Medical Data Over Sound - HealthTalk Concept

This paper presents a proof of concept for real-time medical signal processing using audio as the transmission medium. Vital sign such ECG and PPG are used as an example, while the approach can be applied to any biomedical signal that changes slowly or moderately over time.The system architecture includes a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter senses the medical signal, encodes it, and converts it into an audio waveform, which is transmitted via wire, air, or fluid. The receiver captures the sound, converts it back into an electrical and digital signal, decodes it, and processes it further. Low-cost components such as standard piezo speakers and microphones are used for signal conversion, while the processing algorithms run on affordable hardware or any mobile device.For airborne transmission, the system operates in the 16–22 kHz frequency range, which is typically inaudible or barely audible to humans. The system is capable of transmitting analog or digital signals, in single or multi-channel modes.The paper describes HeatlthTalk methodology on the system level with emphasis to software decoding on receiver side, implemented in open-source, platform-independent technologies such as JavaScript + CSS + HTML.The HealthTalk is low-cost, energy-efficient, easy to implement, eco friendly and robust against noise. It can operate without a persistent connection, making it suitable for "plug-out" or offline environments. HealthTalk offers a potential alternative to wireless communication systems such as RF, Bluetooth (BT), and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) in appropriate applications.