Live-stream from Garmin watches via ANT+ stick & virtual box (evtl. coud, IOT)

[Peter Gamma]

Bluetooth 3.0 pairing allows pairing only to one device at a time.

There is a Bitalino Open Signals Mobile app,  which should eventually work for real time csv recording. For a second real time stream to Matlab or Python, a second device is needed.

Bitalino can also be bought in parts. Costs for two devices in parts and build together yourself estimated 200 to 300 USD. Batteries for instance when bought from 3 th party seller are cheaper.

[Peter Gamma]

Access of sensor data from a Garmin watch is difficult. With Bitalino, it is easier. And the Bitalino Community is very helpful, and gives very detailed answers 

https://forum.bitalino.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=574&e=1&view=unread#unread

[Peter Gamma]

Does Garmin want to control the user sensor data, so that it can only be accessed by Garmin?

This makes alternatives like Scott Hardens sound card ECG much more attractive, which offers open source software which can run on different platforms

https://github.com/PeterGamma/Live-stream-from-Dr.-Scott-Hardens-Sound-Card-ECG

[Peter Gamma]

Determination of the accuracy of commercially available heart rate monitors should be based on a scientifically accepted method. Bitalino is accepted as a scientifically accepted reference device.

https://forum.bitalino.com/viewtopic.php?f=12&p=2181#p2181

I suppose is should be easy also to make tests with Scotts Sound Card ECG to make it scientifcally accepted. It would be a failure when a scientist like Scott Harden would develop an ECG machine which is not accepted by other scientists.

The group of  Milind Y. Desai tested the accuracy of commercially available heart rate sensors with a scientifically accepted method

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6732081/

Not all heart rate sensors have been tested yet by a scientifically accepted method, for instance the Polar OH1 sensor

https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2019/03/polar-oh1-plus-optical-hr-sensor-in-depth-review.html/comment-page-1#comment-3566124

With a reference device as the Bitalino ECG device, everybody can termine the accuracy of heart rate sensors themselves. But raw data is necessary for such test. Garmin makes it difficult to access raw data. Here is a list of tools which makes access of Garmin raw data in the format of .csv values easier

https://github.com/PeterGamma/Live-stream-of-sensor-data-from-Garmin-watches

A ranking of the accuracy of commercially available heart rate sensors would be desirable, when scientific quantification of these heart sensors has been done. Everybody can to this himself with the above described tools.

[Peter Gamma]

There is one paper available about the accuracy of the Polar OH1 sensor

https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0217288

[Peter Gamma]

They came to the conclusion that the accuracy of the Polar OH1 is near to an ECG device, which is the most accurate HR measurement device available.

[Peter Gamma]

In a similar scientific study Milind Y. Desai s group compaired the accuracy of several commercially available heart rate monitors in athletes. Milind Y. Desai s group did not test the Polar OH1. But they found that the accuracy of the Polar H7 chest strap is also near to an ECG device

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6732081/

[Peter Gamma]

Dr. Scott Hardens, PhD.  ECG sound card system is a winning system for heart rate sensor data in real time. I little developement work would make it more attractive

https://forum.bitalino.com/viewtopic.php?f=19&p=2184#p2184

[Peter Gamma]

Until Scott s device can be bought somewhere as a kit with all the components or a ready made device, buy a HeartBIT Bitalino

https://plux.info/bundles/428-bitalino-revolution-heartbit-bt.html

which is already there where Scott s device should be, for a live stream of heart rate sensor data to a PC. It saves a lot of time.

[Peter Gamma]

I complained at the Garmin support about the deletion of several of my posts, or about threatening of deletion of my posts

https://forums.garmin.com/apps-software/mobile-apps-web/f/garmin-connect-web/226152/does-someone-work-on-the-android-application-a-training-tracker/1068421#1068421

my posts where about a training tracker, Max Candocia s fit to csv converter Python Script, and the MQQT software to stream sensor data from a Garmin watch to a PC. All of these products depend on Garmin products, and lead to higher sales of Garmin products.

The answer from the Garmin support was, that the link was a violation of the terms and condition of the Garmin forum, but that they are generally relaxed about this.

When the hard style of moderator Trux in the Garmin forum is taken serious, a huge number of posts had to be deleted. This is complete nonsense.  The moderator Trux should be brought to stop his deletion action of posts  in the Garmin forum. I started a campain against him at the Garmin support.

[Peter Gamma]

I moved my thread about the discussion of a training tracker to the THIS IS ANT forum, where none of my posts where deleted

https://www.thisisant.com/forum/viewthread/7363/

and also all other threads where i discussed tools and scripts concerning the Garmin watch. Links can be found on my GITHUB:

https://github.com/PeterGamma/Live-stream-of-sensor-data-from-Garmin-watches

[Peter Gamma]

Also in the Matlab community, the moderator Rik threatens do delete all of my posts which are not related to Matlab.

https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/394287-is-there-a-matlab-function-to-read-in-a-fit-file-from-a-garmin-device#answer_426776?s_tid=prof_contriblnk

The case is similar to the case of the moderator Trux in the Garmin Forum. When it is not allowed to write about a Python script in the Matlab community, there will probably no matlab function to read in a *.fit file from a Garmin device. A Python script can be integrated into a Matlab function, when someone has a problem with a Python script.

These are two cases of abuse of power of moderators trying to get rid of a poster, or trying to set a poster under pressure to do what they want him to do, by arguing with the terms and conditions of the forum.

Moderators like Trux and Rik are lowering sales figures of the products they are trying to sale. They make it unattractive to write posts in the Garmin Forum or in the Matlab Forum, because one cannot be sure about arbitrary deletion of posts.

[Peter Gamma]

Bitalino uses Bluetooth or BLE soft- and hardware, Garmin watches use ANT+ broadcasting and almost only sensors with ANT+ support. There is hardly any ANT+ live streaming desktop applications available, and BLE would also be attractive for android application developement.

Why does Garmin not offer a contemporary BLE live-streaming support for their watches and sensors, which can be connected to BLE desktop example code?

https://www.mathworks.com/help/comm/examples/modeling-of-ble-devices-with-heart-rate-profile.html

[Peter Gamma]

Here is an example what is currently available for ANT+ sensor streaming from private developers who do it for fun:

QBIKE ANT+ Cycling Training on Raspberry Pi (Jeffery Clive):

https://github.com/clivemjeffery/qbike

Demo video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVoNQ8jtVbI&feature=youtu.be

developed by Jeffery Clive

https://www.strava.com/athletes/98197

Jeffery Clive s work is great. But why does Garmin let users only develop such simple Cycling Training on Raspberry Pi, and limits the creativity of great software developers with non-commercial private products, by not offering users the whole potential of what modern technology can do today?

[Peter Gamma]

And why does Garmin not promote research, by offering Matlab users the full potential of what their watches can do? Research scientists can probably not convince Garmin with sales figures. But Garmin will loose clients, when Garmin does not promote smart people, smart research scientists or smart non research scientists.

[Peter Gamma]

Garmin watches BLE v5.0 support:

There is an example of BLE devices with Heart Rate Profile using the GATT client-server scenario as specified in the Bluetooth Core Specification v5.0, Dec. 06, 2016 in Matlab:

https://www.mathworks.com/help/comm/examples/modeling-of-ble-devices-with-heart-rate-profile.html

Unfortunately, there is no example code for a specific watch available for this example in Matlab to this date, neither from Garmin or from another manufacturer:

https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/533393-are-there-specific-ble-heart-rate-sensor-devices-available-which-are-compatible-to-the-example-model?s_tid=prof_contriblnk

[Peter Gamma]

Bluetooth LE SDK is available for Polar:

https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/518074-is-there-an-example-how-to-connect-the-polar-oh1-bluetooth-low-energy-heart-rate-sensor-with-matlab?s_tid=prof_contriblnk

and Stryd:

https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/518075-is-there-an-example-how-to-connect-the-stryd-low-energy-foot-pod-sensor-with-matlab?s_tid=prof_contriblnk

[Peter Gamma]

Keep Calm, Bluetooth Low Energy v5.0 .

[Peter Gamma]

There is only a profile for heart rate in the Bluetooth 5.0 specification, not for speed and distance, as far as I know.

A live stream for Garmin watches is not developed, and Garmin does not promote researchers to do develop it.

There is a Bitalino Foot Pod. Bitalino has a Matlab toolbox and a bluetooth live stream. Software for a Foot Pod can be developed in Matlab, or one of the many other platforms which are supported by Bitalino.

https://forum.bitalino.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&p=2191#p2191

[Peter Gamma]

With Bitalino Biomedical Toolkit, it is possible to buld a sports watch with ECG heart rate and Bluetooth footpod with live stream of all sensor data over Bluetooth to Matlab or other Applications. This is a solution to get live stream sensor data until more attractive live streaming options for instance for Bluetooth 5.0 are available from Garmin or Polar.

[Peter Gamma]

There is already an example in Matlab for step counting with the Beagle Bone Blue, which could also work as a real-time foot pod:

https://www.mathworks.com/help/supportpkg/beagleboneblue/ref/counting-steps-using-beagleboneblue-hardware-example.html

But you probably need to have installed both Beagle Bone BLue and Software, before all links are working

https://www.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/answers/534838-broken-link-count-steps-using-mpu9250-sensor-of-beagleboneblue-hardware?s_tid=mlc_ans_email_view#comment_867918

[Peter Gamma]

Quick Tip from DC Rainmaker: Broadcast Garmin Optical HR to Apps Like Zwift // ANT & Bluetooth:

[Peter Gamma]

To summarize:

The Matlab BLE example requires Bluetooth 5.0. I could not find a heart rate sensor with Bluetooth 5.0. Maybe no additional software is needed when a device can be paired directly to a PC over Bluetooth 5.0. Polar devices are manly based on Bluetooth. Will Polar launch a new device with Bluetooth 5.0. soon? Or will a new Bluetooth 5.0 device only be launched, when the market is big enough for it?

For Matlab and Python, I would choose for heart rate Bitalino ECG and for step rate BeagleBone Blue. For both devices there is already example code available in Matlab, and for both devices Python code libraries are also available.

[Peter Gamma]

Build your own sports watch with Bitalino and BeagleBone Blue .

[Peter Gamma]

Build your own sports watch with Bitalino and BeagleBone Blue, inspired by Seppo Säynäjäkanga's, the founder of Polar.

Polar was founded in 1977 by Seppo Säynäjäkanga's, who worked at the University of Oulu on the developement of a heart rate monitor.

He was inspired by talking to a trainer during a cross-country ski run in 1976. It was about using a measuring device that can be used not only for stationary training, but also on the body. Because the heart rate was still being measured on the finger at that time, the cabling was not given freedom of movement.

Measurements where slow and and inaccurate. After intensive research and development, the world's first wireless heart rate monitor, the pulse monitor Sport Tester PE2000, came onto the market in 1982. The functionality has been continuously improved and the range of products.

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polar_Electro