title: BIT: Biosignal Igniter Toolkit.
abstract: The study of biosignals has had a transforming role in multiple aspects of our society, which go well beyond the health sciences domains to which they were traditionally associated with. While biomedical engineering is a classical discipline where the topic is amply covered, today biosignals are a matter of interest for students, researchers and hobbyists in areas including computer science, informatics, electrical engineering, among others. Regardless of the context, the use of biosignals in experimental activities and practical projects is heavily bounded by the cost, and limited access to adequate support materials. In this paper we present an accessible, albeit versatile toolkit, composed of low-cost hardware and software, which was created to reinforce the engagement of different people in the field of biosignals. The hardware consists of a modular wireless biosignal acquisition system that can be used to support classroom activities, interface with other devices, or perform rapid prototyping of end-user applications. The software comprehends a set of programming APIs, a biosignal processing toolbox, and a framework for real time data acquisition and postprocessing.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Telecomunicações, Instituto Superior Técnico, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal. Electronic address: hsilva@lx.it.pt.
authors.forename: Hugo Plácido
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: da Silva
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Telecomunicações, Instituto Superior Técnico, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal; Instituto Superior de Engenharia de Lisboa, 1959-007 Lisboa, Portugal. Electronic address: alourenco@deetc.isel.ipl.pt.
authors.forename: André
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lourenço
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Telecomunicações, Instituto Superior Técnico, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal; Department of Bioengineering, Instituto Superior Técnico, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal. Electronic address: afred@lx.it.pt.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fred
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Telecomunicações, Instituto Superior Técnico, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal; Department of Bioengineering, Instituto Superior Técnico, 1049-001 Lisboa, Portugal. Electronic address: rcmartins@lx.it.pt.
authors.forename: Raúl
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Martins
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D001698:Biomedical Engineering; D003196:Computer Graphics; D003199:Computer Systems; D003201:Computers; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D004562:Electrocardiography / Q000379:methods; D011381:Programming Languages; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; D012984:Software; D014584:User-Computer Interface
keywords: Biosignals; Instrumentation; Pervasive computing; Rapid prototyping; Signal processing