An experiment has been designed to quantify IsoTone’s energy-related characteristics, including its rate of converting human bio energy into mechanical energy as (a) heat released to the environment and (b) heat generated in the body of the person.

Tentatively, the experiment may be conducted by the Engineering Department, SUNY at Stony Brook. as a project within a graduate research program. In the project, the students will

• Design and assemble a data acquisition system
• Conduct an experiment measuring temperature of IsoTone and surrounding water as a function of time
• Gather and process the generated data, and
• Calculate the energy generation and heat production in IsoTone and the heat exchange parameters inside the test chamber. 

The results of this project will inform the discussion of the potential side benefits of IsoTone heating during exercise, including warm massage, as well as an out-of-the-box idea to heat living spaces, in an off-the-energy-grid situation, when space heating is not available.

EXPERIMENT OUTLINE

1. A heat-insulated container is filled with water (Mass_water – mass of water)

2. The water is kept in the container before the experiment starts until its temperature approaches room temperature

3. Take IsoTone in your two hands and submerge it in the water such that the wrists and IsoTone are completely under the water

4. Start measuring and recording in a PC the water temperature starting from (Temp-zero)

5. Perform a fixed number of energetic pumps (collapse and expand cycles) while keeping IsoTone under the water. Keep the rate and force applied to the IsoTone as constant as possible. 30 or more pumps is recommended

6. As you pump, heat is generated inside the IsoTone and effectively transferred to the water in the container, raising the water temperature

7. Once the pumping is finished (Number_pump), record the time it took to pump IsoTone (Time_pump), let IsoTone stay in the water, remove your hands from the container, and cover it with a heat-insulated lid

8. Periodically remove the lid and gently stir the water inside

9. IsoTone will keep transferring its heat to the water until their temperatures equalize 

9. Keep taking measurements until the water temperature reaches its peak value and then starts dropping

10. Record this peak temperature (Temp_peak) 

Using measured and recorded parameters Mass_water, Time_zero,  Number_pump, Temp_peak , Time_pump, Time_exper, the average mechanical energy (heat) generated during one pump will be calculated.

Using these results, a conventional caloric load of the IsoTone exercises will be predicted.

Based on the results of the experiment, efficacy of the IsoTone in workouts will be estimated.

MONITORING PROGRESS OF TRAINING

Measuring Effort. IsoTone’s temperature gauge provides a quantitative tool to monitor the progress of your training and your fitness level..

Effective Training. The goal of training is to move your IsoTone fitness curve higher and higher as you improve your strength and endurance. Installing the Temperature Gauge will help you get a sense of your status, and allow you to monitor your fitness level.

SCIENCE BEHIND THE CURVES

The time when a curve levels off and flattens, is the moment at which the amount of heat generated in a unit of time in the IsoTone becomes equal to the heat that is lost by the IsoTone to the environment. The amount of heat coming in equals the amount of heat going out, and so the temperature stays constant.

The rate of IsoTone’s temperature rise is proportional to the effort made by the individual doing the exercise. Converting effort to power, we see that the power generated by an athlete may be more than four times higher than the power generated by a less athletic individual.

What is EEST?

The IsoTone Express-Exercise Stress Test (EEST) is a specialized variation of the standard exercise stress test designed for rapid evaluation of the cardiovascular system during routine checkup visits. It is expected to help in identifying the presence of coronary artery disease (CAD), evaluating heart function, and determining exercise tolerance. Here’s a summary of the key features and steps involved in the IsoTone EEST:

Preparation:

• No special preparation is required for patients undergoing the IsoTone EEST.
• Electrodes are placed on the patient’s chest, arms, and legs to monitor the heart’s electrical activity through ECG.

Baseline Measurements:

• The patient’s resting blood pressure, heart rate, and ECG readings are recorded while they are at rest.

Exercise Phase:

• Instead of traditional or bicycle exercise, the patient performs a series of IsoTone exercises while standing, sitting, or lying down.
• The total workload endpoint for the test is prescribed by the cardiologist or healthcare provider in advance, based on the patient’s age and physical condition.
• IsoTone adjusts resistance automatically during exercise to ensure that each patient can comfortably reach their top performance level.
• The exercise workload in real time is measured by using the IsoTone’s Effort Gauge.
• The time needed to reach the predetermined workload endpoint will depend on the patient’s age and physical condition.

Monitoring and Termination Criteria:

• A healthcare provider closely monitors the patients throughout the test, assessing their comfort and any symptoms they may experience.
• The test may be terminated if the patient experiences significant chest pain, severe shortness of breath, dizziness, fatigue, or if there are worrisome ECG changes, or if the patient becomes exhausted.
• Otherwise, the test concludes once the patient reaches the predetermined workload endpoint or heart rate.

Results Analysis and Interpretation:

• Since the IsoTone EEST involves low-to-moderate workload exercises, no extended recovery period is required.
• The results are evaluated by a cardiologist or healthcare provider to determine the patient’s exercise tolerance, heart rate response, ECG changes, and the presence of any symptoms during the test.
• Abnormal ECG patterns, such as ST-segment depressions, may suggest potential coronary artery disease or other cardiac issues.

Concluding Remarks:

While current electrocardiographs (ECGs) are the standard clinical tools used for measuring the heart’s electrical signals, measurements are prone to noise contamination, and require application of gels, and electrodes which are sometimes cumbersome to the patient. In contrast, acoustic signal measurements of the heart using microphone arrays or digital stethoscopes, are less cumbersome for patients, yet offer only indirect measures of the heart’s physiology. 

Although some two-track health devices combine ECG and digital auscultation recording capabilities, these two data streams are processed independently, each providing the medical practitioners with two complementary but independent diagnostic capabilities.  

We propose using simultaneous measures using both types of signals to first create a database allowing comparison of the two signal modalities. 

After carefully curating the database, we then propose developing a cardiac neural network model trained to transform or translate cardiac acoustic signals (input) into signatures of cardiac electrical signals (output) typical for existing ECG systems. 

The cardiac neural network model will also include a diagnostic neural module trained on widely available signatures of known heart conditions. This module will help with identifying potential heart conditions by using real time cardiac acoustic signals. Transformer neural networks are the ideal machine learning tool to perform this translation, as they have been used with great success to transform between disparate signal modalities (e.g., image to speech). 

Our approach could ultimately allow development of the Acoustic Cardiogram (ACG) method: convenient, cost-effective, and accurate sound-based sensor technology to monitor and diagnose patient heart conditions in real-time. 

TEST 1: UPPER BODY EXERCISE STIMULATING BLOOD CIRCULATION IN LOWER BODY AND EXTREMITIES

Step 1. Attach digital stethoscopes to lower part of the experimenter’s feet and connect them to data acquisition system. Install identical stethoscopes to the arms of the experimenter in the location where the acoustic pulse signal is highest.

Step 2. Make recordings of the stethoscopes signals while the experimenter is at rest. Calculate the ratio of amplitude of the two signals, UL ratio at rest.

Step 3. Make similar recordings as the experimented perform an extraneous exercise driving the IsoTone’s Effort Gauge temperature to 45F. Calculate the time-dependent ratio of the amplitudes of the two signals, UL ratio under load.

Step 4. Process signals obtained in Steps 2 and 3 and calculate the ratio of the amplitudes, the relative efficiency of the ULE, upper-to-lower body blood circulation enhancement.

TEST 2: LOWER BODY EXERCISE STIMULATING BLOOD CIRCULATION IN UPPER BODY AND EXTREMITIES

Conduct a symmetric experiment by performing the exercises by the lower body and extremities and measuring the degree of blood circulation enhancement in the upper body and extremities.

This protocol is designed for assessing the efficacy of the IsoTone (https://isotone.net) device within the proof-of-concept program for patients undergoing general physical and post-traumatic rehabilitation therapies at the Ivy Rehab Center.

The program will focus on at least one specific PT condition with a sufficiently large number of patients undergoing treatment. A group of ten patients will be split into two groups of five patients.

The patients in the first, placebo group will continue their routine treatment. The patients in the IsoTone group will be using their IsoTone devices in PT sessions and at home doing IsoTone exercises developed for them by the Ivy Rehab.

At the beginning of the program, each patient will fill out a questionnaire to self-evaluate his/her specific condition. The Ivy Rehab specialists will make their own assessment of each patient’s starting condition as well.

At the end of the IsoTone assessment program, an identical questionnaire will be filled out by the patients, and the Ivy Rehab will make their own determination. 

Upon completion of the program, the data from the placebo and IsoTone groups will be analyzed by Ivy Rehab, and the effectiveness of the IsoTone device will be assessed and quantified by using the “before” and “after” assessment data.

The PT specialists will analyze their own data to make a determination of IsoTone effectiveness and combine their findings with the results of the patients’ self-evaluation to produce a summary of the assessment.

QUESTIONNAIRE 1: Pre-Test Self-Evaluation

Patient Information

Name: _______________________

Date: _________________

Age: ________

Gender: _____________

Group: A or B (circle one)

Exercises Prescribed: ____________________

PT (Physical Therapist) Name: __________________________

Instructions

Please rate the present condition of your problem areas using the scale below.

Use a rating of 1 to 10, where 1 represents the worst condition and 10 represents the best condition.

Note: If any problem area is not applicable to you, please indicate “N/A” or leave it blank.

Arm(s):

Rating: ______

Elbow(s):

Rating: ______

Wrist(s):

Rating: ______

Shoulder(s):

Rating: ______

Back(s):

Rating: ______

Other (Specify): ______

Rating: ______

Additional Comments (optional):

QUESTIONNAIRE 2: Post-Test Self-Evaluation

Patient Information

Name: _______________________

Date: _________________

Age: ________

Gender: _____________

Group: A or B (circle one)

Exercises Performed: ____________________

PT (Physical Therapist) Name: __________________________

Instructions

Please rate the condition of your problem areas after completing the IsoTone rehabilitation exercises. Use a rating of 1 to 10, where 1 represents the worst condition and 10 represents the best condition.

Note: If any problem area is not applicable to you, please indicate “N/A” or leave it blank.

Arm(s):

Rating: ______

Elbow(s):

Rating: ______

Wrist(s):

Rating: ______

Shoulder(s):

Rating: ______

Back(s):

Rating: ______

Other (Specify): ______

Rating: ______

Additional Comments (optional):