An Android-based body area network gateway for mobile health applications

Abstract

This paper presents a Body Area Network (BAN) gateway to Android mobile phones for mobile health applications. The proposed approach is based on a Secure Digital Input Output (SDIO) interface, which allows for long-term monitoring since the mobile phone hardware can be extended in order to operate with ultra low-power radios. The software architecture implemented on the mobile phone enables different features; data can be displayed, further processed or sent to a remote server exploiting the WLAN or 3G networks. Moreover, the system allows to configure thresholds on the measured parameters and to automatically send alerts such as SMS messages and emails based on these values. The system is illustrated for the case of ambulatory ECG monitoring.