UWB radars in medicine

TLDR

UWB radar applications in medicine cover cardiac biomechanics, respiratory monitoring, sleep apnea, sudden infant death syndrome, and vocal tract studies, mainly in the microwave frequency range. The study aims to identify, design, develop, and clinically test new biomedical devices enabled by UWB radar. The system employs an IR laser diode antenna that emits short electromagnetic packets, with echoes captured by a conventional UWB receiver equipped with a PIN photodiode, creating a hybrid narrow‑band/wide‑band radar. The technology permits non‑invasive biochemical and metabolic studies of soft tissues and infrared spectral imaging.

Abstract

Applied research on biomedical applications of UWB radar is targeted to the identification of the possible new devices made possible by the technology, to the design and development of those devices, and to the clinical testing of the systems obtained. Applications can be divided into two main sectors according to the frequency range used. For the conventional UWB radar microwave region: cardiac biomechanics assessment; chest movements assessment OSA (obstructive sleep apnoea) monitors; soft-tissue biomechanics research; heart imaging ("Holter type" echocardiography); chest imaging. Together with systems for: cardiac monitoring; respiratory monitoring; SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) monitor; vocal tract studying. If an IR laser diode is used as the antenna, a more common radar is obtained (actually a hybrid between a narrow band and a wide band radar) which emits a short packet of electromagnetic waves whose echoes are sampled using conventional UWB receiver equipped with a PIN photodiode. Possibilities include: non-invasive biochemical study of soft tissues, non-invasive study of metabolic processes, and IR spectral imaging.