A device for measuring the electrical bioimpedance with variety of electrode placements for monitoring the breathing and heart rate

In this paper the determination of the positions of surface plate electrodes on human trunk for measuring the breathing and heart rate by using the electrical bioimpedance is presented. The designed and implemented measurement device - electrode shirt - is described. The novelty of current work is incorporated into the solution of placing the large surface plate electrodes into the garment. Focus is set on the capacitive connection to the object, revealing the problems of the influence of motions and displacement of the electrodes to the result. The best configurations for heart rate are showing the portion of change of the real part of total body impedance up to 5 percent. The result concerning the breathing rate is showing promising results, reaching up to 90 percent of real part of total body impedance. The best determined electrode placement configurations are showing the possibility of detecting the breathing and heart rate by using single electrode placement.