Book reviewsHuman and machine perception; information fusion Edited by Virginio Cantoni, Vito Gesù, Alessandra Setti, and Domenico Tegolo, Plenum Press, New York, 1997, ISBN 0-306-45708-3, 321 pages. This book is the outcome of the second international workshop on Human and Machine Perception held in Trabia, Italy in the summer of 1996. The book is about how humans obtain a better knowledge of the environment through the many sensory modes available and how this contrasts with how machines process information. The contents of the book include all the oral presentations, each lecture as a chapter. All the lectures are up to date and represent the current thinking. Additionally, extra chapters have been included to take account of workshop discussions. Each panel discussion is transcribed into a chapter. A broad range of subjects is covered, including computer science, psychology, physiology, and biomedical engineering. Many of the chapters contain extensive and useful references. Some chapters are mathematical in approach whilst others are more descriptive. The book comprises 21 chapters. The first seven, which take up half the book, look at auditory, visual, vestibular and somatosensory systems. Each system is explained from a biological point of view, discussing how the natural systems perform complex and intensive computations. This is contrasted with how machines, such as robots, carry out the corresponding tasks. To give an example of the last two points, one chapter looks at the auditory system in detail in a factual manner, whereas the next chapter examines ultrasonic techniques for environmental perception in a well detailed mathematical approach. The remainder of the book is subdivided into five sections, each containing a transcript of the appropriate panel discussion. The first of these deals with how information from various sensors is perceived and, when appropriate, combined. The natural and the machine are compared. The next section looks at how decisions are made using the combined data perceived from sensors. The fuzzy process of decision making is discussed. This section concentrates on the psychological aspects of human systems; the comparison with artificial systems is limited. The next section is about perception and action. The discussion is on how complex precision movements are carried out in humans and attempts to determine how a control engineer would design some of the natural functions. Another point covered is the perception of motion from a computer science angle. The next section covers perception and representation. This is covered in two parts; from a psychological and philosophical point of view, and also from a computer science model. The discussion is on how knowledge is processed, stored and represented. The final section looks at communication from a computer's perspective, although the human comparison is discussed where appropriate. The advantages and concepts of both text and picture communication are compared and contrasted. The book would be very useful as a state of the art starting point for particular subjects and obtaining relevant references. The topics covered are fascinating: biomedical engineers with a strong background in psychology and computer science would get the most out of this book. However, the book is difficult to study as a complete work, as the viewpoint keeps changing from one discipline to another. It does not flow well, possible due to the language translation in some chapters. The language used is very European English and some words seem to be ambiguous. M. A. Tooley Edited by J G Webster Institute of Physics Publishing Ltd., London UK 1997 260 pages illustrated, hardcover ISBN 0 7503 0467 7 UK£60.00 / US$99.00 Pulse oximetry was introduced in the early 1980s as a non-invasive method for monitoring arterial blood oxygen saturation. Recognised worldwide as the standard of care in a wide range of clinical specialties, pulse oximetry can provide early and hence valuable information on problems in the delivery of oxygen to the tissue. This book provides an excellent overview of the subject. It concentrates on optical pulse detection and the processing techniques employed in measuring arterial oxygen saturation (by pulse, SpO2), and without neglecting the clinical aspects. This book is a must for biomedical engineers and medical physicists involved in clinical instrumentation and physiological measurement. It is also likely to benefit other healthcare professionals who may also like to know more about topics such as peripheral pulse measurement, light interaction with tissue, optoelectronics, and pulse oximeter design and performance. All contributors are with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, WI, USA. The book is well structured in terms of chapters, content, and subject detail. Each of the 13 chapters are introduced with sufficient detail to be read and understood without having to consider the whole text first. However, this leads to some repetition in the content. The book allocates approximately equal space to background, instrumentation, and application. The background topics include anatomy and physiology, clinical motivation for development, and light interaction with tissue; the instrumentation chapters cover optoelectronics, systems design, and pulse signal processing: and the remaining portion of the book considers pulse oximeter performance, assessment, limitations and clinical applications. I found both the instructional objectives and references at the end of each chapter, and the glossary valuable. The opening chapter of the book is dedicated to aspects of human anatomy, physiology and pathophysiology. The clinical focus is retained when the early approaches to blood oxygen saturation measurement are reviewed, and the motivation is given for developing a simple to use, quick, portable, clinical instrument based on non-invasive (optical) pulse measurement techniques. A most useful introductory chapter on (red, infra-red) light interaction with tissue then follows. In the set of chapters dedicated to instrumentation design the importance of optoelectronic component technology soon becomes apparent, with an introduction to the both practical and theoretical aspects of light emitting diodes, photodiodes, associated electronic drive and amplifier circuitry. Here, the key design factors for incorporating these components into reusable or disposable patient probes are considered. The complexity and sophistication of modern pulse oximeters is illustrated with a detailed chapter on electronic instrument control, where examples of commercially available oximeter systems are provided. Typical pulse processing flow charts and routines are described to show how SpO2 can be determined under static and dynamic conditions, using sophisticated feature recognition and extraction algorithms to improve artifact rejection, and ECG synchronisation algorithms to enhance measurement reliability. A whole chapter is dedicated to user-interface design, for pulse oximeter data display, alarm, and function selection. In addition, the wider aspects of oximeter design consider the compliance of medical devices with current regulations, particularly for Europe and the USA. The final chapters of the book discuss the practical issues of pulse oximeter calibration, looking both at ‘gold standards’ and describing techniques for assessing performance. Here, it is good to see a summary of the main (clinical) limitations of the technique. The book closes with a review of some of the main clinical applications of pulse oximetry, including; anaesthesia, tissue-blood supply and organ viability, dental care, obstetrics and gynaecology, neonatal and paediatric care, veterinary medicine, physical stress testing, management of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and sleep studies. In conclusion, Design of Pulse Oximeters offers a valuable contribution to clinical instrumentation and physiological measurement. It is reasonably priced and in my opinion worth buying. John Allen Regional Medical Physics Department, Freeman Hospital, Freeman Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE7 7DN, UK. | ||