Method, medical system, and computer readable medium

1 . A method for obtaining photoplethysmographic data suitable for medical measurement, the method comprising:

emitting light from a photoplethysmographic sensor toward a body of a patient, and converting the light reflected by or passing through the body and received by the sensor for a particular period into a voltage signal indicating variation of voltage in the period;

calculating one or more scores for each of one or more portions of the voltage signal using voltage values thereof;

generating data corresponding to one of the portions, the one or more scores of which satisfy a predetermined condition; and

storing in a memory the generated data as the photoplethysmographic data suitable for the medical measurement, wherein

the one or more scores include a second score representing periodicity of a waveform in each portion of the voltage signal, and

calculating includes determining an envelope curve of each portion of the voltage signal and performing an autocorrelation analysis on waveform data obtained by dividing the voltage values of each portion of the voltage signal by voltage values of the envelope curve.

2 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein calculating includes calculating a first score representing a degree of distortion of each portion of the voltage signal using the voltage values thereof and a predetermined upper limit of voltage variation.

3 . The method according to claim 2 , wherein the predetermined condition is satisfied when the first score is smaller than a first threshold.

4 . The method according to claim 2 , further comprising:

generating a waveform image for each portion of the voltage signal, and

the first score is calculated using the generated image.

5 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the predetermined condition is satisfied when the second score is greater than a second threshold.

6 . The method according to claim 1 , further comprising:

storing a reference waveform in the memory, wherein

calculating includes calculating a third score representing similarity between each portion of the voltage signal and the reference waveform stored in the memory.

7 . The method according to claim 6 , wherein the predetermined condition is satisfied when the third score is greater than a third threshold.

8 . A medical system comprising:

a photoplethysmographic sensor attachable to a body of a patient, and configured to emit light toward the body, and convert the light reflected by or passing through the body and received for a particular period into a voltage signal indicating variation of voltage in the period; and

an information processing apparatus comprising:

an interface circuit connectable to the sensor,

a memory, and

a processor configured to:

acquire the voltage signal from the sensor through the interface circuit,

calculate one or more scores for each of one or more portions of the voltage signal using voltage values thereof,

generate data corresponding to one of the portions, the one or more scores of which satisfy a predetermined condition, and

store in the memory the generated data as photoplethysmographic data suitable for medical measurement, wherein

the one or more scores include a second score representing periodicity of a waveform in each portion of the voltage signal, and

the processor is further configured to:

determine an envelope curve of each portion of the voltage signal, and

perform an autocorrelation analysis on waveform data obtained by dividing the voltage values of each portion of the voltage signal by voltage values of the envelope curve.

9 . The medical system according to claim 8 , wherein the processor is configured to acquire a pulse rate of the patient using the data stored in the memory.

10 . The medical system according to claim 8 , wherein the processor calculates the score representing a degree of distortion of each portion of the voltage signal using the voltage values thereof and a predetermined upper limit of voltage variation.

11 . The medical system according to claim 10 , wherein the predetermined condition is satisfied when the score is smaller than a first threshold.

12 . The medical system according to claim 10 , wherein the processor is configured to:

generate a waveform image for each portion of the voltage signal, and

calculate the score using the generated image.

13 . The medical system according to claim 8 , wherein the predetermined condition is satisfied when the score is greater than a second threshold.

14 . A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a program causing a computer to execute a method for obtaining photoplethysmographic data suitable for medical measurement, the method comprising:

emitting light from a photoplethysmographic sensor toward a body of a patient, and converting the light reflected by or passing through the body and received by the sensor for a particular period into a voltage signal indicating variation of voltage in the period;

calculating one or more scores for each of one or more portions of the voltage signal using voltage values thereof;

generating data corresponding to one of the portions, the one or more scores of which satisfy a predetermined condition; and

storing, in a memory of the computer, the generated data as the photoplethysmographic data suitable for the medical measurement, wherein

the one or more scores include a second score representing periodicity of a waveform in each portion of the voltage signal, and

calculating includes determining an envelope curve of each portion of the voltage signal and performing an autocorrelation analysis on waveform data obtained by dividing the voltage values of each portion of the voltage signal by voltage values of the envelope curve.