BODY AREA NETWORKS

By :Nawal Kishore KundanRoll No. 48Computer Science, SOE

Guide:Ms. Ancy Zachariah

Contents

• Introduction• Body Sensor Network• BAN Architecture• Applications• Challenges & Security• Conclusions• References

INTRODUCTION

Formal Definition by IEEE 802.15“a communication standard optimized

for low power devices and operation on, in or around the human body (but not limited to humans) to serve a variety of applications including medical, consumer electronics / personal entertainment and other”

• A Body Area Network is a system of devices in close proximity to a person body that cooperate for the benefit of the user.

Data Rate vs Power

Body Sensor Network

• BSN technology represents the lower bound of power and bandwidth from the BAN

• Defined by Professor Guang-Zhong Yang in 2006

• Managed BSN (MBSN)

Eg. MobiHealth & CodeBlue• Autonomous BSN (ABSN)

Eg. Human++

Managed BSN

• A managed body sensor network (MBSN) is defined as a system where the third party makes decisions based the data collected from one or many BSN.

Eg. MobiHealth & CodeBlue

Autonomous BSN

• Autonomous body sensor networks (ABSN) and MBSN share the same goals, but they accomplish them in different ways.

• ABSN introduce actuators in addition to the sensors to allow the BSN to effect change on the users body.

Autonomous BSN

BAN Architecture

• Hardware Architecture• Software Architecture• Characteristics

Hardware Architecture of BAN

• BAN network (in general terms) is also known as Wireless BAN or Body Sensor Network (BSN)

• An application technology aimed at improving user comfort.

• Devices used:– Sensor node – Actuator node– Personal device

• Sensor Node:– Gathers data on physical stimuli,

processes the data if necessary and reports this information wirelessly. Consists of several components:

• Sensor hardware• A power unit• A processor, memory and • A transmitter or transceiver.

Eg : i Rhythm 

• Actuator Node:– Acts according to data received from

sensors / through interaction with the user.

– Components similar to sensors:• Actuator hardware (e.g. hardware for medicine

administration, including a reservoir to hold the medicine)

• A power unit, a processor, memory and • A receiver or transceiver

• Personal Device:– Gathers all the information acquired by the

sensors and actuators – Informs User (i.e. the patient, a nurse, a doc

etc.) via an external gateway, an actuator or a display/LEDS on the device.

– Components:• A power unit, a (large) processor, memory and a

transceiver.

– Also called a Body Control Unit (BCU) , body gateway or a sink.

– E.g.: PDA

Software Architecture of BAN

• Software have a well-defined interface to integrate hardware and application programs.

• Software include three levels: firmware, OS and application software stacks.

• OS can be Symbian OS, Android OS, Blackberry OS, Windows mobile etc.

Characteristics of BAN

• Energy efficiency• Simple nodes• Heterogeneous nodes• Cost structure• Combination of a wireless network

and a wired network

Applications

Medical Heath Care Sports and Fitness Monitoring Wireless Audio Mobile Device IntegrationPersonal Video Devices Military SecurityGaming

Medical Health Care

• Medical application– Vital patient data– Wireless sensors– Link with bedside monitor– Count on 10 – 20 sensors

• Five similar networks in range

• Minimum setup interaction• Potentially wide application• Total traffic / patient < 10

kbps

Displaying Data

• In Handheld devices or PCs

• Monitoring

• Heart rate• Body temperature• Sleep pattern• Glucose level• Foetal

development etc…

Previous Technology

• Holter Monitor

• Obsolete technology

• Inefficient and Not User Friendly

• Lots of wires• Soon to be buried• Just 24 hr battery

backup

New Technology

• Small• Efficient• Everything that the

latter technology wasn't

• Up to 2 weeks usage.

Fitness Monitoring

• Central device is MP3 player• Wireless headset included• Expand functionality

– Speed, distance– Heart rate, respiration monitor– Temperature sensor– Pacing information– Location information– Wristwatch display unit– Etc.

• Total system load < 500 kbps• Synchronization may go

faster

Wearable Audio

• Central device is headset• Stereo audio, microphone• Connected devices

– Cellular phone– MP3 player, PDA– CD audio player– AP at home– Handsfree car– Remote control– Others

• Requires priority mechanism• Network load < 500 kbps

Mobile Device Centric

• Mobile terminal is central point

• Covers broad set of data– Sensors – vital, other– Headset– Peripheral devices– Handsfree / car

• Provide gateway to outside– Offload sensor data, other

• Requires priority mechanism

• Network load < 500 kbps

Personal Video

• Central device is video camera– Camera sensor, recording, display

• Stream video content SDTV, HDTV

• Connect other devices– Personal storage device– Playback device with large display– Remote beamfinder– Location information (meta data)– Mobile communications device

(MMS)– Home media server (sync)

• Total traffic load: 10 – 60 Mbps

Remote Control & I/O Devices

• Remote control device• Increase consumer convenience• Makes headset control practical• Stand-alone vs shared function• Combine with wristwatch display

• Printers• Identification, storage• Wireless pen

• Complement BAN functionality

Challenges

Interoperability System Devices System and Device level SecurityInvasion of PrivacySensor ValidationData Consistency

GENERAL SECURITY THREATS

• Eavesdropping/Disclosure/Interception• Interruption/Communication jamming • Injection and modification of data• Unauthorized access

PERSONAL DEVICE- ORIENTED SECURITY THREATS

• Stolen personal device.• Outdated Application software.• Unprepared communication shutdown • Misreading • Input error

Conclusions

• BANs are enabling human-centric sensing for a variety of intriguing applications in healthcare, fitness and entertainment.

• But such networks must demonstrate enough value for users to overcome inhibitions related to inconvenience and general discomfort

• Also the promise of this technology should not be restricted to one area.

• Fitness and entertainment are taking new directions.

• The architecture that captures body motion for medical assessment is equally adept at capturing body motion for a videogame.

• New sensors will only increase the breadth of potential applications and market opportunities and propel this technology into applications formerly depicted only in science fiction.

References

 

I. IEEE CONFERENCES

Introduction of SG-BAN in IEEE 802.15 with Related Discussion Huan-Bang Li; Kohno, R Ultra-Wideband, 2007. ICUWB2007. IEEE International Conference on  Digital Object identifier: 10.1109/ICUWB.2007.4380929 Publication Year: 2007, Page(s): 134 – 139.

II. Schmidt et al., "Body Area Network BAN--a key infrastructure element for patient-centred medical applications," Biomedizinische Technik. Biomedical engineering 2002, p365-368

III. Microsoft, "Method and apparatus for transmitting power and data using the human body," Patent No: 6,754,472