Capstone 2019 Highlight: Wireless Neonatal Vital Sign Monitor
Department: Biomedical Engineering; Electrical and Computer Engineering
Team: Faris Alaggad, Trevor Dyke, Marida Khan, Nick Jarratt
Advisers: Sherif Abdelwahed, Ph.D.; Ding-Yu Fei, Ph.D.

Newborn babies being cared for in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit need to have their vital signs monitored continuously. Currently, monitors with wires and cords are bulky and present an obstacle for nurses who need to move the infant and parents who wish to hold their child.

A Capstone Design team is developing a wearable device that wirelessly transmits data from sensors on the infant to a patient data module. The wearable device and the module will both be connected to a microcontroller that is programmed to establish communication between them. When complete, the system will be able to keep track of the infant’s heart rate, respiratory rate and amount of oxygen in the blood, or peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO2).

The wearable device will have to be small and light so that it doesn’t pose a hazard for the infant. And it will need to be compatible with equipment currently being used in hospitals and operate on a bandwidth that does not interfere with other wireless devices in the room.

The goal of the project is to monitor the infant’s vital signs while making it safer and easier for the infant to be transported and to bond with caregivers. The student team plans to demonstrate a prototype of their device at the Capstone Design Expo on April 26, 2019.