System Architecture of HatterHealthConnect: An Integration of Body Sensor Networks and Social Networks to Improve Health Awareness

Abstract

Over the last decade, the demand for efficient healthcare monitoring has increased and forced the health and wellness industry to embrace modern technological advances. Body Sensor Networks, or BSNs, can remotely collect users data and upload vital statistics to servers over the Internet. Advances in wireless technologies such as cellular devices and Bluetooth increase the mobility users experience while wearing a body sensor network. When connected by the proper framework, BSNs can efficiently monitor and record data while minimizing the energy expenditure of nodes in the BSN. Social networking sites play a large role in the aggregation and sharing of data between many users. Connecting a BSN to a social network creates the unique ability to share health related data with other users through social interaction. In this research, we present an integration of BSNs and social networks to establish a community promoting well being and great social awareness. We present the system architecture; both hardware and software, of a prototype implementation using Zephyr HxM heart monitor, Intel-Shimmer EMG senor and a Samsung Captivate smart phone. We provide implementation details for the design on the base station, the database server and the Facebook application. We illustrate how the Android application was designed with both functionality and user perspective in mind that resulted in an easy to use system. This prototype can be used in multiple health related applications based on the type of sensors used.