NASA Ames Biocomputation Center, MS239-11 Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000 +1 (415)604-0077
Email: kevin@biocomp.arc.nasa.gov
Dr. Alex Gandsas and I transmitted real-time vital signs (3-lead EKG, heart rate, pulse rate, blood pressure, SpO2, EtCO2, InCO2, breath rate) and LIVE VIDEO from an American Airlines 757 flying at 35000 feet and 500 mph from Chicago to Los Angeles over the AT&T AirOne cellular telephone system at 4800 baud, through the Internet, to ground stations at Saddleback Memorial Hospital in Laguna Hills California, American Airlines headquarters in Dallas Texas, and Hospital Santojanni in Buenos Aires Argentina.
Dr. Gandsas conceived of the idea a few years ago and enlisted my help in late January of this year to make this idea a reality. I wrote all the software on the project to acquire patient data from the Propaq 106EL monitoring unit (Protocol Systems Inc, Beaverton, OR) and video from a Pixera Professional video camera (Pixera Corp, Los Gatos, CA) into a 200MHz Pentium MMX laptop computer (The Brick Computer Company, Peabody, MA). Once the data is received by the laptop, special compression algorithms squeeze the data to be transmitted, and encapsulate the data into TCP/IP packets to be sent over an Internet connection using the 4800bps AirOne seatback telephone handset. Once sent over the Internet, the data are routed to the ground stations listed above and can be reviewed by physicians at those sites.
All vital signs and EKG information are up to date within 1 second of transmission; meaning that within 1 second of receiving the continuous vital signs data from the monitoring unit, the laptop has compressed the data, transmitted it to the ground station, and received an acknowledgement from the ground station of its accurate receipt. This low latency ensures that the physicians on the ground have access to the latest patient data. Video is similarly captured every second and transmitted in conjunction with the vital signs data, but the vital signs data always has the priority for processing and transmission.
During the flight test, the ground stations all received the data correctly and, using an EKG simulator device, we simulated many different arrythmias and the condition was correctly diagnosed on the ground. In addition, Dr. Gandsas' own vital signs and EKG were transmitted during the test.
This test has shown that it is possible to send real-time vital signs and video from an aircraft over the Internet using a very low bandwidth medium and to use this system successfully for remote telemedical diagnosis. From anywhere in the world, to anywhere in the world, over the Internet, in real time.
It was Way Cool.
Press so far from the test included: (as of 9/16/97)
Press from the previous ground test included:
(Note: this project is not related to my work for Sterling Software at the NASA Ames Research Center, but is posted here only for reference)
Dr. Montgomery is the manager and lead software engineer of the computation laboratory of the NASA Ames Biocomputation Center. His 11 years of academic and professional experience focus on research and development of technologically advanced systems for virtual reality, image processing, neural network research, distributed computation, and networking. In addition, he has an extensive breadth of experience in computing platforms, networking, and environments.
Dr. Montgomery has managed the project supporting the NASA Ames Biocomputation Center for 5 years. In this capacity, he provides technical direction, mentors, and supports 4 other engineers and researchers (MS/PhD level) on the task. His task has won the Sterling Excellence Award for the Scientific Studies Mission three times and the Contractor Council Excellence award once.
Principal researcher/project manager in applying image processing techniques to the study of biological neural networks at the NASA Ames Biocomputation Center. Performed extensive research, design, coordination, implementation, and deployment of a system for recognition, reconstruction, and visualization of neural structure from electron microscope images of serial sections of tissue. Also produced the Virtual Environment for Reconstructive Surgery- a virtual reality application to allow surgeons to plan complex craniofacial surgeries using the data reconstructed from CT scan data. Technical areas include image processing, computer graphics, graphical user interface design, virtual reality, device control, distributed and parallel computation, networking, and supercomputing.
Principal OSI networking engineer specializing in Directory Services and distributed information technologies for distributed computing. Implemented XDS (a precursor to LDAP), Remote Operations Service Element, and part of X.500, as well as extensive research, design, standards representation, and integration throughout the entire OSI networking program.
Engineer on the production of the HP5898A Microbial Identification System, which identified organic compounds based on a chromatographic profile. Involved software engineering in pattern matching (cluster and principal components analysis), data communications, and device drivers.
System Administrator- hardware troubleshooting, programming, and managing laboratory duties.
Provided statistical analysis of cognitive science experimental data for Dr. Helene Intraub.
Worked on a contract for a large database application for managing Letters of Agreement.
Provided extensive consulting services across UNIX, VM/CMS, and other platforms.
Created a dynamic amortization package.
Assistant Instructor- taught basic computer science to secondary school students.
University of California PhD; Computer Engineering Santa Cruz, CA (Dissertation: "Automated Reconstruction of Neural Elements from Transmission Electron Microscope Images") University of California MS; Computer Engineering Santa Cruz, CAUniversity of Delaware BS; Computer Science Newark, DE
SGI, HP, Sun, Intel, DEC, Apollo, Apple, and Symbolics workstations and minicomputers, TMC Connection Machine 2 and 5, Cray Y-MP and X, Convex C2, as well as experience on IBM 3090 and CDC Cyber platforms, Sequent multiprocessors and Intel-based personal and supercomputers.
C++, C, HTML/VRML/Java, C*, Pascal, Lisp, FORTRAN, Prolog, Ada, Modula-2, Scheme, BASIC, and MIPS, 80XX, 65XX, 68XX, and PDP11 assembly.
Unix, Windows95/Windows NT, MacOS, and DOS operating systems.
World-Wide Web, TCP/IP (IP, UDP, TCP, Sockets) and OSI (TP4, ROSE, XDS, X.500, X.400, FTAM, MMS) programming, Appletalk, DECnet.
Motif/X11; SGI GL/OpenGL, ImageVision, ViewKit, VideoLibrary; HP Starbase; libTIFF, TeX, troff, SGI CASEVision, HP Softbench.
"Method and System for Remote Medical Communication and Diagnosis" (patent pending- project unrelated to NASA work)
Montgomery, K, "Active Image Processing for Automated Determination of TEM Stage Control Parameters". (in progress)
Gandsas, A, Montgomery, K, "Vital Signs Monitoring from an Aircraft via the Internet", MedNet 97- World Congress on the Internet in Medicine. (accepted- project unrelated to NASA work)
Gandsas, A, Montgomery, K, Altrudi, R, McKennas, D, and Silva, Y, "Vital Signs Monitoring from an Aircraft via the Internet", Lancet. (submitted- project unrelated to NASA work)
Montgomery, K, Heyenga, G, "Gel Tomography for 3D Acquisition of Plant Root Systems", SPIE Electronic Imaging- 3D Acqusition, San Jose, CA, February 1998. (submitted)
Montgomery, K, "Clinical Application of VR for Surgery", SPIE Electronic Imaging- Engineering Reality of Virtual Reality, San Jose, CA, February 1998. (submitted)
Montgomery, K, "VERS- A virtual environment for reconstructive surgery planning", Engineering Reality of Virtual Reality, SPIE Electronic Imaging, San Jose, CA, February 1997.
Ross MD, Montgomery K, Linton S and Cheng, R. "3-D reconstruction technologies for basic vestibular research and for medical applications.", Association for Research in Otolaryngology. Feb 1-6, 1997.
Ross MD, Montgomery K, Cheng R, and Linton S. "Three-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction, simulation and virtual environment visualization of gravity sensor circuitry". New Directions in Computational Morphology, MIT, July 13, 1996.
Montgomery, K, "Automated Reconstruction of Neural Elements from
Transmission Electron Microscope Images". Dissertation, University of
California, Santa Cruz, CA, March 1996.
Montgomery, K, "Advances in three dimensional serial section reconstruction and visualization of neural tissue from transmission electron microscopy", Masters Thesis, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, 1994.
Ross MD, R. Cheng, D. G. Doshay, S. W. Linton, K .Montgomery, B. R. Parnas,
"High performance computing applications in neurobiological research", High
Performance Computing `94 (Grand Challenges in Computer Simulation), April
1994.
Ross, MD, D. G. Doshay, K. N. Montgomery, T. C. Chimento, "From transmission electron micrographs to semiautomated 3-D reconstruction and computer simulation of calyceal functioning", ARO Meeting 1993.
A Gandsas, K Montgomery, R Altrudi, D McKenas, and Y Silva, "Vital signs monitoring from an aircraft via the Internet", MedNet97- World Congress on Internet in Medicine, Surrey, UK. (project unrelated to NASA work)
Gandsas, A., Montgomery, K. "In-flight monitoring of vital signs via the Internet", Airlines Medical Directors Association Meeting, Chicago, IL, May 10, 1997. (project unrelated to NASA work)
Montgomery K. "Multimedia for Medical and Biological Research- Virtual Surgery", NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, May 1, 1997.
Montgomery K. "3D Reconstruction and the Space Program",
San Joaquin Delta College/Northern California Microscopy Society,
Stockton, CA, October 3, 1996.