FDA Gives Clearance To Loss Of Pulse Detection Feature On Google’s Pixel Watch 3

Google on Tuesday received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the Pixel Watch 3’s Loss of Pulse Detection feature, which can alert emergency medical services when the user’s heart stops.

The first-of-its-kind Loss of Pulse Detection feature on the Pixel Watch 3 is already available in 14 countries, and now with FDA approval, it will begin rolling out in the U.S. at the end of March.

The feature can detect when the Pixel Watch 3 wearer experiences a loss of pulse, which occurs when the heart stops beating due to medical events including cardiac arrest, respiratory or circulatory failure, overdose or poisoning. When the watch detects a loss of pulse, it will automatically prompt a call to emergency services.

Often, a person may become unresponsive when they experience an event that stops their heart, which means they must rely on a bystander seeing their situation to call 911. If a heart-stopping medical event occurs when a person is alone, their chance of receiving prompt lifesaving care diminishes.

The opt-in feature uses the Pixel Watch 3s existing Heart Rate sensor, which uses green light to check for a users pulse. If the feature detects pulselessness, infrared and red lights are activated to search for additional signs of a pulse, and the motion sensor will look for signs of movement.

AI and signal-processing algorithms take all those signals to confirm a loss of pulse event, and triggers a check-in to see if the user responds. If the user doesn’t respond and no motion is detected, an audio alarm and countdown initiate. If the user doesn’t respond to the countdown, a call is automatically placed to emergency services.

The extra layers of user alerts are designed to limit false alarms, while still happening quickly enough to alert emergency services quickly enough to potentially save lives.

The new feature joins a suite of others designed to protect the health and safety of Pixel Watch users, including Fall and Crash Detection, Irregular Heart Rhythm Notifications, which can check for signs of atrial fibrillation, and Safety Check, which allows users to set a timer when they unsafe, then send their location to a loved one if they dont respond.