Multi-Stage Real Time Health Monitoring via ZigBee in Smart Homes

We present a framework for a wireless health monitoring system within a smart home using ZigBee technology. Vital signals are collected and processed using a 3-tiered architecture. The first stage is the mobile device carried on the body that runs a number of wired and wireless probes. This device is also designed to perform some basic processing such as the heart rate and fatal failure detection. At the second stage, further processing is performed by a local server using the raw data transmitted by the mobile device continuously. The raw data is also stored at this server. The processed data as well as the outcomes of the analyses are then transmitted to the service provider center for experts´ review for diagnosis as well as storage. The main advantages of the proposed framework are (1) the ability to detect signals wirelessly within a body area network (BAN) (2) low-power and reliable data sensing through ZigBee network nodes and (3) optimized analysis of data through an adaptive tiered architecture that maximizes the utility of processing and computational capacity at each of three stages. We are currently building a prototype of the proposed system using in-house ECG probes and ZigBee radio modules.