Google's innovative technology can transform regular ANC earbuds into heart rate monitors
Experience heart monitoring in a whole new way with Google's cutting-edge earbud with Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) technology.
Google's innovative tech to transform earbuds into heart monitors
Highlights
- Google's APG turns any ANC earbuds into heart monitors with high accuracy
- Field testing shows a median error of just 3.21% for heart rate readings
- The technology opens doors to exciting health research beyond heart monitoring
Imagine your everyday noise-cancelling earbuds doubling as heart monitors without the need for extra sensors. Google's APG (Audioplethysmography) technology utilises the existing hardware in ANC earbuds to monitor your heart rate and heart rate variability through a simple software update.
Google, in a recent research paper titled ‘APG: Audioplethysmography for Cardiac Monitoring in Hearables,’ has unveiled an extraordinary innovation that accomplishes just that.
Here's how it works.
How APG transforms earbuds into heart monitors
APG, as described by Google, is an acoustic sensing system that uses low-intensity ultrasound signals. The earbuds' speakers emit these signals, which then bounce back and are picked up by the built-in microphones.
What's truly fascinating is that these ultrasound echoes are modulated by the subtle changes in the ear canal caused by blood vessel deformations during your heartbeat. This innovative approach allows your earbuds to listen to your heart.
Illustrations of (a) ANC earbuds actively probe the ear canal and (b) a simplified model to describe the physiology activities inside the ear canal.
In a rigorous eight-month field study involving 153 participants, Google evaluated APG under various conditions. The results are promising, demonstrating a high level of accuracy with a median error of just 3.21 percent for heart rate readings and 2.70 percent for heart rate variability readings.
Google's internal teams thoroughly reviewed these findings, assuring its reliability and accuracy. Moreover, this technology works even when you're listening to music on your earbuds or engaged in physical activities like running.
It's resilient to factors like differences in skin tone, imperfect ear seals, and varying ear canal sizes. The best part is that APG has negligible effects on the battery life of your ANC earbuds, ensuring a seamless listening experience.
A promising future for health research
Google is not stopping here, their research team plans to push the boundaries of APG by testing it in more demanding scenarios like hiking, weightlifting, boxing, and high-intensity interval training (HIIT).
The potential applications of this technology go beyond monitoring heart rate and variability; it holds the promise for exciting health research opportunities.
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In short, Google's APG technology is a remarkable leap in the world of wearables, allowing everyday ANC earbuds to serve as heart monitors. With its high accuracy, resilience to various conditions, and minimal impact on battery life, it's a groundbreaking development that could revolutionise health monitoring.
As Google continues to explore its possibilities, we can look forward to more exciting innovations in the realm of hearables and health research.
