“A patent application published Thursday suggests Apple is working to turn Apple Watch into a full-fledged medical device, one that can monitor a user’s vital signs and automatically send out an alert should they need urgent care,” Mikey Campbell reports for AppleInsider.
“As published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Apple’s application for ‘Care event detection and alerts’ provides for a hardware system capable of monitoring its surrounding environment for so-called ‘care events,’ described as any event that necessitates assistance from medical personnel, police, fire rescue or other emergency technicians,” Campbell reports. “For example, the device could be programmed to monitor a user’s heart for an arrhythmia and, upon detection, send out an alert to family or emergency responders.”
Campbell reports, “While not specifically mentioned in the document, Apple Watch is uniquely qualified to fulfill the proposed system’s goals.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Is Apple ready and willing to run the FDA gauntlet or is this just a patentable idea from earlier in Apple Watch’s development?
SEE ALSO:
FDA ‘taking a very light touch’ on regulating the Apple Watch – March 30, 2015
As Apple Watch looms, U.S. FDA clarifies regulatory stance on health-tracking wearables – January 20, 2015
U.S. FDA details high-level meeting with Apple: ‘Moral obligation to do more’ with health, innovative sensors – June 9, 2014