24 GHz six-port medical radar for contactless respiration detection and heartbeat monitoring

For numerous medical applications it is of primary interest to monitor the breath rate and heartbeat of a patient over time. Especially important is to observe the respiration of a patient over night to detect potential sleep disorders. Furthermore, heartbeat frequency is also a precious information which can help to improve diverse diagnosis procedures. In order to better analyze these vital parameters an innovative contactless respiration detection and heartbeat monitoring technique has been developed. This novel method is based on the six-port interferometric radar and is capable of detecting breath rate as well as heartbeat frequency without applying sensors or electrodes on the patients body.