Analyzing electromagnetic interference effects in wireless healthcare equipment and environments

Abstract

This study explores the effects of electromagnetic emitters and operational environments on healthcare equipment, specifically electrocardiogram signal transmission over wireless local area networks as an example. Numerical simulations were performed to analyze interference scenarios in both open and enclosed environments. Performance parameters including amplitude probability distribution, kurtosis, skewness, and standard deviation were calculated according to the individual characteristics of both communication networks and electrocardiogram signals. Our simulation results show the impact electromagnetic disturbances produced on signal characteristics leading to distortion and information loss. As EMI levels increased we found variability in the signal characteristics including wider kurtosis, narrower skewness, and along with wider standard deviation ranges. These metrics are useful for understanding the electromagnetic environment and its relationships with the performance of communication systems in the presence of interference.