A High-Performance, Secure Custom Electronics Circuit for Biopotential Measurement and Processing

Arrigo  Palumbo; Barbara  Calabrese; Nicola  Ielpo; Remo  Garropoli; Patrizia  Vizza; Andrea  Demeco; Vera  Gramigna

doi:10.18502/fbt.v11i3.15881

Arrigo Palumbo Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University Magna Graecia, Viale Europa 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
Barbara Calabrese Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University Magna Graecia, Viale Europa 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
Nicola Ielpo Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University Magna Graecia, Viale Europa 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
Remo Garropoli Garropoli Computer Science Consulting, 87100 Cosenza, Italy
Patrizia Vizza Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University Magna Graecia, Viale Europa 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
Andrea Demeco Corchiola Computer Science Consulting, 87100 Cosenza, Italy
Vera Gramigna Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University Magna Graecia, Viale Europa 88100 Catanzaro, Italy

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/fbt.v11i3.15881

Keywords: Telemonitoring; Telerehabilitation; Bio-Signal Acquisition; Internet of Things; Cybersecurity; Electromyography.

Abstract

Purpose: In this paper, we propose a secure wearable and portable device aiming to (i) monitor physical activity in medical and clinical rehabilitation, (ii) evaluate the subject's movements in sports environments, and (iii) monitor wellness indicators.

Materials and Methods: The innovative low-power custom circuit can acquire, pre-process, digitalize, and transmit EMG signals to a Raspberry PI4 device via a low-energy Bluetooth module. The Raspberry PI4 is a hub that sends data to a cloud-based system for remote monitoring and processing. The best cybersecurity practices have been implemented: firewall, anti-DDoS and SELinux.

Results: We have assessed the system's vulnerability before and after the system's hardening. SELinux makes the system safer and prevents unauthorized access to patients' data health by tampering with the devices.

Conclusion: Adopting IoT systems in telemedicine requires greater attention to cybersecurity. It is necessary to implement security mechanisms to guarantee the privacy of patient's health data.