Apple has applied for several patents relating to future Blood pressure taking device designs since 2018 ( 01, 02, 03, 04 and 05.) with one of their latest being published back in January 2022. Our cover graphic is from that patent. Yesterday the U.S. Patent Office published a patent from Apple relating to a new UI for those that will use Apple’s blood pressure cuff to create a blood pressure journal.

Apple’s patent application covers techniques for managing and/or presenting health data relating to hypertension using electronic devices. Today’s systems are generally cumbersome and inefficient. For example, some existing techniques use a complex and time-consuming user interface, which may include multiple key presses or keystrokes. Existing techniques require more time than necessary, wasting user time and device energy. This latter consideration is particularly important in battery-operated devices.

Accordingly, Apple’s present technique provides electronic devices with faster, more efficient methods and interfaces for managing and/or presenting health data. Such methods and interfaces optionally complement or replace other methods for managing and/or presenting health data. Such methods and interfaces reduce the cognitive burden on a user and produce a more efficient human-machine interface.

For battery-operated computing devices, such methods and interfaces conserve power and increase the time between battery charges. Such methods and interfaces also provide a user with notifications related to health events, thereby providing the user with information related to his or her health without requiring input. Such methods and interfaces also enable a user to conveniently track health information, thereby facilitating a user's ability monitor his or her health.

In accordance with some embodiments, a method performed at a computer system that is in communication with one or more output devices and one or more sensors is described. The method comprises: receiving first data associated with a user of the computer system from the one or more sensors, where the first data from the one or more sensors does not include a direct measurement of pressure; and in response to receiving the first data from the one or more sensors: in accordance with a determination that the first data from the one or more sensors satisfies a set of hypertension notification criteria, generating, via the one or more output devices, a notification indicative of a hypertension event associated with the user of the computer system; and in accordance with a determination that the first data from the one or more sensors does not satisfy the set of hypertension notification criteria, forgoing generating the notification of the hypertension event.

Below are a series of exemplary user interfaces relating to Apple’s future blood pressure system.

Apple’s patent FIG. 6G above presents an Apple Watch #624 that collects data from sensors #618, #620, and/or #622 over a predetermined period of time, such as 30 days, before the watch or iPhone determines whether the data satisfies the set of notification criteria (e.g., hypertension notification criteria).

For more details, review Apple patent application 20220218292.

Apple’s patent application lists Matthew Crowley as the sole inventor. Cowley is a Health System Designer at Apple. Cowley works on health features on iOS and watchOS, including the Health App, ECG, Fall Detection, AFib Notifications, Sleep, and many other experiences used by millions.