Monitoring physiologic parameters for timing feedback to enhance performance of a subject during an activity
A method includes monitoring first and second sets of physiologic parameters from at least one site on a subject utilizing at least one sensing device, identifying first and second events related to the first and second sets of physiologic parameters, generating first and second timestamps for the first and second events, determining a timing for providing feedback to the subject relative to the first timestamp and the second timestamp to adjust one or more characteristics of the subject during an activity, and providing one or more feedback signals to the subject in accordance with the determined timing utilizing at least one stimulating device. Adjusting one or more characteristics of the subject during the activity may include enhancing cardio-pulmonary performance of the subject during the activity, providing biomechanical enhancement of movement of at least a portion of the subject during the activity.
1 . An apparatus comprising:
a processor; and
a memory coupled to the processor;
the processor being configured:
to monitor a first set of one or more physiologic parameters and a second set of one or more physiologic parameters from at least one site on a subject, wherein the first set of one or more physiologic parameters and the second set of one or more physiologic parameters are determined from electrophysiological signals captured utilizing at least one sensing device, the at least one sensing device comprising a skin-interfacing device comprising one or more skin-interfacing electrodes configured to capture the electrophysiological signals from which the first and second sets of one or more physiologic parameters are determined;
to identify a first event related to contraction or relaxation of skeletal muscle of the subject, the first event being identified utilizing the first set of one or more physiologic parameters;
to identify a second event related to cardiac output of a cardiac pressure-flow bolus of a heart of the subject, the second event being identified utilizing the second set of one or more physiologic parameters, wherein identifying the second event is based at least in part on correlating timing of electrocardiogram measurements determined from the captured electrophysiological signals characterizing electrical activities of the heart of the subject with ballistocardiogram measurements determined from the captured electrophysiological signals characterizing mechanical activities of the heart of the subject across two or more different postures, resting and activity states of the subject;
to generate a first timestamp for the first event and a second timestamp for the second event;
to monitor for one or more changes in one or more reflex response times of the subject across two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event and the second event while the subject is performing an activity comprising two or more tasks, wherein one or more of the subsequent instances of the second event are identified based at least in part on mapping electrophysiological measurements determined from the captured electrophysiological signals characterizing the electrical activities of the heart of the subject to ballistocardiagram measurements based at least in part on the correlated timing;
to determine, based at least in part on the monitored one or more changes in the one or more reflex response times of the subject and one or more biomechanic factors associated with a given one of the two or more tasks of the activity to be performed by the subject, a reflex-compensated timing for providing feedback to the subject in real time relative to timestamps of each of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event to adjust one or more characteristics of the subject during an activity to alter subsequent timing of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the second event relative to the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event to increase muscle blood flow in the subject through synchronization of the contraction or relaxation of the skeletal muscle of the subject relative to the cardiac output of the cardiac pressure-flow bolus of each of two or more heartbeats of the heart of the subject; and
to provide one or more feedback signals to at least one stimulating device associated with the subject in accordance with the determined reflex-compensated timing, wherein the at least one stimulating device comprises at least one of one or more skin-interfacing actuators and one or more skin-interfacing electrodes configured to apply at least one of a vibratory and an electrical stimulus to skin of the subject in real time relative to the timestamps of each of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event in response to the one or more feedback signals;
wherein adjusting the one or more characteristics of the subject during the activity to alter the subsequent timing of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the second event relative to the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event comprises:
identifying, for the given one of the two or more tasks that the subject is performing, a target synchronization of respective instances of the first event and the second event; and
determining the reflex-compensated timing to adjust timing of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the second event relative to the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event to meet the identified target synchronization of respective instances of the first event and the second event.
2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein adjusting one or more characteristics of the subject during the activity comprises enhancing cardio-pulmonary performance of the subject during the activity.
3 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein adjusting one or more characteristics of the subject during the activity comprises providing biomechanical enhancement of movement of at least a portion of the subject during the activity.
4 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one sensing device and the at least one stimulating device are the same.
5 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one sensing device comprises a first sensing device attached to the subject at a first site and at least a second sensing device attached to the subject at a second site, and wherein the first set of physiologic parameters are monitored at the first site utilizing a first subset of the electrophysiological signals captured utilizing the first sensing device and the second set of physiologic parameters are monitored at the second site utilizing a second subset of the electrophysiological signals captured utilizing the second sensing device.
6 . The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the first site and the second site are co-located on the subject.
7 . The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein the first site is located on an appendage, an arm, a hand, a leg, a foot, a thigh, a knee, a calf, an ankle, a bicep, an elbow, a forearm, a wrist, an abdomen, or a pelvis of the subject.
8 . The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein second site is located on a torso, a rib cage, an abdomen, a neck, a head, an ear, under an arm, or on an appendage of the subject.
9 . The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein at least one of the first site and the second site are on at least one machine interfaced with the subject.
10 . The apparatus of claim 5 , wherein:
the first set of one or more physiologic parameters comprises at least one of one or more kinematic and one or more myographic signals from the first site on the subject determined from the first subset of the electrophysiological signals captured utilizing the first sensing device; and
the second set of one or more physiologic parameters further comprises at least one of one or more cardiologic and one or more respiratory signals from the second site on the subject determined from the second subset of the electrophysiological signals captured utilizing the second sensing device.
11 . The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the first event corresponds to at least one of: one or more muscle activity levels; onset of one or more muscle contractions; relaxation of one or more muscles; peak contraction of one or more muscles; fatigue of one or more muscles; peak force generation by one or more muscles; peak myographic activity of one or more muscles; peak high frequency myographic activity of one or more muscles; peak fast twitch activity of one or more muscles; and peak slow twitch activity of one or more muscles.
12 . The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the first event corresponds to one or more kinematic and kinetic movements, the one or more kinematic and kinetic movements comprising one or more of: a peak horizontal acceleration; a peak horizontal velocity; a minimum vertical acceleration; a minimum vertical velocity; an apex of an arc; a base of an arc; an impact; a directional impact; and a free fall condition.
13 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the activity comprises a repetitive task and wherein the two or more tasks comprises different instances of a same task.
14 . The apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the repetitive task comprises one of running, walking, cycling, lifting a weight, jumping, squatting, sit-ups, crunches, head movement, rowing, swimming, swinging an implement, and stair climbing.
15 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein determining the reflex-compensated timing is based at least in part on one or more environmental factors.
16 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein determining the reflex-compensated timing is based at least in part on one or more fatigue factors of the subject.
17 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein determining the reflex-compensated timing comprises:
performing a training procedure comprising applying said at least one of the vibratory and the electrical stimulus to the skin of the subject utilizing the at least one stimulating device and monitoring one or more physiologic parameters of the subject to determine one or more changes in at least one cardiologic performance metric; and
utilizing the determined one or more changes in the at least one cardiologic performance metric to determine an optimal timing for providing the feedback to the subject relative to the timestamps of each of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event.
18 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the repetitive task comprises a plurality of cycles, and wherein the processor is configured to perform the monitoring of the first and second sets of one or more physiologic parameters during two or more of the plurality of cycles so as to perform time averaged optimization for providing the feedback to the subject in real time relative to the timestamps of each of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event in each of the two or more cycles.
19 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the repetitive task comprises a plurality of cycles, and wherein the processor is configured to perform the monitoring of the first and second sets of one or more physiologic parameters during a first one of the plurality of cycles and to provide the one or more feedback signals to the at least one stimulating device in a second one of the plurality of cycles subsequent to the first cycle.
20 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the two or more tasks comprises a first task and at least a second task different than the first task, and wherein determining the reflex-compensated timing comprises determining a first reflex-compensated timing of the feedback for the first task and determining a second reflex-compensated timing of the feedback for the second task.
21 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured:
to control the at least one stimulating device to apply said at least one of the vibratory and the electrical stimulus to two or more locations on the skin of the subject;
to monitor a response of the subject to the stimulus provided at each of the two or more locations utilizing the electrophysiological signals captured from the at least one sensing device;
to determine reflex response times of the subject for said at least one of the vibratory and the electrical stimulus applied to each of the two or more locations utilizing the monitored response; and
to select at least a given one of the two or more locations for providing the one or more feedback signals to the subject based on the determined reflex response times of the subject for said at least one of the vibratory and the electrical stimulus applied to each of the two or more locations.
22 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to adjust an intensity of the one or more feedback signals provided to the at least one stimulating device to achieve a desired cardio-pulmonary performance enhancement level.
23 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to calculate the one or more reflex response times of the subject by monitoring the subject response relative to a timing of providing the one or more feedback signals to the at least one stimulating device to determine when the subject adjusts movement related to each of the two or more tasks in response to the one or more feedback signals.
24 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the one or more biomechanic factors associated with the given task of the activity to be performed by the subject comprise at least one of one or more movements of the given task and a movement rate of the one or more movements of the given task.
25 . The apparatus of claim 1 wherein determining the reflex-compensated timing is further based at least in part on an overall plan for a sequence of the two or more tasks of the activity.
26 . A method comprising:
monitoring a first set of one or more physiologic parameters and a second set of one or more physiologic parameters from at least one site on a subject, wherein the first set of one or more physiologic parameters and the second set of one or more physiologic parameters are determined from electrophysiological signals captured utilizing at least one sensing device, the at least one sensing device comprising a skin-interfacing device comprising one or more skin-interfacing electrodes configured to capture the electrophysiological signals from which the first and second sets of one or more physiologic parameters are determined;
identifying a first event related to contraction or relaxation of skeletal muscle of the subject, the first event being identified utilizing the first set of one or more physiologic parameters;
identifying a second event related to cardiac output of a cardiac pressure-flow bolus of a heart of the subject, the second event being identified utilizing the second set of one or more physiologic parameters, wherein identifying the second event is based at least in part on correlating timing of electrocardiogram measurements determined from the captured electrophysiological signals characterizing electrical activities of the heart of the subject with ballistocardiogram measurements determined from the captured electrophysiological signals characterizing mechanical activities of the heart of the subject across two or more different postures, resting and activity states of the subject;
generating a first timestamp for the first event and a second timestamp for the second event;
monitoring for one or more changes in one or more reflex response times of the subject across two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event and the second event while the subject is performing an activity comprising two or more tasks, wherein one or more of the subsequent instances of the second event are identified based at least in part on mapping electrophysiological measurements determined from the captured electrophysiological signals characterizing the electrical activities of the heart of the subject to ballistocardiagram measurements based at least in part on the correlated timing;
determining, based at least in part on the monitored one or more changes in the one or more reflex response times of the subject and one or more biomechanic factors associated with a given one of the two or more tasks of the activity to be performed by the subject, a reflex-compensated timing for providing feedback to the subject in real time relative to timestamps of each of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event to adjust one or more characteristics of the subject during an activity to alter subsequent timing of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the second event relative to the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event to increase muscle blood flow in the subject through synchronization of the contraction or relaxation of the skeletal muscle of the subject relative to the cardiac output of the cardiac pressure-flow bolus of each of two or more heartbeats of the heart of the subject; and
providing one or more feedback signals to at least one stimulating device associated with the subject in accordance with the determined reflex-compensated timing, wherein the at least one stimulating device comprises at least one of one or more skin-interfacing actuators and one or more skin-interfacing electrodes configured to apply at least one of a vibratory and an electrical stimulus to skin of the subject in real time relative to the timestamps of each of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event in response to the one or more feedback signals;
wherein adjusting the one or more characteristics of the subject during the activity to alter the subsequent timing of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the second event relative to the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event comprises:
identifying, for the given one of the two or more tasks that the subject is performing, a target synchronization of respective instances of the first event and the second event; and
determining the reflex-compensated timing to adjust timing of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the second event relative to the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event to meet the identified target synchronization of respective instances of the first event and the second event.
27 . The method of claim 26 , wherein adjusting one or more characteristics of the subject during the activity comprises at least one of: enhancing cardio-pulmonary performance of the subject during the activity; and providing biomechanical enhancement of movement of at least a portion of the subject during the activity.
28 . A computer program product comprising a non-transitory processor-readable storage medium having stored therein executable program code which, when executed, causes at least one processing device:
to monitor a first set of one or more physiologic parameters and a second set of one or more physiologic parameters from at least one site on a subject, wherein the first set of one or more physiologic parameters and the second set of one or more physiologic parameters are determined from electrophysiological signals captured utilizing at least one sensing device, the at least one sensing device comprising a skin-interfacing device comprising one or more skin-interfacing electrodes configured to capture the electrophysiological signals from which the first and second sets of one or more physiologic parameters are determined;
to identify a first event related to contraction or relaxation of skeletal muscle of the subject, the first event being identified utilizing the first set of one or more physiologic parameters;
to identify a second event related to cardiac output of a cardiac pressure-flow bolus of a heart of the subject, the second event being identified utilizing the second set of one or more physiologic parameters, wherein identifying the second event is based at least in part on correlating timing of electrocardiogram measurements determined from the captured electrophysiological signals characterizing electrical activities of the heart of the subject with ballistocardiogram measurements determined from the captured electrophysiological signals characterizing mechanical activities of the heart of the subject across two or more different postures, resting and activity states of the subject;
to generate a first timestamp for the first event and a second timestamp for the second event;
to monitor for one or more changes in one or more reflex response times of the subject across two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event and the second event while the subject is performing an activity comprising two or more tasks, wherein one or more of the subsequent instances of the second event are identified based at least in part on mapping electrophysiological measurements determined from the captured electrophysiological signals characterizing the electrical activities of the heart of the subject to ballistocardiagram measurements based at least in part on the correlated timing;
to determine, based at least in part on the monitored one or more changes in the one or more reflex response times of the subject and one or more biomechanic factors associated with a given one of the two or more tasks of the activity to be performed by the subject, a reflex-compensated timing for providing feedback to the subject in real time relative to timestamps of each of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event to adjust one or more characteristics of the subject during an activity to alter subsequent timing of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the second event relative to the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event to increase muscle blood flow in the subject through synchronization of the contraction or relaxation of the skeletal muscle of the subject relative to the cardiac output of the cardiac pressure-flow bolus of each of two or more heartbeats of the heart of the subject; and
to provide one or more feedback signals to at least one stimulating device associated with the subject in accordance with the determined reflex-compensated timing, wherein the at least one stimulating device comprises at least one of one or more skin-interfacing actuators and one or more skin-interfacing electrodes configured to apply at least one of a vibratory and an electrical stimulus to skin of the subject in real time relative to the timestamps of each of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event in response to the one or more feedback signals;
wherein adjusting the one or more characteristics of the subject during the activity to alter the subsequent timing of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the second event relative to the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event comprises:
identifying, for the given one of the two or more tasks that the subject is performing, a target synchronization of respective instances of the first event and the second event; and
determining the reflex-compensated timing to adjust timing of the two or more subsequent additional instances of the second event relative to the two or more subsequent additional instances of the first event to meet the identified target synchronization of respective instances of the first event and the second event.
29 . The computer program product of claim 28 , wherein adjusting one or more characteristics of the subject during the activity comprises at least one of: enhancing cardio-pulmonary performance of the subject during the activity; and providing biomechanical enhancement of movement of at least a portion of the subject during the activity.