Heart Rate Variability (HRV) is a clinically informative indicator used in cardiac risk assessment. For those with pre-existing cardiac issues, low HRV is a strong metric for sudden cardiac death. To properly treat and diagnose these individuals, it’s vital to have accurate HRV measurements. HRV is typically measured in a clinic with an EKG or at home with smart watches. However, both these methods present accessibility issues for patients. Patients lack a simple, portable, and purely clinical tool that consistently captures HRV at home while securely sharing results with physicians. Our project aims to develop a small device that can fit on a patient’s key chain for intermittent measurements as a patient goes about their day. Our final prototype will be battery-powered, accurately record signals, compute HRV, support multiple users in a household, and transfer results securely for clinical review.

Our team collaborated with Computer Science & Engineering 24 on this project.