Philips and the Pentagon are testing what they call “predictive bio-wearables” that can track changes in vital signs to offer an early warning of COVID-19 infection.
Philips and the DOD Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) have used Garmin watches — the Fenix 6 and Vivoactive 4 — and Oura rings on more than 11,000 test patients since June 2020. They’ve measured respiration rate, oxygen saturation and heart rate with the watch and heart rate and skin temperature with the ring.
An algorithm watches for changes detected by the cloud-connected devices and offers a score from 1 to 100, with a higher number representing a higher likelihood of infection. The researchers compare it to a check-engine light warning that something could be wrong.