Measuring pulse rate with a webcam — A non-contact method for evaluating cardiac activity

TLDR

The paper presents a simple, robust method for measuring pulse rate. The method uses a webcam‑captured face image, selecting appropriate color channels and applying principal component analysis to extract the pulse signal. The non‑contact technique is demonstrated and could be valuable for home monitoring once further refinements are made.

Abstract

In this paper the simple and robust method of measuring the pulse rate is presented. Elaborated algorithm allows for efficient pulse rate registration directly from face image captured from webcam. The desired signal was obtained by proper channel selection and principal component analysis. A developed non-contact method of heart rate monitoring is shown in the paper. The proposed technique may have a great value in monitoring person at home after adequate enhancements are introduced.