The company states that “it plans to use the radar’s capability of capturing motion in a three-dimensional space to enable contactless sleep tracing functionalities.” If this sounds familiar, Google deployed a similar sleep-tracking radar system called Soli through its Nest Hub device earlier this year. Radar represents an interesting method for tracking sleep: it’s different from how a camera works (which naturally raises privacy concerns if it’s in your bedroom) and it means the sleeper doesn’t have to actually wear anything to track their slumber. Other sleep-monitoring devices include wearables like a Fitbit (also owned by Google), an Apple Watch, or an under-the-mattress sensor, like this one from Withings. “What radar does, when you think about aircraft radar, is it’s tracking the direction and velocity of things,” says Chris Harrison, an associate professor of Human-Computer Interaction at Carnegie Mellon University. “Radar’s been around since WWII, and we’ve been able to miniaturize it and reduce the cost such that you can stick it into a smartphone or a bedside appliance.” Harrison welcomes this potential development. “Number one, I think we all need to sleep better,” he says. “Number two, what I really like about this approach is that it’s really innately privacy preserving. No one really wants a camera in their bedroom.” That said, a technology like this does have potential concerns that accompany it. “Even though it’s anonymized, and I can’t recognize your radar data over mine, that doesn’t mean it can’t contain very damaging information.” Google announced that its sleep-tracking tech would process all data in the Nest device. As for which type of tech is best for analyzing sleep health, Harrison said that each has its advantages. “In general, having the sensor actually worn on your body is always going to provide the best signal. It’s like having the microphone closer to your mouth versus 10 meters away,” says Harrison. But, there’s a convenience to a tech that works in the background. “There’s something to be said about something that sits on your bedside table that you plug into the wall and it’s there every night, and you don’t really have to think about it,” he adds. “The technologies that are invisible, that even the laziest of us can adopt into our routines, I think are ultimately the most successful.”
