What is the most secure password? PIN? Pattern? Or maybe Face ID? But what if your phone uses your unique heart rate to secure your device? Well, this is not science fiction but new technology that Apple is exploring through its new patent. Just like Apple uses its existing ECG (electrocardiogram) feature in Apple Watch to monitor heart rate, the new Heart Lock will allow users to unlock their Apple device while wearing an Apple Watch and possibly an iPhone feature that authenticates the heart rate.

Apple’s new patent highlighted in a report by Apple Insider describes a technology that identifies users based on their unique heart rhythm, providing a secure and seamless method for device authentication. The abstract of the patent reveals that “It (the patented technology) is directed to an electronic device having an integrated sensor for detecting a user’s cardiac activity and cardiac electrical signals. â€æ Using the detected signals, the electronic device may identify or authenticate a user and perform an operation based on the user’s identity.”

The main idea behind Apple’s latest patented technology is that each person has a different heart rhythm, which can be used as a biometric identifier. The Apple Watch is already equipped with ECG sensors that help capture these unique patterns. The process involves two points of contact with the user’s body: the sensor on the back that the hand wearing the watch touches and the Digital Crown on which the user places his index finger. When a user starts the ECG app and touches the Digital Crown, a circuit is completed, allowing the Apple Watch to measure the heart’s electrical signals.

By using complete ECG readings and verifying the user’s heart rate, the patented technology will allow users to unlock their connected Apple device as long as they continue to wear their Apple Watch. This will further simplify and speed up the authentication process, increasing both security and convenience for users. Just as users can unlock their Mac using an Apple Watch, they will be able to unlock their device using heart rate data.

In addition to leveraging the technology behind the Apple Watch ECG sensor, the patent also explores the possibility of integrating ECG reading technology into iPhones. The design outlined in the proposal suggests that Apple could turn the exterior of the iPhone into a heart-measuring device. By simply holding the iPhone, the user could be authenticated based on his or her heart rate, simplifying the ECG process.

The patent not only discusses the new heart rhythm unlock system, but it also hints at using ECG heart rhythm data to identify a user’s mood. “In some embodiments, the electronic device may determine a user’s mood from the heart signals and provide data related to the user’s mood,” the patent reads. For example, during a workout, the Apple Watch or iPhone may analyze heart rhythm data and automatically adjust music to suit the user’s mood.
Notably, Apple’s latest patent credits multiple inventors, including Gloria Lin, Tadao L. Makajima, Pareet Rahul, and Andrew B. Hodge. Lin in particular has a history of contributing to various biometric identification technologies, underscoring his expertise in this innovative field.