An automatic ECG generator for testing and evaluating ECG sensor algorithms

The use of biomedical sensors, be it attached or embedded inside a human body, to monitor various physiological parameters is increasing at a significant rate due to continued advances in miniaturizations and materials. Testing and verification of the algorithms used in processing the physiological parameters of concern is essential, given the sensitivity of their usage. Simulation is a technique that is widely used to achieve this. However, proper test cases are required in order to carry out the simulation process. ElectroCardioGram (ECG) is one of the most commonly used and studied physiological signal, yet, algorithms that handle ECG recorded data are not being tested and verified thoroughly due to the lack of proper test cases. This paper presents an automatic test case generation algorithm that can be used to provide ECG records for testing purposes. The algorithm is based on a range of the parameters related ECG components such as amplitude, duration, slope, and physical characteristics. Hence, the required shape of the ECG can be controlled in order to be able to cover a wide range of scenarios during testing. We provide an implementation of the algorithm and illustrate it on two different ECG sensor algorithms.