Nose Airflow Sensor: Breathing and Respiration Monitoring

This page describes the respiratory nose airflow sensor used for monitoring breathing and respiration, detailing its features and specifications. It explains how the nose airflow sensor functions as a breathing and respiration sensor.

Introduction

Recent research indicates a rise in deaths worldwide due to COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease). COPD is projected to become the third leading cause of death by 2020, with tobacco smoking being a major contributing factor.

Spirometry is considered the optimal method for screening individuals at risk of developing COPD. It’s becoming increasingly essential for patients experiencing respiratory illnesses. Various biomedical sensors, including breathing sensors, are available to analyze patients’ biomedical signs. These sensors can be easily interfaced with platforms like Arduino, Raspberry Pi, or other microcontrollers.

What is a Breathing and Respiration Sensor?

Definition

An airflow sensor provides early warnings for hypoxemia and apnea. A respiration sensor is a device used to measure the respiration rate in a patient. These sensors assist individuals requiring respiratory support.

Image: Respiration Sensor, nose airflow sensor

As shown in the figure, the sensor consists of a bendable thread that fits behind the ears and two prongs that are placed inside the nostrils. It utilizes a thermocouple sensor to detect thermal respiration and airflow changes, as well as the nasal temperature of inhaled/exhaled air. A normal human being has a respiration rate of approximately 15-30 breaths per minute.

The nasal airflow sensor is available from Cooking Hacks.

Nose Airflow Respiratory Sensor: Working and Interfacing

The respiratory sensor can be connected to an Arduino board via an analog input. It returns an ADC value in the range of 0 to 1024.

The diagram below illustrates the nose airflow sensor interfacing with an e-Health sensor shield. It shows the connections between the pins of both the respiratory sensor and the e-Health shield board.

The e-Health sensor has been developed by Cooking Hacks USA. It’s compatible with Arduino Mega, Arduino Uno, and Raspberry Pi boards. The e-Health shield can be interfaced on top of the Arduino or Raspberry Pi since it’s pin-to-pin compatible, allowing for expanded testing of various sensors alongside these boards.

This e-Health shield is highly useful for testing various biomedical sensors. It supports the interfacing of about ten different sensors, such as SpO2, body temperature, GSR, blood pressure, glucometer, breathing, position, ECG, EMG, etc.