR project focuses on developing a highly accurate blood pressure monitor for home use. It aims to achieve precision close to clinical standards, targeting an accuracy within ±5 mmHg. The initiative is centered on integrating advanced technology and innovative design to provide users with dependable and precise blood pressure readings. This effort addresses the need for user-friendly, reliable home healthcare devices, facilitating improved hypertension management and empowering individuals in their own health care. This project is important because accurate blood pressure monitoring is crucial for managing hypertension, a condition affecting millions worldwide. Current home monitors often lack precision, leading to unreliable data and potential health risks. By providing a device that offers clinical-level accuracy, this project could significantly improve health outcomes. It empowers people to effectively monitor their blood pressure at home, leading to earlier detection of health issues, better treatment adjustments, and overall improved healthcare management, especially in areas with limited access to medical facilities.
Proof of concept
Our blood pressure monitor demonstrates the feasibility of achieving clinical-grade accuracy in an at-home device by combining innovative design, advanced algorithms, and user-friendly features. In testing, the device consistently achieved an average accuracy of ±1.95 mmHg for systolic pressure and ±0.09 mmHg for diastolic pressure under ideal conditions, outperforming many commercially available oscillometric monitors. However, accuracy under non-ideal conditions, such as environments with high noise or irregular heart rates, revealed opportunities for refinement.
This proof-of-concept highlights the potential of an auditory-based approach, supported by custom stethoscope designs, optimized filtering circuits, and a machine learning algorithm tailored to detect Korotkoff sounds. While the current design meets stringent clinical standards in controlled scenarios, we are committed to addressing limitations such as noise sensitivity, sensor bias at higher pressures, and variability in heart rates.
Future iterations will incorporate active noise cancellation, adaptive algorithms for real-time heart rate variability, and improved sensor calibration. Additionally, broader demographic testing will ensure accuracy across diverse user conditions. This project is a step toward revolutionizing at-home healthcare, and we are excited to refine and expand its capabilities in the next version.