HeaR

Project Description:

HeaR aims to provide a solution for an embedded ear-worn PPG sensor that automatically estimates the vital parameters. According to WHO approximately 430 Million people, which make 5% of the world’s population, are disabled with hearing loss. It is also assumed that due to the prevalence of harmful listening practices of young people, the necessity of hearing aids is going to increase in the near future.
So far, monitoring vital parameters still requires external devices such as, for instance wrist-worn smart watches or applications that are more obtrusive like Holter ECGs. For people that already use hearing aids, we help to simultaneously fulfil the function of a hearing aid and those of wearable devices in monitoring the important vital signs: heart and breathing rate.
The vital parameters are monitored in real-time, processed and transmitted wirelessly to a smartphone, where the user can easily access the data and receives a broader understanding of his own physical state. Furthermore, in the future this technology could enable physicians to easily monitor patients in real-time and real-world environments. This novel approach may be used to efficiently detect cardiovascular diseases in an early stage thus helping many indivduals and their relatives.
HeaR is developed with our project partner WS Audiology.

Development Team: Janis Zenkner, Sebastian Probst, Soundarya Soundarresan, Nina Goes, Florian Halmheu, Felix Landwehr

Scrum Master: Ann-Kristin Seifer, Alzhraa Ahmed
Partner: WS Audiology