• 专利附录
  • 专利说明
  • 权利要求
  • 类似技术
  • 同族专利
  • 引用文献
  • 法律状态
  • 优先权
    • 专利摘要:
    According to an aspect of the inventive concept there is provided a body monitoring system for monitoring a dehydration status of a user of an exercise equipment, the system comprising: a set of hand electrodes including at least 5 one hand electrode, a set of foot electrodes including at least one foot electrode, an impedance measurement circuit connected to the set of hand electrodes and the set of foot electrodes and arranged to measure a body impedance between any pair of electrodes of the set of hand electrodes and the set of foot electrodes, and a processing means arranged to receive an 10 input signal representing a measured body impedance from the impedance measurement circuit and output an output signal indicative of the dehydration status of the body based on the received input signal. Figure for publication: Fig. 1a 15
    公开号:NL2015951A
    申请号:NL2015951
    申请日:2015-12-11
    公开日:2016-09-20
    发明作者:Lee Seulki；De Francisco Martin Ruben
    申请人:Stichting Imec Nederland；
    IPC主号:
    专利说明:

    A BODY MONITORING SYSTEM
    Technical field
    The present inventive concept relates to body monitoring system for monitoring a dehydration status of a user of an exercise equipment.
    Background
    During a workout, in particular endurance training, on exercise equipment such as a bike, a spinning bike, a cross trainer or a rowing machine the increased effort, in combination with prevailing ambient conditions such as elevated temperature, wind and sun exposure, may lead to increased sweating for the athlete. If the fluid intake before or during the training session is sufficient the athlete may hence become dehydrated during the training session. Although the feeling of thirst is an indicator for the athlete to drink, thirst may not be an accurate indicator of the level of the dehydration. Also, when the athlete notes that it is thirsty, the athlete may already have become dehydrated. Dehydration may reduce both the endurance and the power the athlete may generate during the training session.
    Summary of the inventive concept
    An objective of the present inventive concept is to provide a more accurate means for estimating a dehydration status of a user of an exercise equipment.
    According to an aspect of the inventive concept there is provided a body monitoring system for monitoring a dehydration status of a user of an exercise equipment, the system comprising: a set of hand electrodes including at least one hand electrode, a set of foot electrodes including at least one foot electrode, an impedance measurement circuit connected to the set of hand electrodes and the set of foot electrodes and arranged to measure a body impedance between any pair of electrodes of the set of hand electrodes and the set of foot electrodes, and a processing means arranged to receive an input signal representing a measured body impedance from the impedance measurement circuit and output an output signal indicative of the dehydration status of the body based on the received input signal.
    The inventive system enables an accurate impedance-based monitoring of a dehydration status of the user who thus need not rely only on the feeling of thirst. The monitoring for example enables the user to be alerted when dehydration is approaching, imminent or has occurred. Having both the set of hand electrodes and the set of foot electrodes makes it possible to monitor the dehydration status based on both an upper and a lower part of the body. Furthermore, the body impedance may be measured between a first and a second electrode, wherein the first electrode is a hand electrode or a foot electrode and the second electrode is a hand electrode or a foot electrode.
    The output signal may indicate the dehydration status by indicating whether or not the user is dehydrated. The output signal may indicate the dehydration status by indicating a relative or absolute level of dehydration. A dehydration level may equivalently be referred to as a level of hydration of the body of the user. The output signal may indicate a deviation of the measured body impedance from a predetermined body impedance. The predetermined body impedance may correspond to a body impedance of the user measured during a normally hydrated or non-dehydrated condition of the user. The predetermined body impedance may also correspond to a body impedance of the user measured during a dehydrated condition of the user. The output signal may indicate the deviation as an absolute deviation or a relative deviation from the predetermined body impedance. The processing means may be arranged to estimate a dehydration level of the body based on the received input signal by applying a function mapping an impedance value to a dehydration level, wherein the output signal is indicative of the estimated dehydration level.
    The impedance measurement circuit may be arranged to measure a body impedance between said at least one hand electrode and said at least one foot electrode. Thereby, a region of the body extending from a foot to a hand may be taken into account for the dehydration status monitoring. The impedance measurement circuit may provide a signal indicative of the measured body impedance as an input signal to the processing means.
    According to one embodiment the set of hand electrodes includes a left hand electrode and a right hand electrode wherein the impedance measurement circuit is arranged to measure a body impedance between any pair of electrodes selected from the group including: the left hand electrode and the right hand electrode, the left hand electrode and the at least one foot electrode, the right hand electrode and the at least one foot electrode. Thereby, both a region of the body between the hands of the user and a region extending from a foot to any of the hands may be taken into account for the dehydration status monitoring. The impedance measurement circuit may provide a signal indicative of the measured body impedance as an input signal to the processing means.
    According to one embodiment the set of hand electrodes includes a left hand electrode and a right hand electrode and the set of foot electrodes includes a left foot electrode and a right foot electrode, and wherein the impedance measurement circuit is arranged to measure a body impedance between any pair of electrodes selected from the group including: the left hand electrode and the right hand electrode, the left hand electrode and the left foot electrode, the left hand electrode and the right foot electrode, the right hand electrode and the left foot electrode, the right hand electrode and the right foot electrode, the left foot electrode and the right foot electrode.
    Thereby, both a region of the body between the hands of the user and a region extending from any foot to any of the hands, and between the feet of the user may be taken into account for the dehydration status monitoring. Also, the likelihood of having galvanic contact with the user for at least a pair of the electrodes is increased.
    The impedance measurement circuit may be arranged to measure a first body impedance between a first pair of electrodes selected from the above-mentioned groups and, subsequently, measure a second body impedance between a second pair of electrodes selected from said group and being different from the first pair. Hence, body impedance measurements for different parts of the body may be measured sequentially. This may enable a more accurate monitoring since a greater part of the body may be monitored.
    The processing means may be arranged to: receive a first signal representing the first body impedance from the impedance measurement circuit and a second signal representing the second body impedance from the impedance measurement circuit, and output a first output signal indicative of a first dehydration status based on the first signal and output a second output signal indicative of a second dehydration status based on the second signal. A dehydration level of different parts of the body may thus be monitored sequentially.
    The processing means may also be arranged to: receive a first signal representing the first body impedance from the impedance measurement circuit and a second signal representing the second body impedance from the impedance measurement circuit, and output said output signal based on both the first and the second signal. Hence the output signal may be based on a combination of the first and second body impedance measurements. The output signal may for example be based on a sum of the first and the second body impedance measurements or a mean of the first and the second body impedance measurements. A sum (e.g. of a hand-to-hand impedance measurement and a foot-to-hand impedance measurement) may be indicative of a total dehydration level of the body volume influencing the body impedance measurement. A mean (e.g. of a hand-to-hand impedance measurement and a foot-to-hand impedance measurement) may be indicative of a mean dehydration level of the body volume influencing the body impedance measurement.
    According to one embodiment the set of hand electrodes are adapted to be arranged on a handgrip of the exercise equipment and the set of foot electrodes are adapted to be arranged on a foot support of the exercise equipment. The electrodes may thus be provided on portions of the exercise equipment which the user during normal use will be in contact with.
    Especially, if the exercise equipment is a bike or a spinning bike, the set of hand electrodes may be adapted to be arranged on a handlebar of the exercise equipment and the set of foot electrodes may be adapted to be arranged on a pedal pair of the exercise equipment.
    More generally, the exercise equipment may be a bike, a spinning bike, a cross trainer or a rowing machine.
    According to one embodiment the exercise equipment is a bike and the processing means is further arranged to estimate an energy expenditure of the user based on a heart rate of the user, a velocity of the bike and a respiration of the user. Just like the dehydration status, the energy expenditure is something which may vary during a training session and which may be difficult to monitor manually based only on sensory input, e.g. feeling fit and alert, or experiencing low blood sugar. Additionally, when such a condition is experienced it may already have begun affecting the performance of the user. Using a heart rate of the user, a velocity of the bike and a respiration of the user enables an accurate estimation of the energy expenditure.
    The system may further comprise an electrocardiography circuit connected to the set of hand electrodes and arranged to measure, using the set of hand electrodes, an electrocardiogram of the user and to provide a signal indicative of the electrocardiogram to the processing means. In particular the electrocardiography circuit may be arranged to measure the electrocardiogram using a left hand electrode and a right hand electrode of the set of hand electrodes.
    The processing means may be arranged to estimate, based on the electrocardiogram signal, a heart rate of the user. This enables an accurate estimation of the heart rate wherein the set of hand electrodes has the double function as serving as electrodes for the purpose of both the body impedance measurement and for the electrocardiogram measurement.
    Alternatively, the impedance measurement circuit may be arranged to provide a signal indicative of at least one or a combination of a respiration rate and a respiration volume of the user to the processing means.
    According to one embodiment the processing means is arranged to output the output signal to a display. The user may thus conveniently receive visual information relating to the dehydration level and, where applicable, the energy expenditure.
    The processing means may be arranged to provide an alarm signal on a condition that the body impedance represented by the input signal exceeds a threshold. The alarm signal may be a visual alarm signal, an audible alarm signal and/or a tactile alarm signal. A visual alarm signal may for example be displayed on the above-mentioned display.
    According to one embodiment the set of hand electrodes includes a first and a second left hand electrode and a first and a second right hand electrode, and wherein the impedance measurement circuit is arranged to measure a body impedance between the first left hand electrode and the first right hand electrode and a voltage between the second left hand electrode and the second right hand electrode. By providing two electrodes for each hand, a four-terminal measurement of the body impedance may be performed wherein effects resulting from the skin-electrode interface may be compensated for wherein the accuracy of the dehydration level monitoring may be improved.
    Additionally, the set of foot electrodes may include a first and a second left foot electrode and a first and a second right foot electrode, and wherein the impedance measurement circuit is arranged to measure a body impedance between the first left foot electrode and the first right foot electrode and a voltage between the second left foot electrode and the second right foot electrode.
    The system may further comprise a wearable item such as shoe, a glove or a sock, the wearable item including a conductor extending from an inside of the wearable item to an outside of the wearable item to provide a galvanic connection between an electrode of the first or second set of electrodes and the user. This allows for a good galvanic contact between the measurement electrodes and the body of the user.
    According to another aspect of the present inventive concept there is provided an exercise equipment including a body monitoring system as set out in any of the above-mentioned embodiments and variations thereof, wherein the set of hand electrodes are arranged on a handgrip of the exercise equipment and the set of foot electrodes are arranged on a foot support of the exercise equipment.
    The exercise equipment may include a left and a right pedal and the left foot electrode may be arranged on the left pedal and the right foot electrode is arranged on the right pedal. In particular the exercise equipment may be a bike.
    The exercise equipment of the second aspect may generally present the same or corresponding advantages as the first aspect wherefore reference is made to the above discussion.
    Brief description of the drawings
    The above, as well as additional objects, features and advantages of the present inventive concept, will be better understood through the following illustrative and non-limiting detailed description of preferred embodiments of the present inventive concept, with reference to the appended drawings, where like reference numerals will be used for like elements, wherein:
    Fig. 1a schematically illustrates a body monitoring system arranged on a bike.
    Fig. 1b schematically illustrates a set of hand electrodes arranged on a handlebar of the bike.
    Fig. 2 is a schematic block diagram of a body monitoring system.
    Detailed description of preferred embodiments
    Detailed embodiments of aspects of the present inventive concept will now be described with reference to the drawings.
    Fig. 1 a is a schematic side view of a body monitoring system 100 (hereinafter referred to as the system 100) arranged on an exercise equipment in the form of a bike 102. The bike 102 includes a handlebar 104 and a pair of pedals 106. The particular design of the bike 102 illustrated in Fig. 1a is just to be understood as an example and other bike designs known to the skilled person are equally possible.
    The system 100 includes a set of hand electrodes 110 and a set of foot electrodes 120. The set of hand electrodes 110 are arranged on the handlebar 104. The set of foot electrodes 120 are arranged on the pedals 106. The system 100 further includes an impedance measurement circuit arranged to measure a body impedance of a user of the bike by performing an impedance measurement on the body of the user between any pair of electrodes of the set of hand electrodes 110 and the set of foot electrodes 120.
    As schematically illustrated in Fig 1b, the set of hand electrodes 110 may include a left hand electrode 112 and a right hand electrode 114. The left hand electrode 112 and the right hand electrode 114 may each be provided in the form of a conductive portion on the hand grips of the handle bar 104 on a respective position which is convenient for the user to grip. A conductive portion may include a conductive material such as stainless steel, copper, aluminum, gold, silver, silver-chloride, carbon, to name a few. A conductive portion may for example be attached to the handle bar 104 by means of a holder having a gripping portion gripping about the handle bar 104. However a conductive portion may also be attached to the handle bar 104 by means of gluing or an adhesive tape. A conductive portion may also be provided with a generally ring-shaped design and be threaded onto the handle bar 104. According to further options a conductive portion may be provided by depositing conductive ink on the handle bar 104 or by arranging a conductive textile on the handle bar 104. Types of conductive ink and how to apply them to an object, as well as types of conductive textiles are, as such, well-known to the skilled person and will therefore not be further described herein. Optionally, the left and right hand electrodes 112,114 may each include at least two conductive portions 112a, 112b and 114a, 114b, respectively. By providing two or more conducting portions for the left and the right hand side, galvanic contact with the hands of the user of the bike 102 may be ensured for further gripping positions. Additionally, as will be described in greater detail below with reference to Fig. 2, providing two conductive portions for the left and the right hand side enables compensation for skin-electrode contact resistance to improve the accuracy of impedance measurements. In that case the two conductive portions on the left hand and right hand side, respectively, should preferably be arranged at a distance from each other such that the user simultaneously engages with both conductive portions while gripping the left-hand and the right-hand side of the handle bar 104.
    The set of foot electrodes 120 may include a left foot electrode 122 and a right foot electrode 124. The left foot electrode 122 and the right foot electrode 124 may each be provided in the form of a conductive portion on a respective one of the pedals 106. A conductive portion may include any of the materials discussed above in connection with the set of hand electrodes 110. A conductive portion may for example be provided as a conductive portion on a surface of a pedal which is intended to make contact with an underside of a respective foot of the user of the bike 102.
    The system 100 further includes processing means arranged to receive an input signal representing a measured body impedance from the impedance measurement circuit. Following processing of the received input signal, which will be described in more detail with reference to Fig. 2, the processing means may output an output signal indicative of the dehydration status of the body.
    The impedance measurement circuit and the processing means may be arranged in a common electronics module 130. The position of the electronics module 130 illustrated in Fig. 1a is only provided as an example and other positions are equally possible. Generally, the electronics module 130 may be arranged on any desired position of the bike 102, in particular the frame of the bike 102 or on the handle bar 104.
    The actions or functions described herein as being performed by a processing means (e.g. in connection with Figs 1a, 1b and 2) may be implemented as software instructions stored in a memory of the electronics module and executed by a microprocessor. Alternatively, the actions may be implemented in one or more integrated circuits (e.g. application specific integrated circuits ASICs) or field-programmable gate arrays (FGPAs), housed commonly within the electronics module or distributed between different enclosures. According to a further example, some of the actions (such as an estimation of a dehydration level) may be performed by processing circuitry of an electronics module 130 or 230 and some of the actions (such as an estimation of the energy expenditure) may be performed by processing circuitry of another entity, such as a cellular phone, a smart phone, a tablet computer or some other portable computing device which is arranged to communicate with the processing means.
    The impedance measurement circuit may be galvanically connected to the set of hand electrodes 110 by means of wires extending along the frame and the handle bar 104 of the bike 102. The impedance measurement circuit may be galvanically connected to the set of foot electrodes 120 by means of wires extending along the frame to the cranks of the bike 102. Galvanic contact between the wires and the respective foot electrodes 122, 124 may be provided by means of a slip ring configuration. For the left side pedal 122, a first slip ring may be provided between the frame and the left side crank and a second slip ring may be provided between the left side crank and the left side pedal 122 wherein the left foot electrode 122 may be galvanically connected to the impedance measurement circuit. The first and the second slip ring may be galvanically connected by a wire extending along the crank. A corresponding slip ring combination may be provided for the right side pedal 124 wherein the right foot electrode 124 may be galvanically connected to the impedance measurement circuit.
    The processing means may be connected to a display 190. The processing means may provide signals indicative of for example the dehydration level to the display 190, wherein the display may provide visual information of the dehydration level to the user and/or a visual alert if the dehydration level exceeds a limit. The display 190 may for example be a display of a cellular phone, a smart phone, a tablet computer or some other portable computing device. The portable computing device may for example be attached to the handlebar 104, or to some other part of the frame of the bike 102 by a holder of any design which is known in the art. Although illustrated at different locations on the bike 102, the display 190 could also be a display integrated into a same enclosure as the electronics module 130.
    For the purpose of obtaining a good galvanic contact between the electrodes of the system 100 and the user, there is provided a wearable item including a conductor extending from an inside of the wearable item to an outside of the wearable item to provide a galvanic connection between an electrode of the first or second set of electrodes 110, 120 and the user. The wearable item may include a pair of shoes. The shoe may be designed as any common type of shoe which is suitable for use on exercise equipment such as the bike 102. A portion of the outsole of each shoe may be conductive. The conductive portion may be provided at a position on the outsole which commonly makes contact with the pedal during biking. The conductive portion may for example be provided in an area generally corresponding to a mid-foot or a ball of the foot of the user. The conductive portion may for example be provided by a layer of conductive ink or by a patch of conductive yarn provided on the outsole. The conductive portion may be galvanically connected with a conductive pin or the like extending through the midsole of the shoe to make contact with an inner conductive portion, provided on an insole of the shoe. The inner conductive portion may for example be provided by a layer of conductive ink or by a patch of conductive yarn provided on the insole. Thereby the set of foot electrodes 120 may be brought into galvanic contact with the inner conductive portions of each shoe. The user may wear such shoes in bare feet. Alternatively, the user may use the shoes in combination with a pair of conductive socks. Each sock may include a conductor formed by conductive ink or conductive yarn at a position corresponding to the position of the inner conductive portion of the respective shoe. Thereby, a good galvanic contact between the inner conductive portion of a shoe and a foot of the user may be obtained. Correspondingly, the wearable item may include a pair of conductive gloves. Each glove may include a conductive portion formed by conductive ink or conductive yarn at a position corresponding to a palm side of a hand of the user. The position of the conductive portion may correspond to a portion of a hand of the user which commonly makes contact with the handle bar 104 during biking. In particular the position of the conductive portion of each glove may correspond to the portion of the hand of the user which commonly grips over, and faces a respective set of hand electrodes 110.
    Although, in the above the body monitoring system 100 has been described in connection with the bike 102, the system 100 may be used also on other types of exercise equipment such as a spinning bike (i.e. a stationary bike), a cross trainer or a rowing machine. When used in combination with these alternative types of exercise equipment the set of hand electrodes 110 and the set of foot electrodes 120 may more generally be arranged on a handgrip and a foot support, respectively of the exercise equipment. For a spinning bike the set of hand electrodes 110 and the set of foot electrodes 120 may be arranged on the same or corresponding positions as those of the bike 102. For a cross trainer the set of hand electrodes 110 may be arranged on the gripping portions of the handle levers and the set of foot electrodes 120 may be arranged on the pedals. For a rowing machine the set of hand electrodes 110 may be arranged on the gripping portions of the rowing handle and the set of foot electrodes 120 may be arranged on the foot supports of the foot stretcher slides. A detailed example of a possible implementation of a body monitoring system 200 (hereinafter referred to as the system 200) will now be provided with reference to Fig. 2. The system 200 generally includes components corresponding to those of the system 100 and may for example be arranged on the bike 102 in a corresponding manner. In particular, the system 100 includes a set of hand electrodes 210 (corresponding to the set of hand electrodes 110) and a set of foot electrodes 220 (corresponding to the set of foot electrodes 120).The set of hand electrodes 210 includes a left hand electrode 212 and a right hand electrode 214. The set of foot electrodes 220 includes a left foot electrode 222 and a right foot electrode 224.
    The system 200 includes an electronics module 230 (corresponding to the electronics module 130). The electronics module 230 includes an impedance measurement circuit 240 (corresponding to the impedance measurement circuit of the electronics module 130).
    The impedance measurement circuit 240 is arranged to measure a body impedance between any pair of electrodes selected from the group including: the left hand electrode 212 and the right hand electrode 214, the left hand electrode 212 and the left foot electrode 222, the left hand electrode 212 and the right foot electrode 224, the right hand electrode 214 and the left foot electrode 222, the right hand electrode 214 and the right foot electrode 224, the left foot electrode 222 and the right foot electrode 224.
    Each of the above above-mentioned pairs of electrodes may correspond to a particular measurement configuration of the impedance measurement circuit 240. For the purpose of selecting a particular measurement configuration the impedance measurement circuit 240 may be associated with a selector circuit 260. Although illustrated as a separate entity from the impedance measurement circuit 240 the selector circuit 260 may also be comprised in the impedance measurement circuit 240. The selector circuit 260 may include a set of switches for selectively coupling the current block 242 to a pair of the electrodes 212, 214, 222, 224.
    In use of the system 200, the impedance measurement circuit 240 may perform impedance measurements on the body of the user while cycling through all or a subset of the above-mentioned measurement configurations. The impedance measurement circuit 240 may be arranged to repeatedly perform measurements of the body impedance at a fixed repetition rate. Following a first impedance measurement using a first measurement configuration the selector circuit 260 may change the measurement configuration to a second measurement configuration, wherein a second impedance measurement may be performed. This process may be repeated to obtain a third measurement configuration, and so on, until all of the above-mentioned measurement configurations have been used. Impedance measurements may thereafter be repeated while reusing the measurement configurations.
    The impedance measurement circuit 240 may include a test signal block 242 arranged to generate a test signal. The test signal may be output from an output of the test signal block 242. The test signal may be applied to the user via the left hand electrode 212, the right hand electrode 214, the left foot electrode 222 or the right foot electrode 224. The test signal may propagate through the body of the user and be received at another one of the electrodes of the set of hand or foot electrodes 210, 220. By measuring an amplitude of the received test signal and a phase of the received signal the impedance of the portion of the body traversed by the test signal may be estimated using techniques which per se are well-known in the art.
    For example, the test signal block 242 may include a controlled voltage source generating an AC test signal of a predetermined amplitude. The test signal may be generated at a fixed and predetermined repetition rate (e.g. several times a minute, or once every couple of minutes).The test signal may be applied to the user via a first electrode and received from the user via a second electrode. The first electrode may be referred to as a test signal injecting electrode. The second electrode may be referred to as a test signal receiving electrode. With reference to the above, the test signal injecting electrode and the test signal receiving electrode may be controlled by the selector circuit 260 selecting any of the above-mentioned measurement configurations. The test signal may be received at an input of the test signal block 242, via the test signal receiving electrode. The test signal block 242 may include a resistor connected to the input of the test signal block 242. The resistor may have a predetermined resistance which preferably is much smaller than a typical body impedance. The test signal block 242 may include a voltmeter for measuring the voltage drop over the resistor caused by the test signal received at the input of the test signal block 242. From the measured voltage drop and the known resistance of the resistor of the test signal block 242 the amplitude of the current of the test signal may be estimated. From the estimated amplitude of the current and the known amplitude of the voltage of the test signal the magnitude of the body impedance may be estimated. By determining a phase difference between the AC voltage induced over the resistor at the input of the test signal block 242 and the test signal generated by the controlled voltage source the phase of the body impedance may be estimated. The test signal block 242 may for example include an analog-to-digital converter for sampling and digitizing the test signal generated by the controlled voltage source and the AC voltage induced over the resistor. This allows the impedance to be calculated in a digital domain.
    The test signal may be generated at a single predetermined frequency. Alternatively, a frequency of the test signal may be varied over a range of frequencies wherein a body impedance may be determined for the range of frequencies of the test signal. This may allow for a more detailed estimation of the dehydration status.
    As may be understood by the skilled person, the body impedance may also be estimated using a similar configuration however with the test signal block 242 including a controlled current source instead of the controlled voltage source.
    As illustrated in Fig. 2, the set of hand electrodes 210 may optionally include a first and a second left hand electrode 212a, 212b and a first and a second right hand electrode 214a, 214b.
    Similarly, also the set of foot electrodes 220 may optionally include a first and a second left foot electrode 222a, 222b and a first and a second right foot electrode 224a, 224b.
    The impedance measurement circuit 240 may be arranged to measure a body impedance between anyone of the first left hand electrode 212a and the first right hand electrode 214a, the first left hand electrode 212a and the first left foot electrode 222a, the first left hand electrode 212a and the first right foot electrode 224a, the first left foot electrode 222a and the first right hand electrode 214a, the first left foot electrode 222a and the first right foot electrode 224a, or the first right foot electrode 224a and the first right hand electrode 214a. The impedance measurement circuit 240 may be further arranged to measure a voltage between the corresponding second electrodes of the set of hand electrodes 210 or the set of foot electrodes 220. For example, the impedance measurement circuit 240 may in a first measurement configuration measure a body impedance between the first left hand electrode 212a and the first right hand electrode 214a and a voltage between the second left hand electrode 212b and the second right hand electrode 214b. Correspondingly the impedance measurement circuit 240 may in a second measurement configuration measure a body impedance between the first left hand electrode 212a and the first left foot electrode 222a and a voltage between the second left hand electrode 212b and the second left foot electrode 222b. In line with the above discussion, the particular measurement configuration may be determined by the selector circuit 260 selectively coupling the test signal block 242 and a voltage sensing block 244 to a respective pair of the electrodes of the sets 210, 220.The pairs of first electrodes of the set of hand and foot electrodes 210, 220 may be selectively coupled to the test signal block 242 by the selector circuit 260. The pairs of the second electrodes of the set of hand and foot electrodes 210, 220 may be selectively coupled to the voltage sensing block 244. The voltage sensing block 244 may include a circuit for measuring a voltage difference between a connected pair of electrodes. The voltage sensing block 244 may for example include a digital voltmeter.
    Measuring also the voltage between electrode pairs formed by the second electrodes of set of hand and foot electrodes 210, 220 allows for a four terminal measurement of the body impedance wherein effects of the skin-electrode interface may be compensated for. Four terminal-type of measurements are known per se to the skilled person and will therefore not be further elaborated upon herein.
    The electronics module 230 further includes a processing means 250. The impedance measurement circuit 240 is connected to the processing means 250 and arranged to provide signals indicative of body impedance measurements to the processing means 250. The processing means 250 may for example include a digital-to-analog converter arranged to receive an analog signal representing a measured body impedance from the measurement circuit 240 and convert the representation to a digital format, allowing further processing using digital processing techniques. Alternatively, the impedance measurement circuit 240 may include a digital input for receiving a digital signal representation of the measured body impedance.
    The processing means 250 may be arranged to, each time a body impedance measurement signal is received from the impedance measurement circuit 240 generate an output signal indicative of the dehydration status of the body based on the received input signal. The processing means 250 may alternatively be arranged to generate an output signal based on a combination of two or more sequentially received input signals. The processing means 250 may for example be arranged to generate an output signal based on a sum of two consecutively received input signals. For example a first input signal may represent a body impedance measured between the left hand and the right hand of the user and a second input signal may represent a body impedance measured between the left hand (or right hand) of the user and the left foot (or right foot) of the user. A sum of the body impedance between the hands and a hand and a foot may thus be used as an estimate of a dehydration level of the full body. Instead of a sum, an average of the body impedance between the hands and a hand and a foot may be used as an estimate of a dehydration level of the full body. According to yet another example the processing means may determine a rate of change of the body impedance by determining a difference between two or more sequentially measured body impedances. The rate of change of the body impedance may indicate whether a dehydration level of the body is increasing, decreasing or is constant over a time interval. The processing means may thus output an output signal which is indicative of a dehydration status by indicating the rate of change of a dehydration level of the body (or analogously the rate of change of the body impedance).
    The output signal may alternatively or additionally be indicative of a dehydration status by including a binary flag indicating whether or not the user is dehydrated. The processing means 250 may also be arranged to calculate an absolute or relative deviation of a measured body impedance (e.g. as indicated by one or more received signals) from a predetermined body impedance. During a calibration phase of the system 200, a body impedance of a user may be measured at different levels of dehydration. One or a number of those body impedances may be used as thresholds for different levels of dehydration (e.g. corresponding to normally hydrated, 10% below the normally hydrated level, 20% below the normally hydrated level).
    As a non-limiting example, a fluid loss of one or a few liters may result in a few-to-10 % increase of the body impedance. The processing means 250 may, by using a function including the predetermined thresholds as a parameter, compare a measured body impedance to the thresholds and provide an output signal indicating in which range the measured body impedance falls. According to another example, a body impedance corresponding to a normally hydrated condition (i.e. non-dehydrated condition) may be used as the predetermined body impedance. The processing means 250 may calculate a relative or absolute deviation of the measured body impedance from the predetermined body impedance and provide an output signal indicative of the deviation. According to yet another example, a digital representation of the measured body impedance per se may be used as an indication of the dehydration status and/or dehydration level.
    The output signal may be stored as a set of data in a data buffer, indicative of the variation of the dehydration status over time. Alternatively or additionally, set of data may indicate how the dehydration level varies over time. Alternatively, or additionally the output signal may be provided to a display 290 (corresponding to the display 190) which may visualize a dehydration status and/or an estimated dehydration level, e.g. as a function varying over time. As discussed in connection with Fig. 1a, the display 290 may be a display of a portable computing device such as a smart phone. The electronics module 130 and the portable computing device may communicate wirelessly, e.g. using any well-known wireless communication protocol such as a Bluetooth® protocol. However communication over a wired interface, such as USB, is equally possible.
    Optionally, the processing means 250 may be arranged to compare a body impedance measured represented by the input signal received from the impedance measurement circuit 240 to a threshold and provide an alarm signal on a condition that the threshold is exceeded. A visual alarm signal may for example be displayed on the display 290. Alternatively or additionally an audible or tactile alarm signal may be provided via e.g. speaker or a vibrator, respectively, of the electronics module 230 or, if applicable, of the portable computing device.
    The system 200 may further be arranged to monitor an energy expenditure of the user. It is contemplated that this additional monitoring function is particularly suitable for use when the system 200 is used in combination with an exercise equipment in the form of a bike. In the following reference will therefore be made to the bike 102 in Fig. 1a. For the purpose of this additional monitoring function the processing means 250 is further arranged to estimate an energy expenditure of the user of the bike 102 based on a heart rate of the user, a velocity of the bike 102 and a respiration of the user. Various equations and models for estimating an energy expenditure based on such parameters are known in the art and will therefore not be further detailed herein. However as a non-limiting general example, the energy expenditure may be estimated using a mathematical function which outputs a metric (e.g. calculating the metric by summing and/or multiplying the values of the input parameters) which for example increases when one of the parameter values are increased and the other parameters are constant, and decreases if said parameter value decreases and the other parameters are constant. The function may apply different weights to the different input parameters such that an increase or decrease of the value of one input parameter may be compensated for by a sufficient decrease or increase, respectively, by one or more of the other input parameters. Thereby a variation of an energy expenditure over time may be estimated.
    The electronics module 230 may as illustrated includes an electrocardiography circuit 270. The electrocardiography circuit 270 is connected to the set of hand electrodes 210 and arranged to measure, using the set of hand electrodes, an electrocardiogram of the user and to provide a signal indicative of the electrocardiogram to the processing means 250. In particular the electrocardiography circuit 270 may as illustrated measure the electrocardiogram using the second left hand electrode 212b and the second right hand electrode 214b.
    The processing means 250 may estimate, based on the electrocardiogram signal received from the electrocardiography circuit 270, a heart rate of the user using techniques which per se are well-known to the person skilled in the art. The processing means 250 may further estimate the respiration rate or the respiration volume based on a body impedance measured by the impedance measurement circuit 240. The body impedance measurement forming the basis for the estimation of the respiration rate or the respiration volume may for example be measured between electrodes of the set of hand electrodes 210.
    The system 200 may further include an accelerometer 280. Based on an output signal of the accelerometer 280 the processing means 250 may estimate a current velocity of the bike 102, e.g. by integration of the acceleration measured by the accelerometer 280. However, it would also be possible to estimate the velocity of the bike 102 using a GPS device connected to the processing means 250.
    In the above the inventive concept has mainly been described with reference to a limited number of examples. However, as is readily appreciated by a person skilled in the art, other examples than the ones disclosed above are equally possible within the scope of the inventive concept, as defined by the appended claims.
    权利要求:
    Claims (20)
    [1]
    A body monitoring system (100, 200) for monitoring a dehydration status of a user of a training device (102), the system comprising: a set of hand electrodes (110, 210) comprising at least one hand electrode (112, 114, 212, 214) ), a set of foot electrodes (120, 220) comprising at least one foot electrode (122, 124, 222, 224), an impedance measuring circuit (240) which is associated with the set of hand electrodes (110, 210) and a set of foot electrodes (120, 220 ) is connected and provided to measure a body impedance between any pair of electrodes of the set of trading electrodes (110, 210) and a set of foot electrodes (120, 220), and processing means (250) provided to receive an input signal for a measured body impedance, to receive from the impedance measurement circuit (240), and to output an output signal indicating the dehydration status of the body based on the received reception signal.
    [2]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of claim 1, wherein the impedance measurement circuit (240) is provided to measure a body impedance between the at least one hand electrode (212, 214) and the at least one foot electrode (222, 224).
    [3]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of claim 1, wherein the set of hand electrodes comprises a left hand electrode (112, 212) and a right hand electrode (114, 214), wherein the impedance measurement circuit (240) is provided to detect a body impedance between any pair of electrodes. measuring selected from the group consisting of the left-hand electrode (112, 212) and the right-hand electrode (114, 214), the left-hand electrode (112, 212) and at least one foot electrode (122, 124, 222, 224) and the right-hand electrode (114) , 214) and the at least one foot electrode (122, 124, 222, 224).
    [4]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of claim 1, wherein the set of handle electrodes (110, 210) comprises a left handle electrode (112, 212) and a right handle electrode (114, 214), and the set of foot electrodes (120, 220) a left foot electrode ( 122, 222) and a right foot electrode (124, 224) and wherein the impedance measurement circuit (240) is provided to measure a body impedance between any pair of electrodes selected from the group of the left-hand electrode (112, 212) and the right-hand electrode (114, 214), the left hand electrode (112, 212) and the left foot electrode (122, 222), the left hand electrode (112, 212) and the right foot electrode (124, 224), the right hand electrode (114, 214) and the left foot electrode (122 , 222), the right hand electrode (114, 214) and the right foot electrode (124, 224), the left foot electrode (122, 222) and the right foot electrode (124, 224).
    [5]
    The body monitoring system (200) of claim 3 or 4, wherein the impedance measurement circuit (240) is provided to measure a first body impedance between a first pair of electrodes selected from said group and then a second body impedance between a second pair of electrodes be selected from the said group and distinguished from the first pair.
    [6]
    The body monitoring system (200) of claim 5, wherein the processing means (250) is provided to receive a first signal representing the first body impedance from the impedance measurement circuit (240) and a second signal representing the second body impedance, receive from the impedance measurement circuit (240), and output a first output signal indicating a first dehydration status based on the first signal and output a second output signal indicating a second dehydration status based on the second signal.
    [7]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of claim 5, wherein the processing means is provided to receive a first signal representing the first body impedance from the impedance measurement circuit (240) and a second signal representing the second body impedance, receive from the impedance measurement circuit (240), and output said output signal based on both the first and the second signal.
    [8]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) according to any of claims 1-7, wherein the set of handle electrodes (110, 210) is adapted to be arranged on a handle (104) of the training device and the set of foot electrodes is adapted to be on a footrest ( 106) of the training device.
    [9]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of any one of claims 1-8, wherein the training device is a bicycle (102) or a spinning bicycle, and the set of handle electrodes (110, 210) is adapted to be connected to a control rod (104) of the training device is arranged and the set of foot electrodes (120, 220) is adapted to be arranged on a pedal pair (106) of the training device.
    [10]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of any one of claims 1-8, wherein the training device is a bicycle (102), a spinning bicycle, a cross trainer or a rowing machine.
    [11]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of any one of claims 1-9, wherein the training device is a bicycle (102) and the processing means (250) is further arranged to control the user's energy consumption based on the user's heart rate, estimate the speed of the bicycle (102) and the breathing of the user.
    [12]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of claim 11, further comprising an electrocardiography circuit (270) connected to the set of hand electrodes and provided to measure an electrocardiogram of the user using the set of hand electrodes and a signal that indicating the electrocardiogram to be supplied to the processing means (250).
    [13]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of claim 12, wherein the processing means (250) is provided to estimate a heart rate of the user based on the signal indicating the electrocardiogram.
    [14]
    A body monitoring system (100, 200) according to claim 12 or 13, wherein the impedance measurement circuit (240) is provided to provide a signal to the processing means (250) indicating at least a respiratory rate or respiratory volume of the user or a combination thereof .
    [15]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of any one of claims 1 to 14, wherein the processing means (250) is further provided to output the output signal to a display (190, 290).
    [16]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) according to any of claims 1 to 15, wherein the processing means (250) is furthermore provided to provide an alarm signal under the condition that the body impedance for which the input signal stands exceeds a threshold value.
    [17]
    The body monitoring system (100, 200) of any one of claims 1 to 16, wherein the set of hand electrodes (110, 210) and a first and a second left hand electrode (112a, 112b, 212a, 212b) a first and a second right hand electrode (114a) , 114b, 214a, 214b), wherein the impedance measurement circuit (240) is provided to provide a body impedance between the first left hand electrode (112a, 212a) and the second right hand electrode (114a, 214a) and a voltage between the second left hand electrode (112b, 212b) and measuring the second right hand electrode (114b, 214b).
    [18]
    A body monitoring system (100, 200) according to any of the preceding claims 1-7, further comprising a portable item such as a shoe, glove or sock, the portable item comprising a conductor extending from an inside of the portable item to the outside of the portable item to provide a galvanic connection between an electrode of the first or second set of electrodes (110, 210, 120, 220) and the user.
    [19]
    A training device (102) with a body monitoring system (100, 200) according to any of claims 1-8, wherein the set of handle electrodes (110, 210) is arranged on a handle (104) of the training device and the set of foot electrodes (120) is arranged on a footrest (106) of the training device.
    [20]
    The training device (102) of claim 17, wherein the training device (102) comprises a left and right pedal and the left foot electrode (122, 222) is arranged on the left pedal and the right foot electrode (124, 224) is arranged on the right pedal.
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    同族专利:
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    DE202014106089U1|2015-04-02|
    NL2015951B1|2016-12-22|
    引用文献:
    公开号 | 申请日 | 公开日 | 申请人 | 专利标题
    法律状态:
    2021-08-04| MM| Lapsed because of non-payment of the annual fee|Effective date: 20210101 |
    优先权:
    申请号 | 申请日 | 专利标题
    DE201420106089|DE202014106089U1|2014-12-16|2014-12-16|Body monitoring system|
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