>  But the majority of current commercial exercise heart
>rate monitors use a strap that goes across the users chest.  You
>dampen the two pads on the strap and it picks up your heart rate,
>transmitting it to a display. Anyone have some thoughts on how to
>build one of these?

I have one of these. What I find amazing is that the electronics has been
running on one 3V watch battery for about 5 years or so, which also includes
RF transmission from the monitoring strap to a watch. Amazing. I assume it
must be simple single pulse RF with each heart beat.

What is interesting about the IR type is that they can measure both
oxygenated and non-oxygenated blood levels (using different IR wavelengths)
and I've also even heard of some researchers doing studies with the shape of
the pulse curve which can tell information about heart valves and blockages,
etc. Very interesting.

C. Webb

At 07:10 AM 3/30/98 -0800, you wrote:
>Recent discussion here and on several newsgroups has discussed the
>type of heart rate monitor that uses a light directed through a finger
>or earlobe.
>  But the majority of current commercial exercise heart
>rate monitors use a strap that goes across the users chest.  You
>dampen the two pads on the strap and it picks up your heart rate,
>transmitting it to a display. Anyone have some thoughts on how to
>build one of these?
>
>Rock T
>
>
>
>
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