Google Watch innovation: will call an ambulance if the pulse stops

Google has received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for a heart rate detection feature on its Pixel watches. From now on, if a Google Watch wearer's heart rate stops, the device will automatically call the country's emergency number.

Limited availability for now

Google has announced that the Google Pixel watch can call emergency services when it detects a drop in its owner's heart rate.

This feature is currently only available on the Pixel Watch 3, but will soon be available on other models.

How it works

A new feature on Pixel watches is the first technology of its kind that can detect the wearer's pulse and automatically call emergency services. 

This Google feature, called "Loss of Pulse Detection," is activated when the heart stops beating due to dangerous events such as primary cardiac arrest, respiratory or circulatory failure, overdose, or poisoning.

Ideally, in such incidents, someone nearby should immediately contact emergency services. However, the watch plays this role, ensuring that there are no false alarms.

When the Google Watch suspects a pulse has been lost, it turns on infrared and red light signals to look for additional evidence of a pulse, while also starting to track movement with the motion sensor. 

If the artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm, combining pulse and movement signals, confirms the loss of pulse, the watch initiates a check to see if the user is responding, while also checking their movement.

If there is no response and no movement is detected, the watch switches to an audible signal and begins a countdown. 

If the wearer continues to fail to respond, the watch or a phone connected to it automatically calls emergency services and sends an automated message stating that no pulse was detected and providing the exact address of the user's location.

Other Pixel features

This Google feature is currently available in 14 countries, but has just received FDA approval and will launch in the US in March.

Other features that Pixel watches use to improve users' lives include Car Crash Detection, Fall Detection, Irregular Heart Rhythm Notifications, an ECG app, and Safety Check.