Deep learning and remote photoplethysmography powered advancements in contactless physiological measurement

Abstract

In recent decades, there has been ongoing development in the application of computer vision (CV) in the medical field. As conventional contact-based physiological measurement techniques often restrict a patient’s mobility in the clinical environment, the ability to achieve continuous, comfortable and convenient monitoring is thus a topic of interest to researchers. One type of CV application is remote imaging photoplethysmography (rPPG), which can predict vital signs using a video or image. While contactless physiological measurement techniques have an excellent application prospect, the lack of uniformity or standardization of contactless vital monitoring methods limits their application in remote healthcare/telehealth settings. Several methods have been developed to improve this limitation and solve the heterogeneity of video signals caused by movement, lighting, and equipment. The fundamental algorithms include traditional algorithms with optimization and developing deep learning (DL) algorithms. This article aims to provide an in-depth review of current Artificial Intelligence (AI) methods using CV and DL in contactless physiological measurement and a comprehensive summary of the latest development of contactless measurement techniques for skin perfusion, respiratory rate, blood oxygen saturation, heart rate, heart rate variability, and blood pressure.