Apple has been granted a patent for “Electronic devices with breath sensing systems” that would allow an iPhone to detect health issues such as high cholesterol.
About the patent
According to the patent the smartphone would be equipped with sensors using an infrared light source. This would allow the device to measure/test your breathing without the use of a mouthpiece.
In the patent Apple says that challenges can arise when using sensors in an electronic device. If care isn’t taken, the sensor data may be difficult to gather or may be insufficient to provide a user with desired functionality. Apple wants to overcome such issues.
Summary of the patent
Here’s Apple’s abstract of the patent: “An electronic device may include sensors such as a breath sensor. The breath sensor may be aligned with a sensor window in the housing and may be configured to gather breath measurements through the sensor window without the use of a mouthpiece. The breath sensor may be a non-dispersive infrared breath sensor having an infrared light source and an infrared light detector.
“The infrared light source may emit infrared light through the sensor window and the infrared light detector may detect the infrared light after it passes through a volume of breath containing a target gas molecule that serves as a biomarker for a given health condition. Control circuitry in the electronic device may analyze the breath measurements to determine a concentration of the target gas molecule and may compare the concentration with database information to determine whether a user has the given health condition.”
I hope you’ll help support Apple World Today by becoming a patron. Almost all our income is from Patreon support and sponsored posts. Patreon pricing ranges from $2 to $10 a month. Thanks in advance for your support.
