Apple has filed for a patent (number 20200383579) for “projecting blood pressure measurements with limited pressurization. It shows that the company wants its Apple Watch to serve as an individual’s blood pressure measuring tool without the need for third party apps and accessories.
However, graphics in the patent filing also show devices attached to the ankle and arm. Whether this involves separate health monitoring devices made by Apple or accessories that would work with the Apple Watch itself is unclear.
Apple’s patent filing involves methods for estimating blood pressure values, and related blood pressure measurement systems, account for patient specific attributes. One method of estimating a blood pressure value of a patient includes receiving feature vector data corresponding to a pressure variation of a blood pressure cuff.
The feature vector data is derived from physiological signals of the patient measured over the pressure variation of the blood pressure cuff. A first blood pressure value of the patient is estimated using a first algorithm that employs the feature vector data as input data.
In the patent filing, Apple notes that elevated blood pressure (a.k.a. hypertension) is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. As a result, blood pressure measurement is a routine task in many medical examinations. Apple says that timely detection of hypertension can help inhibit related cardiovascular damage via accomplishment of effective efforts in treating and/or controlling hypertension.
