AEDs can be thought of as an electrocardiogram or ECG, or a multi-parameter patient monitor, that also provides life-saving therapy. ECGs monitor heart signals via electrodes connected to specific locations on the human body. These signals, on the order of a few millivolts in amplitude, are difficult to discern against a noisy background, but are used to accurately determine a person’s QRS complex.

The QRS complex is what’s commonly used by doctors to diagnose a wide range of heart conditions, such as arrhythmia or even atrial or ventricular fibrillation. The AED uses the same QRS complex to make the decision to provide therapy, or the shock to restart or resynchronize the heart.

Reliability, easy-to-use HMI, accuracy, fast boot times, power management, and security are just some of the key considerations for AEDs. These systems need to have the processing power powerful enough to acquire, process, and interpret several parameters at once, while also providing a friendly, straightforward, and safe HMI.

A simplified architecture of a typical AED can have a built in SVGA resolution display, a touch screen HMI and potentially a separate external display connectivity to a high-definition monitor to provide training or maybe showing a related video. Modern AEDs are getting networked with wired and wireless connectivity.