IPhone and Apple Watch will soon be able to detect car crashes and call for help
The iPhone and Apple Watch will soon be able to detect car crashes. Once a traffic incident has been spotted, Apple devices will automatically be able to contact emergency services.
According to information from the Wall Street Journal, Apple is currently developing a feature capable of detect car accidents. Integrated into iPhone and Apple Watch, this option aims to reduce the time lapse between a traffic incident and the arrival of emergency services. The outlet claims the option appeared in internal Apple documents.
To develop this feature, the Silicon Valley giant is exploiting all the data recorded by the sensors of its devices, including the accelerometer. This sensor, built into the iPhone, is able to detect a sudden peak in gravity or a sudden impact.
Apple wants iPhone to detect car crashes, like Google Pixels
According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple has been testing this technology for a year using data shared anonymously by iPhone and Apple Watch users. As part of this experiment, the brand’s devices have already detected more than 10 million car accidents. 50,000 of the incidents detected were followed by a call to the emergency services.
Once a traffic accident has been spotted, the user’s smartphone or smartwatch will automatically make a call to emergency services. The option is similar to the fall detection integrated in Apple Watch since the Series 4. This option is able to identify when the wearer of the watch has had a fall. If the user does not move for 60 seconds after the fall, the watch calls for help and provides the exact location of the wearer to emergency services.
This feature is not entirely revolutionary. Since 2019, Google Pixels are already able to identify car accidents and contact emergency services. This feature, available on all smartphones in the range from the Pixel 3, is based on the Personal Security application inaugurated on the Pixel 4. Anyway, Apple should integrate this novelty into its iPhone and Apple Watch from this date. ‘next year. Citing sources familiar with the matter, the Wall Street Journal assures that the date of deployment of the option has not yet been defined.
Source: Wall Street Journal