On-Line and Off-Line ECG and Motion Activity Monitoring System for Athletes

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to present a new ECG and motion activity monitoring and on-line analysis system for athle-
tes. The developed system is intended to facilitate the coach in optimizing and individualizing the training of elite
athletes.
The hardware system consists of the device for registration of ECG and accelerometer signals and wireless trans-
mission to computer. The coach software works in two modes: on-line version is used during training and off-line
version is designed for detailed data analysis after training. The new method for respiration frequency evaluation was
developed and checked on 28 persons, and in most cases the developed algorithm correctly evaluated the respiration
frequency of the investigated persons. The evaluation of athlete’s functional state from calculated and measured pa-
rameters and formation of warning signals (green — normal state, yellow — limitary state and red — premonitory
state) is based on the analysis applying Moore and Mealy automata algorithms. The software for the evaluation of
the patient’s activity was tested on 11 healthy students: the increase in physical activity level during the brisk walk
was 1.4 times higher compared to the level during the slow walk, and during the jogging sessions it was 1.89 times
higher than during the slow walk.
The results obtained during the investigations show that the developed ECG and motion activity monitoring system
with two packages of software allows to measure cardio respiratory changes and changes in intensities of physical
activity under daily conditions. The comprehensive off-line analysis by monitoring data provides the possibility for
coaches to make more detailed analysis of cardio respiratory changes and changes in intensities during training.

Keywords: monitoring system for athletes, electrocardiogram, accelerometry, respiration frequency.