Last year, a CSAIL team developed a wireless system that can track movement through a wall. Their latest report demonstrates that they can now detect gestures as subtle as the rise and fall of a person’s chest. From that, they can determine a person’s heart rate with 99 percent accuracy. The research could be used for health-tracking apps, baby monitors, and for the military and law enforcement.
The team — which includes Robert Miller, a professor of electrical engineering and computer science, and graduate students Fadel Adib and Zach Kabalec — has also developed the capability to track the movements of up to four distinct individuals, which could be helpful for search-and-rescue operations (such as when emergency responders are trying to find survivors inside a burning building). Learn more about Adib and Kabalec’s work at MIT News.