This proposal defines Phase I of a program to develop a modular ambulatory processor and outlines the Phase II and Phase III efforts. This digitally-based monitor is intended for the recording of physiological activity from human subjects in naturalistic environments for periods of up to several days in experimental and clinical applications. These would include such areas as psychosomatic medicine, anxiety disorders, biological rhythms, and medical monitoring. This program would devise algorithms and hardware for four selected recording capabilities, with the potential for eventual development of a large number of application modules. The system consists of (1) a miniature, battery-powered recording/processing unit, (2) plug-in modules containing physiological measuring circuits, (3) an electrically isolated RS-232 interface adapter to connect the unit to any host computer without needing a special hardware interface, and (4) software. The unit can be configured with 2 megabytes of non-volatile solid state memory and its processor can run software developed in high-level languages.
