# thearn/webcam-pulse-detector

A python application that detects and highlights the heart-rate of an individual (using only their own webcam) in real-time.

Repository: https://github.com/thearn/webcam-pulse-detector
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/webcam-pulse-detector
Language: Python
License: NOASSERTION
License Family: other
Last push: 2025-05-13T14:02:08+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 42/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-02T17:46:02.011165+00:00)
- activity 21, release rhythm 35, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 4888, "days_push": 477, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_releases, no_license
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 3232, forks 596 (observed 2026-08-28T04:07:50.200697+00:00)

## What it is
A Python desktop application that estimates a person's heart rate in real time using only a webcam, by analyzing subtle color intensity changes in the forehead region detected via OpenCV. It visualizes the raw optical signal, extracted heartbeat waveform, and power spectral density, and highlights the forehead pulsing in sync with the heartbeat.

## Use cases
- measure heart rate with a webcam
- non-contact pulse detection from video
- real-time biometric monitoring demo
- detect heartbeat from camera feed
- visualize physiological signals from webcam
- remote photoplethysmography experiment

## When to choose
- you want a webcam-based, contactless heart-rate estimation tool
- you need a Python/OpenCV demo of remote photoplethysmography
- you want to experiment with real-time physiological signal processing

## When to avoid
- you need clinical-grade or medically validated heart-rate measurement
- you need multi-person simultaneous detection
- your environment has poor lighting or frequent motion
- you need a supported library API rather than an interactive application

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: maintenance
- function: computer-vision, image-processing, data-visualization, monitoring
- domain: computer-vision, healthcare, image-processing
- platform: python, cross-platform, windows
- tags: heart-rate-detection, webcam, opencv, photoplethysmography, real-time-signal-processing, biometrics, desktop, macos, linux

## Member repositories
- thearn/webcam-pulse-detector (main) score 42

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:07:50.200697+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-29T18:43:56.528807+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/thearn/webcam-pulse-detector (fetched 2026-08-28T04:07:50.200697+00:00, sha 9e773b404983)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.