Patented camera system would encourage users to halt screen time when blue light exposure threshold is met.
A next-generation Fitbit watch could feature a camera to capture the wearer’s exposure to the harmful blue light known to disrupt sleep and circadian rhythm
In a new patent filing, Fitbit pitches a wearable that can monitor how much of the artificial blue light commonly delivered through televisions, smartphones and other electronic displays.
In practice, the patented system would feature a camera and ambient light sensor within the watch face. They would combine to capture the light data, and feed it through an image processing system with white balancing nous.
Fitbit explains the process could take place periodically throughout the day to capture average exposure. The measurement could also happen over a set period; most usefully in the evening when the blue light exposure is most harmful to natural sleep patterns.
The patent filing with the USPTO spotted by Wareable explains: “The user computing device can be configured to estimate the amount of blue light a particular user is exposed to. In some examples, the user computing device can periodically measure the blue light exposure throughout the day to determine an average amount of blue light exposure.
“Alternatively, the user computing device can be configured to measure the blue light exposure associated with a user at a particular time during the day (e.g., an hour before the user typically sleeps). In this specific example, the user computing device can measure the amount of blue light in a user’s environment at a particular moment during the day.”
Measurements would be cross referenced against a specified maximum exposure time. So, if you spend too long browsing your social media feed when winding down in the evening, your future Fitbit would let you know about it.
A large part of this equation of course, is how accurate the sensor could be in terms of capturing blue light in the user’s surroundings. Firstly, the camera lens field of view would only be 100-degrees, and thus not always aligned in a way that would capture the light the wearer sees with their eyes. Fitbit has thought about these challenges.
“The exposure time can be determined based on the amount of light needed to capture a properly lit image,” the filing adds. In some low light environments, the exposure time can be longer, while in environments with a lot of light the exposure time can be shorter. In some examples, the camera device can determine the exposure time based on an auto-exposure algorithm that can include capturing one or more images and successively updating the exposure time until the correct light levels are captured in the image data. Because this process involves capturing a plurality of images and analysing them to determine their light content, the auto-exposure algorithm can involve a significant amount of power usage and time.”
Many device manufacturers in the smartphone and computing realm have enacted a night mode setting or altered the colour temperature (a la Apple’s Night Shift) to reduce exposure to the eye-straining, circadian-rhythm impacting blue light.
However, consumer devices aren’t measuring the exposure and acting accordingly to reduce; even those devices with cameras and light sensors directly facing the user’s gaze, while having innate knowledge of display temperature and display size.
Why? Perhaps due to the privacy concerns of having the cameras turned on all the time. But also due to the heavy power consumption Fitbit references above.
The Google-owned company says it would gather the data with power efficiency by taking periodic readings throughout the day to estimate average exposure. Or by concentrating the readings over an hour during the evenings. Another method would be to use only the ambient light sensor to capture readings, leaving the camera out of the equation.
“In this way,” Fitbit adds, “the ambient light sensor can quickly and with low power use, determine the appropriate exposure time for the camera at the present moment. In some examples, the ambient light sensor can generate an initial estimate for the exposure time that can be used to determine the exposure time using the successive approximation method more efficiently.”
Whether such a system could overcome the various barriers to efficacy remains to be seen. There’s been talk of adding cameras to smartwatches since the category emerged 15 years ago, but none of the major manufacturers have committed.
So, the existence of a camera within a future Fitbit watch would be a big surprise. An effective blue light monitor would be an even bigger surprise.
We’ve been hearing about cameras supposedly arriving within smartwatches since the
