Non-invasive breathing monitor

A non-invasive instrument to monitor the breathing of very young children with respiratory problems is being developed by researchers at the University of the West of England (

).

Project partners include Bristol University and consultants at University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust’s Bristol Royal Hospital for Children and Frenchay Hospital.

Dr Lyndon Smith from UWE’s Machine Vision Lab is the principal investigator, working on developing a system that he claims will revolutionise how breathing is monitored.

‘Currently, young children with breathing problems are usually monitored via a combination of bands strapped around the chest and abdomen that need to be attached to computers to enable doctors and nurses to measure breathing,’ he said. ‘The beauty of the new system is that it will record similar measurements as current equipment without the need to attach various instruments to the child.'

The system will employ a method called dynamic photometric stereo that involves combining a camera with specially positioned lighting to create structured illumination of the body surface.