Google Developing “Cough and Snore” Monitoring
According to a recent APK insight report by 9to5Google, the APK of the latest Google Health Studies app (version 2.0) contains code strings that reveal a “Sleep Audio Collection” study. The study is reportedly limited to Google employees with Android devices and aims to collect the relevant data to create accurate “Cough and Snore algorithms” for the Android platform.
Google says that its “Health Sensing team is actively working to bring an advanced suite of sensing capabilities and algorithms to Android devices with the goal of providing users with meaningful insight into their sleep.” The sleep audio collection, as per Google, supports this mission by providing data necessary to validate, tune, and develop such algorithms.
The “Cough and Snore algorithms” will presumably be used to develop a “bedside monitoring” feature for Android meant for nocturnal cough and snore monitoring. It is said to work in a “privacy-preserving, on-device.”
However, it is currently unclear if the feature will actually make it to Android phones. And if it does, we don’t know if it would be available for all Android devices or would be limited to the supported Pixel devices. Nonetheless, it is safe to assume that Google’s Pixel devices might be the first ones to get it.
Moreover, Google could integrate the cough and snore monitoring feature into its upcoming Pixel Watch, which is expected to come with advanced health-focused features like continuous heart-rate tracking, fitness tracking with active zone minutes, sleep tracking, and more. The company is slated to release the Pixel Watch alongside its upcoming Pixel 7 series devices sometime in the fall of this year. For those who don’t know, Google already has the cough and snore detection feature for the 2nd Gen Nest Hub.
So, what do you think about the new cough and snore monitoring feature for Android? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, and stay tuned for further updates on the same.
Featured Image: Nest Hub
