SparkFun Pulse Oximeter and Heart Rate Monitor Hookup Guide

Contributors: Elias The Sparkiest

Example 2: Config BPM Mode 2

As opposed to Example 1, In Example 2's setup, we give the argument MODE_TWO to bioHub.configBPM() to get more information from the SparkFun Pulse Oximeter and Heart Rate Monitor. Specifically we'll get an extended finger status and the R value of the blood oxygen data.

language:c
Serial.println("Configuring Sensor...."); 
int error = bioHub.configBpm(MODE_TWO); // Configuring just the BPM settings. 
if(!error){
    Serial.println("Sensor configured.");
}
else {
    Serial.println("Error configuring sensor.");
    Serial.print("Error: "); 
    Serial.println(error); 
}

Simple right? Nothing else changes except that when we pull the data we now have access to more data: body.extStatus and body.rValue.

language:c
void loop(){

    // Information from the readBpm function will be saved to our "body"
    // variable.  
    body = bioHub.readBpm();
    Serial.print("Heartrate: ");
    Serial.println(body.heartRate); 
    Serial.print("Confidence: ");
    Serial.println(body.confidence); 
    Serial.print("Oxygen: ");
    Serial.println(body.oxygen); 
    Serial.print("Status: ");
    Serial.println(body.status); 
    Serial.print("Extended Status: ");
    Serial.println(body.extStatus); 
    Serial.print("Blood Oxygen R value: ");
    Serial.println(body.rValue); 
    delay(250); // Slowing it down, we don't need to break our necks here.
}

Check the reference table above under Finger Status for more information on what each number means, there are eight. The R value refers to a correlation coefficient used to determine a statistical relationship between two variables: blood oxygen and a optical plate placed over the sensor. This does not refer to the glass shield on the sensor but rather a shield that would be placed over the sensor if you decided to implement this into a final product. In other words the company that manufactures this IC, Maxim Integrated has given the user a way to get faster FDA approval when using this IC in a final product. You can read more about that here. For those of us just tinkering in a project it has no Real value. Get it?