Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Guha Balakrishnan

Frederic Durand

John V Guttag

Heart rates and beat lengths of a subject can be extracted from videos of the subject by measuring subtle head motion caused by the Newtonian reaction to the influx of blood at each beat. Embodiments track features on the video images of the subject's head and perform principal component analysis (PCA) to decompose the feature location-time series into a set of component motions. The method or system then selects a component that best corresponds to heartbeats based on its temporal frequency spectrum. Finally, the motion projected to this component is analyzed and peaks of the location-time series are identified, which correspond to heartbeats. Pulse rate measurements or heart rate measurements of the subject are output.

Pulse detection from head motions in video

Heart rates and beat lengths can be extracted from videos by measuring subtle head motion caused by the Newtonian reaction to the influx of blood at each beat. In an embodiment of the present invention, a method tracks features on the head and performs principal component analysis (PCA) to decompose their trajectories into a set of component motions. The method then selects a component that best corresponds to heartbeats based on its temporal frequency spectrum. Finally, the motion projected to this component is analyzed and peaks of the trajectories are identified, which correspond to heartbeats.

Growing community of inventors

Cambridge, MA, United States of America

Guha Balakrishnan