Apple has patented a system of interconnected sensors

A batch of Apple patent filings published on Thursday describe a system of interconnected sensors — some being wearable devices — that work with an iPhone hub to monitor activity levels, dynamically set or cancel alarms and manage push notification settings, among other automated tasks. The US Patent and Trademark Office published three Apple patent applications covering a method in which an iPhone, along with one or more remote wearable sensors, gathers and processes raw data to track a user’s activity level, as well as control certain scheduling functions like alarms. One filing titled “Method and apparatus for personal characterization data collection using sensors” offers a comprehensive overview of Apple’s system, which calls for a smartphone or similar portable device to respond automatically to data sent by various sensors. When an action or motion is sensed, a signal is relayed to the hub device for processing. An iPhone 5 is offered as an example device, with the usual assortment of sensors including a gyroscope, accelerometer, proximity sensor, ambient light sensor and location sensors, among others. In Apple’s proposed method, the iPhone receives incoming data from these on-board components as well as at least one remote sensor worn by the user. After processing the raw motion data, the system can deduce what a user is doing — running, walking, sleeping, etc. — and execute a number of automated tasks. With the first application, the task is to generate a “personal scorecard” that sheds light on a user’s lifestyle.