The Medical Mirror, a MIT student INNOVATION
How It Works: Medical Mirror: The webcam in a monitor behind the two-way mirror captures the changes in the light reflected off the subject’s face when the heart beats. The computer translates the light data into a heart rate reading.
The Medical Mirror is a novel interactive interface that tracks and displays a user’s heart rate in real time without the need for external sensors. Currently, collection of physiological information requires users to strap on bulky sensors, chest straps, or sticky electrodes. The Medical Mirror allows contact-free measurements of physiological information using a basic imaging device. When a user looks into the mirror, an image sensor detects and tracks the location of his or her face over time. By combining techniques in computer vision and advanced signal processing, the user’s heart rate is then computed from the optical signal reflected off the face. The user’s heart rate is displayed on the mirror, allowing visualization of both the user’s physical appearance and physiological state.
This project illustrates an innovative approach to pervasive health monitoring based on state-of-the-art technology. The Medical Mirror fits seamlessly into the ambient home environment, blending the data collection process into the course of daily routines. It is intended to provide a convenient way for people to track their daily health when they use the mirror for shaving, brushing teeth, etc.
So far, graduate student Ming-Zher Poh has demonstrated that the system can indeed extract accurate pulse measurements from ordinary low-resolution webcam imagery. Now he’s working on extending the capabilities so it can measure respiration and blood-oxygen levels. He hopes eventually to be able to monitor blood pressure as well. Initial results of his work, carried out with the help of Media Lab student Daniel McDuff and Professor of Media Arts and Sciences Rosalind Picard, were published earlier this year in the journal Optics Express.(1)
In my opinion this kind of innovations demonstrate that everyone could innovate, without any limit or barriers of knowledge, we need just a trigger and then develop our idea with feedbacks and go beyond.
It’s a clear example of Open Innovation/User Lead Innovation, since it comes from a possible final user and that could be undertake and develop with the knowledge of some bigger company of the sector; it shows the potential of an idea and the opportunity that an open innovation could give to our society and add a huge value even though it comes from a “simple” student and not from a R&D department of a big multinational.
I like to figure the same success for the project that we (EOI students) are going to begin and which we’ll present in July.
Be innovative then! 
(Sin Valorar)
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06 feb 2012
por
Luca Palma
IMSD /
health, innovation, medical mirror, MIT
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