Patent suggests Apple is upgrading AirPods into a multipurpose device

Apple sees its AirPods as being more than just earbuds.

The company is working to make AirPods into health and fitness trackers.

It has already issued patents for diagnosing and monitoring Bruxism, a condition in which people tend to clench or grind their teeth, via AirPods. A couple of years ago, Apple also issued a patent that allows its earbuds to measure “Biosignals and electrical activity of a user’s brain.”

It’s been speculated that Apple has been looking for ways to expand the use of its AirPods by making it possible to use them for health and fitness tracking. Now, the company has issued a patent focusing on the matter.

The company explained that people tend to move their bodies in unique but repetitive ways. Changes in these moves might reveal that a person has an injury or a disease.

However, it’s hard to notice these changes that may progress over the years, with users generally seeing doctors once or twice a year. This is why a device that could measure such changes is needed.

Apple’s patent reveals how its AirPods could detect biomechanical or musculoskeletal damages, reports Patently Apple.

The device would be able to track information such as the user’s walking patterns, steadiness, breathing, and other health metrics. The collected data from sensors would first be used to understand the user’s regular patterns.

As more data is collected over time, the system can compare new data with previous information to see if there are any significant changes, such as if a person is walking differently than usual.

If a concerning pattern is detected, a user gets a notification about the change in their health.

The device would also be equipped with machine learning, which would allow the system to make health predictions based on the data from other users with similar metrics.

However, even though the company has issued the patent, it doesn’t mean that the feature will be implemented in the future.

Apple is already known for making its earbuds more health-conscious by focusing on hearing features. Last year, the company introduced AirPods Pro 2 which are supposed to turn them into hearing aids.