Methods and devices provide physiological movement detection, such as gesture, breathing, cardiac and/or gross body motion, with active sound generation such as for an interactive audio device. The processor may evaluate, via a microphone coupled to the interactive audio device, a sensed audible verbal communication. The processor may control producing, via a speaker coupled to the processor, a sound signal in a user's vicinity. The processor may control sensing, via a microphone coupled to the processor, a reflected sound signal. This reflected sound signal is a reflection of the generated sound signal from the vicinity or user. The processor may process the reflected sound, such as by a demodulation technique, to derive a physiological movement signal. The processor may generate, in response to the sensed audible verbal communication, an output based on an evaluation of the derived physiological movement signal.

The disclosure describes devices for monitoring physiological activity (e.g., a pulse). These devices can include: a detector configured to detect sound; an ultrasound system to detect fluid flow; an adhesive to attach a detector to skin of a patient; an adhesive to attach a probe to skin of a patient; and a speaker to amplify or communicate detected sound or flow.

Photoacoustic and/or acousto-optical techniques may be used to transabdominally perform fetal oximetry and/or trans-abdominal fetal pulse oximetry. In some cases, a composite acoustic signal that has emanated from an abdomen of a pregnant mammal may be received by a processor from, for example, an ultrasonic detector and/or microphone positioned on, or near, a pregnant mammal's abdomen and the composite acoustic signal may result from an optical signal incident on the pregnant mammal's abdomen and a fetus contained therein. A portion of the composite acoustic signal that was incident on the fetus may be isolated from the composite acoustic signal and then analyzed to determine a fetal hemoglobin oxygen saturation level and/or a fetal tissue oxygen saturation level.

Photoacoustic and/or acousto-optical techniques may be used to transabdominally perform fetal oximetry and/or trans-abdominal fetal pulse oximetry. In some cases, a composite acoustic signal that has emanated from an abdomen of a pregnant mammal may be received by a processor from, for example, an ultrasonic detector and/or microphone positioned on, or near, a pregnant mammal's abdomen and the composite acoustic signal may result from an optical signal incident on the pregnant mammal's abdomen and a fetus contained therein. A portion of the composite acoustic signal that was incident on the fetus may be isolated from the composite acoustic signal and then analyzed to determine a fetal hemoglobin oxygen saturation level and/or a fetal tissue oxygen saturation level.

Cardiac Output (CO) has traditionally been difficult, dangerous, and expensive to obtain. Surrogate measures such as pulse rate and blood pressure have therefore been used to permit an estimate of CO. MEMS technology, evolutionary computation, and time-frequency signal analysis techniques provide a technology to non-invasively estimate CO, based on precordial (chest wall) motions. The technology detects a ventricular contraction time point, and stroke volume, from chest wall motion measurements. As CO is the product of heart rate and stroke volume, these algorithms permit continuous, beat to beat CO assessment. Nontraditional Wavelet analysis can be used to extract features from chest acceleration. A learning tool is preferable to define the packets which best correlate to contraction time and stroke volume.

An apparatus for estimating bio-information is provided. The apparatus for estimating bio-information according to an embodiment includes: an ultrasonic sensor configured to acquire a bio-signal from an object; and a processor configured to detect peaks from the bio-signal, and to determine false detection of a peak, among the detected peaks, by using at least one of a time interval between a current peak and an immediately preceding peak, amplitudes of the current peak and the immediately preceding peak, a shape of a waveform on a left region and a right region of the peak, and an occurrence position of the peak.

A temporal change at each coordinate of interest which is spatially fixed in frame data of a plurality of time phases obtained by transmitting and receiving ultrasound is made understandable. A trace processor derives an amount of temporal change at each coordinate of interest of a plurality of coordinates of interest which are spatially fixed in the frame data over a plurality of time phases. The trace processor also derives an amount of spatial movement of each site of interest based on the amount of temporal change of each coordinate of interest near each site of interest. Further, the trace processor derives an amount of spatial movement of each site of interest for each time phase over a plurality of time phases in a trace period, and traces a motion of each site of interest in the trace period based on the amount of movement derived for each time phase.

Aspects of the technology described herein relate to techniques for guiding an operator to use an ultrasound device. Thereby, operators with little or no experience operating ultrasound devices may capture medically relevant ultrasound images and/or interpret the contents of the obtained ultrasound images. For example, some of the techniques disclosed herein may be used to identify a particular anatomical view of a subject to image with an ultrasound device, guide an operator of the ultrasound device to capture an ultrasound image of the subject that contains the particular anatomical view, and/or analyze the captured ultrasound image to identify medical information about the subject.

Aspects of the technology described herein relate to techniques for guiding an operator to use an ultrasound device. Thereby, operators with little or no experience operating ultrasound devices may capture medically relevant ultrasound images and/or interpret the contents of the obtained ultrasound images. For example, some of the techniques disclosed herein may be used to identify a particular anatomical view of a subject to image with an ultrasound device, guide an operator of the ultrasound device to capture an ultrasound image of the subject that contains the particular anatomical view, and/or analyze the captured ultrasound image to identify medical information about the subject.

A system and method are provided for transthoracic echocardiogram imaging using ultrasound transducer arrays. The arrays are distinctly grouped, focused, positioned and directed within a housing comprising a solid yet flexible pad suited for placement on a portion of a patient's body.