Remote assessment of the heart rate variability to detect mental stress

In the present paper, we introduce a new framework for detecting workload changes using video frames obtained from a low-cost webcam. The measurements are performed on human faces and the proposed algorithms were developed to be motion-tolerant. An interactive Stroop color word test is employed to induce stress on a set of twelve participants. We record the skin conductance and compare these responses to the stress curve assessed by a webcam-derived heart rate variability analysis. The results offer further support for the applicability of stress detection by remote and low-cost means, providing an alternative to conventional contact techniques.