Zhang, Chi;
Duan, Jinyuan;
Lu, Shuai;
Zhang, Duojun;
Temiz, Murat;
Zhang, Yongwei;
Meng, Zhaozong;
(2025)
Design and Experimental Demonstration of an Integrated Sensing and Communication System for Vital Sign Detection.
Sensors
, 25
(12)
, Article 3766. 10.3390/s25123766.
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Abstract
The identification of vital signs is becoming increasingly important in various applications, including healthcare monitoring, security, smart homes, and locating entrapped persons after disastrous events, most of which are achieved using continuous-wave radars and ultra-wideband systems. Operating frequency and transmission power are important factors to consider when conducting earthquake search and rescue (SAR) operations in urban regions. Poor communication infrastructure can also impede SAR operations. This study proposes a method for vital sign detection using an integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) system where a unified orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) signal was adopted, and it is capable of sensing life signs and carrying out communication simultaneously. An ISAC demonstration system based on software-defined radios (SDRs) was initiated to detect respiratory and heartbeat rates while maintaining communication capability in a typical office environment. The specially designed OFDM signals were transmitted, reflected from a human subject, received, and processed to estimate the micro-Doppler effect induced by the breathing and heartbeat of the human in the environment. According to the results, vital signs, including respiration and heartbeat rates, have been accurately detected by post-processing the reflected OFDM signals with a 1 MHz bandwidth, confirmed with conventional contact-based detection approaches. The potential of dual-function capability of OFDM signals for sensing purposes has been verified. The principle and method developed can be applied in wider ISAC systems for search and rescue purposes while maintaining communication links.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Design and Experimental Demonstration of an Integrated Sensing and Communication System for Vital Sign Detection |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.3390/s25123766 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.3390/s25123766 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | © 2025 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
| Keywords: | integrated sensing and communications; micro-doppler; orthogonal frequency division multiplexing; software-defined radio; vital signs |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Electronic and Electrical Eng |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10210573 |
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