New AirPod feature: detecting bruxism
On October 6th, Apple employees filed a patent application on the diagnosis and monitoring of bruxism (teeth grinding and clenching) using “earbud motion sensors”. This will be a new health tool with their AirPod Pros.
Bruxism is the habit of (un)consciously gritting or grinding the teeth especially in situations of stress or during sleep. It is a common condition, affecting up to a third of the general population. Typical signs and symptoms are a grinding noise during sleep, excessive tooth wear, hypersensitive teeth, aching jaw muscles, and certain facial changes (“square jaw“). Bruxism has no single cause but is instead considered a multifactorial disease.
In their patent, Apple proposed to use the motion sensors in their AirPod Pro’s in order to diagnose and monitor the bruxism behavior of the user.
We already knew that Apple planned to equip it’s Airpod Pro’s with updated motion sensors, and they would focus on fitness tracking. (The current last model – just launched – does not mention fitness capabilities).
