Bio-Remote Sensing in Real-Time Thermographic Face Detection and Respiratory Rate Measurement

Abstract

Measuring respiratory rates for different age groups during monitoring and patient treatment at the hospital is extremely important. Monitoring respiratory rate for a long time provides physicians and nurses valuable information about the patient's health condition. Incorrect respiratory rate information of adults or infants can result in incorrect diagnosing and treatment of the patient. The traditional respiratory rate measurement and monitoring is contact based. However, these are quite obtrusive since the patient needs to be connected to the monitoring apparatus with wires. These methods could cause damage to vulnerable skin like preterm infants and create stress or pain. This paper introduces a novel thermographic Bio-Remote sensing approach that enables real-time face detection and respiratory rate measurement of subjects using a single thermal camera system. The algorithm achieves this without requiring nostril location, instead utilising thermal images and minimum temperature profiles for accurate detections and measurement. Furthermore, this paper discusses the significance of combining Deep Learning (DL) with the Thermal Imaging technique to provide a safer, faster, and more practical solution for hospitals by accurately measuring the respiratory rate compared to a monitoring device as the golden standard.