"Smart Car": sensors and AI analysis to detect risk of stroke
People spend a lot of time in their cars. That's why researchers are working on a system integrated into the car with regular health check-ups.
The smart car passively and continuously monitors your health while driving with built-in sensors for ECG, heart rate and respiratory rate.
(Image: PLRI/TU Braunschweig)
On average, people spend 43 minutes a day in their cars, say the researchers. Although vehicles already contain a number of sensors and assistance functions, they do not record any health data. Yet there is enough time during regular journeys to collect health data for a health check, explains Julian Bollmann, research associate at the Peter L. Reichertz Institute for Medical Informatics at TU Braunschweig and Hannover Medical School.
The researchers have installed various sensors in their prototype of a "Car as a Diagnostic System" (CarDS), including one for measuring body temperature in the seat. The heart rate is recorded twice: by an ECG in the seatbelt and one in the steering wheel. In addition, camera systems provide important information, such as changes in facial color and breathing rate.
(Image:Â heise online / mack)
Car as a diagnostic center
An AI then evaluates the (image) data with the help of a powerful mini-computer. However, it also works with sensors that are already installed in the car. Data from the CAN bus will also be incorporated. The system currently focuses on ECG data, but the researchers are also testing other sensors, for example for measuring blood pressure. In order to be able to evaluate the data reliably, the system first has to get to know the driver. After a few journeys, it should recognize irregularities, but not sound the alarm too early. The smart car is not intended as an emergency system, says Bollmann, but as an aid to early detection.
(Image:Â heise online / mack)
In the prototype, the sensors and the camera are still clearly visible; in the future, it is conceivable that the camera could be integrated into the rear-view mirror, for example. According to the researchers, younger people in particular do not take indications of an increased risk of stroke seriously, so the car could serve as a constant that recognizes risks at an early stage. For older people, for example, it is conceivable that they could switch to a safety mode by combining the system with autonomous driving.
(mack)
