Remote Health Monitoring Systems Based on Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)
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data available to the GATT client. Data is structured in sections called services
that assembles related pieces of user data known as characteristics.
- GAP: outlines rules and concepts to standardize the low-level operation of
devices. It defines how devices perform control procedures such as device discovery, security establishment and connection. . . to guarantee interoperability
between devices from different vendors.
4 Reading Sensed Physiological Signs with BLE
The most difficult task confronted during mobile healthcare application development is sensed data reading. In this paper, we use BLE to get data from sensors
and forward them to the PDA. In general, we develop an application for Android
device (PDA: mobile phone) to get data from sensors. The complexity resides in
the diversity of health devices (thermometer, heart-rate monitor, blood pressure
monitor, scale . . . ), where each device has a specific profile, services, UUID, characteristics, and descriptors. Therefore, to read measured data from sensors, we
need to develop a specific application for each profile. In this paper, we describe
two health devices equipped with the BLE corresponding respectively to Health
Thermometer and Blood Pressure Monitor.
4.1 Example of Services and Characteristics of HDP
In order to standardize the way medical data is transmitted over BLE technology,
the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) released in 2008 the Health Device
Profile (HDP) that utilizes the IEEE 11073-20601 Data Exchange Protocol as
the transport content. Below the specification of the service and characteristic
of the studied health devices which according to the SIG group.
Thermometer:
(1) Health Thermometer Service: (UUID = 0x1809; Definition: This service
exposes temperature and other data from a Health Thermometer Sensor;
Type = org.bluetooth.service.health-thermometer),
(2) Temperature Measurement Characteristic (UUID = 0x2A1C; Definition: This
characteristic is used to send a temperature measurement;
Type: org.bluetooth.characteristic.temperature measurement).
SPO2:
(1) Health PulseOximeter Service: (UUID = 0x1822; Definition: This Service
exposes pulse oximetry data related to a non-invasive pulse oximetry sensor for
consumer healthcare applications; Type = org.bluetooth.service.pulse-oximeter),
(2) PLX Continuous-Measurement (UUID = 0x2A5F; Definition: This characteristic is used to send a PulseOximetre measurement;
Type: type = org.bluetooth.characteristic.plx-continuous-measurement).
Developers can obtains the services and characteristics of any BLE health device
from the main Bluetooth webpage [24].
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data available to the GATT client. Data is structured in sections called services
that assembles related pieces of user data known as characteristics.
- GAP: outlines rules and concepts to standardize the low-level operation of
devices. It defines how devices perform control procedures such as device discovery, security establishment and connection. . . to guarantee interoperability
between devices from different vendors.
4 Reading Sensed Physiological Signs with BLE
The most difficult task confronted during mobile healthcare application development is sensed data reading. In this paper, we use BLE to get data from sensors
and forward them to the PDA. In general, we develop an application for Android
device (PDA: mobile phone) to get data from sensors. The complexity resides in
the diversity of health devices (thermometer, heart-rate monitor, blood pressure
monitor, scale . . . ), where each device has a specific profile, services, UUID, characteristics, and descriptors. Therefore, to read measured data from sensors, we
need to develop a specific application for each profile. In this paper, we describe
two health devices equipped with the BLE corresponding respectively to Health
Thermometer and Blood Pressure Monitor.
4.1 Example of Services and Characteristics of HDP
In order to standardize the way medical data is transmitted over BLE technology,
the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) released in 2008 the Health Device
Profile (HDP) that utilizes the IEEE 11073-20601 Data Exchange Protocol as
the transport content. Below the specification of the service and characteristic
of the studied health devices which according to the SIG group.
Thermometer:
(1) Health Thermometer Service: (UUID = 0x1809; Definition: This service
exposes temperature and other data from a Health Thermometer Sensor;
Type = org.bluetooth.service.health-thermometer),
(2) Temperature Measurement Characteristic (UUID = 0x2A1C; Definition: This
characteristic is used to send a temperature measurement;
Type: org.bluetooth.characteristic.temperature measurement).
SPO2:
(1) Health PulseOximeter Service: (UUID = 0x1822; Definition: This Service
exposes pulse oximetry data related to a non-invasive pulse oximetry sensor for
consumer healthcare applications; Type = org.bluetooth.service.pulse-oximeter),
(2) PLX Continuous-Measurement (UUID = 0x2A5F; Definition: This characteristic is used to send a PulseOximetre measurement;
Type: type = org.bluetooth.characteristic.plx-continuous-measurement).
Developers can obtains the services and characteristics of any BLE health device
from the main Bluetooth webpage [24].