Measure his pulse by placing the tip of his finger on the camera of his smartphone; know your respiratory rate by filming your chest with your phone’s camera… Two features that Google will offer “In a few weeks”. The announcements were made on Thursday, February 4, during a group overview of its activities in health. In this area, the American still has ambitions.
Concretely, the pulse is determined by analyzing the tiny differences in skin color associated with blood circulation. The respiratory rate is deduced from small movements of the rib cage. These measures will be possible on Google Pixel phones, then on those of other brands.
On the highly sensitive issue of data, the digital giant specifies that the user can choose to immediately erase his constant, after having taken it, or to store it in the Google Fit application. The measurement will then be “Encrypted and stored on Google’s servers”, with the objective of displaying user data in this application of “Well-being”, specifies the company.
Very general public approach
These announcements are not unpublished. Apple also offers to measure many constants, with its Apple Watch, and aggregate them in its Apple Health application. The latter, like Google Fit, is compatible with bracelets and connected objects which, in particular for athletes, offer to “quantify” their physical activity. For its part, Google hopes to distinguish itself by its very general public approach. And actively seek other features, which “Use the power of the sensors of the phones”.
The approach is part of a global strategy based on two sides, explained David Feinberg, vice president in charge of Google Health. “We want to make information more accessible for doctors and for users”, explained the manager, recruited at the end of 2018 to bring together under this branch the various services and subsidiaries in health.
On the general public side, the group has been active against the Covid-19 pandemic. The company has developed an architecture with Apple to create contact case tracing applications. He also promoted information “Reliable” on its search engine and its YouTube video platform. And mounted a testing campaign in the United States, with its subsidiary Verily. The group has also participated in studies on the mobility of populations or on the terms searched on its engine during the pandemic.
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