Xerox Innovation Group Collaborates with Manipal University Hospital to Develop Remote Sensing Healthcare Technology
Xerox India, researchers are collaborating with Manipal University Hospital to develop non-contact health sensing technology that can accurately obtain and track healthcare vitals such as heart rate, temperature and some respiratory functions. It can also detect cardiac dysrhythmia (irregular heart beat) without any probes touching the patient. The innovation promises to change how medical professionals collect and use important health data.
“This research has the potential to advance healthcare management system,” said Lalit K Mestha, research fellow at Xerox Research Center Webster and project leader. “While many are focusing on wearable technology for health sensing, we are going beyond this by conducting research in non-contact health sensing that has the potential to greatly improve the comfort and quality of healthcare.”
Some of the technology is currently being tested in the neonatal unit of Manipal University. One of the key benefits is the ability to automatically analyze and detect respiratory and other medical diagnosis in infants without requiring contact probes attached to their sensitive skin. The goal is to make continuous monitoring contact free, increasing patient comfort without decreasing accuracy of the health parameters being detected.
“We are pleased to report that early results from the remote sensing research are very promising and show accuracy levels that are close to current results captured via probes attached to the patient,” saidDr. Vijay Kumar a Paediatric Surgeon and a Principal Investigator on the project from Manipal University Hospital. The observation process is absolutely safe and does not harm patients. Light from the cameras penetrates into the skin allowing information to be captured and converted to health indicators. The visible light is captured by these cameras and is not harmful, making it suitable for long observation periods and allowing patients greater mobility.
“Our partnership with Manipal University Hospital is helping us move the technology closer to reality,” said Dr. Manish Gupta, Vice President, Xerox Corp and Director of Xerox Research Centre in India. “This research can have great implications for the future of healthcare and telemedicine in the country.”