Contactless Heart Rate Detection Using MM-Wave Radar Systems Advancements

In recent years, there has been a significant surge in the development of non-contact methods for detecting heart and breathing rates. Various Millimeter-wave (MM-wave) radar systems, operating at different frequency bands like 10 GHz, 24 GHz, 77 GHz, and 122 GHz, have been effectively deployed for this purpose. This paper explores the vital application of contactless systems in the medical field, particularly during disasters and epidemics. These systems are crucial for detecting the heart and breathing rates of individuals trapped under debris, in military operations, long-term vital sign monitoring in hospitals, and aiding the elderly in public spaces. Consequently, our focus is on heart and breathing rate detection using radar systems. This paper highlights the significance of capturing the electrical representation of the heart signal. This approach is known for its trustworthiness and accuracy in identifying various medical conditions. Furthermore, a traditional method based on Fourier transform is presented for heart and respiration rate estimation. This method leverages the direct proportionality between heart and breathing rates and the frequencies of raw radar signals. To estimate the breathing rate, it identifies the maximum peak within the frequency range of 0.15 to 0.4 Hz in the frequency domain and multiplies the corresponding frequency by 60 to obtain the rate per minute. For heart rate estimation, it detects the maximum peak within the frequency range of 0.8 to 2 Hz and calculates the rate per minute accordingly