How iPhone counts steps. How does a smartphone count steps and is the data correct? How a smartphone counts steps

I work out regularly using an app called 7 Minute Workout, but I also keep an activity log in the Argus app. My steps are counted by my FitBit bracelet, and my heart rate is tracked in Instant Heart Rate. My data was scattered across several applications until the Health application from the iPhone manufacturer itself appeared.

"Health" - an application developed by Apple and pre-installed in iOS 8, gives us the opportunity to collect data from all types of applications in one place.

You'll often see "Health" in the context of calorie counting and fitness activity tracking, but this platform is designed to handle much more than that data. When used correctly, the app can help you gain control over other areas of your well-being, such as vitamin intake (while making up for deficiencies, for example), blood glucose tracking, sleep, and even vital signs like heart rate and blood pressure.

Create your own control panel.

The Health app is an aggregator designed to collect data. Most of the time, the metrics that appear on your dashboard will be based on data received from other applications. But, there are two exceptions: counting steps and number of takeoffs.

Steps andnumber of takeoffs.
Using the motion processor on your 5S, 6, or 6 Plus, Health can track your steps without the help of an external app or device like FitBit. The same applies to iPhones 6 and 6 Plus, both of them can track the number of takeoffs (meaning responding to a change in position relative to sea level, which happens, for example, when an airplane takes off) using a built-in barometer.

• To track your steps, go to the Health Data tab, then Fitness. Here, go to the number of lifts and steps, then turn on Show on Dashboard. Now these statistics will appear in the Control Panel.

Track other apps in Health.
This is where the fun begins. In the Health app, check the Sources tab. If you have compatible apps installed, here you can give them permission to share your data with Health.

To show health data from fitness apps and devices in the Health app dashboard:

1. Go to sources then to the desired application and enable read and write permissions. Select your permission type: Active Calories or Workouts.
2. Go to the Health Data tab and find the permission type you recorded in step one. In this category, allow display in the Control Panel.
3. Everything tracked in this app will now appear in the Dashboard.

To find apps compatible with the Health app, go to the store App Store, then go to the Health & Fitness category.

The secret weapon of the Health app.

Where Health really shines is in its unique ability to allow apps to communicate with each other. When you grant permission to an app in the Sources tab, you'll often see two categories: write and read. "Write" - allows the Health application to receive data; reading allows it to transfer data.

By enabling read permission, applications can receive information from fellow applications. Let's take the following example. You use the FitBit Aria to track your weight, which is currently recorded in the Health app. You perform a workout in 7 Minute Workout, which you have set up to record your calorie burn and weight data. In this case, 7 Minute Workout will now have access to your recorded weight and correctly calculate your calorie expenditure.

There are many variations of these scenarios, and they will become more useful as developers integrate their apps with Health. Some apps like Argus have tried to offer the same inter-app functionality, but lack the tools to make the experience successful.

Setting up a Medical ID.

If you are ever in need of emergency medical care, your Medical ID can be used to identify who you are and your medical history. Healthcare workers can access it from the lock screen by looking at the Medical ID.

• To set up a Medical ID, go to the appropriate application tab, and then click "Edit". Be sure to turn on the "Show on lock screen" option so that doctors can view your data.

Where "Health" is useless.

This is just the beginning, and it is clear that the application will develop. The most disappointing part is that users cannot export their data anywhere. It would be really useful if users were able to save their data into spreadsheets or export it to other applications.

"Health" might also be a little more useful. There are many supported data types in the Health Data > All section, but Apple does a poor job of showing how users can obtain this data. Ideally, Apple would provide recommendations to apps as they become available.

Finally, it would be helpful if Apple allowed users to lock an app with Touch ID.

We thought that annual speeches about the need to get your body in order in the spring were too boring. And we decided to come from the rear, or rather, from the side of new technologies and everyone’s favorite applications, which no one would definitely call boring

Our special top 10 for smartphones looks less like a moral lesson about a healthy lifestyle, and more like a fun game. There are services that track the progress of sleep, and applications that motivate users with strong words. So tune in!

First, let's talk about the Health application, which was built into iOS 8 initially. It is a single center for collecting data from any other health and fitness applications on your smartphone. “Health” monitors your heart rate, calories burned, blood sugar and cholesterol. The app stores all this information in a single interface, so you can get an accurate overview with just one tap. Here you can also create a short medical record for emergencies, indicating, for example, your blood type and allergens to which you are sensitive. The card will be accessible directly from the lock screen without having to enter a passcode. So, don’t be lazy and fill it out: information about health in emergency situations will not be superfluous. And yes, some of the applications described below support data exchange with Health, which helps to collect all the necessary information in a single service.

7 minute Workout - free

An effective 7-minute exercise will give you a great boost throughout the day, and support for the Health app will allow you to track the calories you burn as part of your activities with this app.

Lark - free

The Lark app is designed to work only with new program"Health" in iOS 8, offering this or that help based on the collected iPhone data. For example, the application can remind you to take a break from work or switch to charging. And all this in the form of a live chat, where the user can ask any questions that interest him.

UP by Jawbone - free

Jawbone UP is a faithful assistant on the path to a healthy lifestyle. UP will first get to know you (by tracking your activity, sleep and diet over time) and then offer a set of simple recommendations. Thanks to iOS 8, now you don't even need a special bracelet: just connect and log into the Health app and UP will start tracking your sleep and activity. If you're using an iPhone 6, Health will also count your steps.

MyFitnessPal - free

MyFitnessPal is a simple and convenient calorie counter for iPhone and iPad. Includes one of the largest product databases with over 4 million items and an incredibly easy-to-use information entry system. Great for tracking your diet progress. Supports data exchange with the Health information collection program in iOS 8 on iPhone 6. To make it more interesting for you, you can follow a diet with friends: add girlfriends and share your achievements.

CarrotFit - 99 rub.

The CarrotFit app tells users in an aggressive manner that it's time to exercise to lose weight. Syncing with the Health app on iPhone 6 allows you to more accurately track changes in your body. Moreover, the application can give comments to the owner, and not always in a positive way, as many other analogues do. So those who want to download the program will need not only iOS 08 (or later), but also a sense of humor.

WebMD - free

WebMD is useful tips from your doctor based on information you collect in the Health app in iOS 8.

Fitnet Personal Fitness Workouts - Free

The description says that Fitnet allows you to set and achieve goals (sounds inspiring) related to your physical development. It includes a convenient weekly calendar and support for the Health app.

Sleepio - the sleep improvement app - free (iPhone)

An application with a detailed approach to improving sleep quality. Sleepio will allow you to monitor and record your rhythm of life, your sleep and wake-up schedule, the quality of your bedroom environment and even your thoughts - all based on the recommendations of Oxford University professors. The program integrates perfectly with your iPhone's Health app, and also allows you to seek advice from experts at any time convenient for you.

Sleep Better - Free (iPhone)

The Sleep Better smart alarm clock from sports solutions developer Runtastic is the first alarm clock to be integrated into the Health app in iOS 8. With it, you can track your sleep cycles and improve your habits so you can wake up easier in the morning. Sleep Better offers an easy way to improve the quality of your sleep, even if you have trouble waking up at night. The app can determine how your daytime activity affects your sleep efficiency.

MotionX-24/7 - 59 rub. (iPhone)

MotionX-24/7 was one of the first apps to monitor activity throughout the day to improve sleep. It is based on 7 years of research experience on the topic of human biomechanics. The service is able to measure your pulse, the distance traveled per day, take into account changes in your weight, notify you about the presence of snoring (!) and draw parallels between these indicators. MotionX-24/7 will inform you that you need to exercise a little to stay in shape. And most importantly, the application is able to wake you up at the optimal time period, taking into account your sleep-wake cycle. Integration and data exchange with the Health app in iOS 8 is also fully supported.

The Health app for iOS (“Apple Health” or “HealthKit”) will appeal to people who play sports and. And even if you are not into such training, the program will definitely come in handy. It shows how far you have walked. You can count calories through it. She makes a sleep schedule. You can create a medical record there.

The program synchronizes with many medical and fitness applications. For example, with pulse and pressure meters. This way you can collect all the information, systematize it and view it in one place. Works with other Apple devices available. For example, with smart watch, sensors or fitness bracelets. You can also use third-party devices that support sending data via Wi-fi or Bluetooth: blood pressure monitors, scales, sleep trackers.

There are many health apps for iOS

This program first appeared on iOS 8. It is available on iPhone and iPod Touch. The Health app has not yet been released for iPad and other devices. But you can use analogues. For example, “Cardiograph” for measuring heart rate or “MyFitnessPal” for counting calories and planning a diet.

It is important to remember that all such utilities are not medical devices. Of course, “Health” shows information about heart rate and pressure. But it cannot be used to diagnose or treat any diseases. In this case, it is better to take specialized devices.

List of compatible applications

Here is the list compatible applications, which can be synchronized with “Health”:

• FitStar Personal Trainer - creating a training schedule;
• Calorie Counter and Diet Tracker - calorie counting and diet planning;
• 7 Minute Workout - daily exercises, seven-minute exercises;
• Human - activity monitoring, calorie counter;
• CARROT Fit. Organizer for planning training;
• MotionX 24/7. Control of the schedule. Sleep schedule.

Sports programs are quite popular. They make it easier to select a training schedule and count calories. Almost every device has its own “Health” application: on Android smartphones, on tablets. These utilities are just called differently. There are even special measuring gadgets designed exclusively for fitness.

You can find a lot of useful information in the Dashboard section

But such a program is useful not only to athletes. It will be useful to any person. With it you can measure your pulse and blood pressure at any time. But, most importantly, your medical record will always be at hand. In an emergency situation, a doctor can only find out your blood type from a hospital record or journal. The Health app will speed up this process. The doctor will simply look at your phone screen and find out all the necessary information. Perhaps this will save your life.

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Walking is a great way to improve your health and can be used as a fitness activity for those for whom other types of physical activity are contraindicated. For example, those who are struggling with excess weight or undergoing a rehabilitation period after surgery. But, as you know, regularity and a gradual increase in intensity are important in any exercise. The measure for walking in this case is the distance covered or the number of steps taken.

But counting steps in your head is quite tedious, and it’s very easy to lose count, especially when their number amounts to several hundred. Therefore, separate devices were invented - pedometers, which keep track of steps without human intervention.

They received further development with the transition of smartphones to the modern level of hardware. It turned out that any modern smartphone, including the iPhone, can replace many devices. The pedometer was no exception.

Those who are accustomed not only to using modern gadgets, but also show some degree of curiosity, are interested in the question of how the iPhone counts the steps taken?

In fact, everything is very simple. As mentioned above, the hardware allows for operational monitoring of the device’s condition and physical impacts on it. Then, using appropriate software, process the received data and, based on it, provide visual graphic information on the display.

Let's see how this works in the case of measuring the number of steps taken. Each iPhone is equipped with some set of sensors. Namely: a three-axis gyroscope, an accelerometer, a distance sensor, a light sensor and a fingerprint sensor. It turned out that an accelerometer, a sensor whose operating principle has already been used in some individual pedometers, is ideally suited for measuring the number of steps.

The accelerometer in smartphones, together with the gyroscope, is used to determine accelerations, turns in space, shaking, etc. Initially, these functions were necessary in 3D games to control them without using a joystick. But they have found application in other tasks with the help of appropriate software. They are also used in pedometer programs.

The biomechanical phases of human walking include alternating phases of support and transfer of the limb. These phases are characterized by dynamic shocks that impart periodic accelerations to the center of mass of the human body, corresponding to the periodicity of the step, which is monitored by the accelerometer in the iPhone. Further software All that remains is to keep track of incoming signals and process them in accordance with the established algorithms.

How accurate is iPhone step counting?
Any measurement, by definition, cannot be absolutely accurate, and even less so measurements based on indirect data. Of course, not all of your steps will be accurately counted. Some other movements, such as jumping, can also be perceived as a step.

The accuracy of measurements is also affected by the way you carry your smartphone. If it is firmly fixed to the body, then the accuracy will be higher than when the device has a greater degree of freedom to move in your pocket or bag. In the latter case, his inertial swings can be counted as your steps.

But in general, inaccurate step measurements are definitely not something to worry about. In any case, the error will be no more than a few percent.

What programs are needed to count steps
Since iOS 8 operating system included a default application called Health, which calculates the walking distance and the number of steps taken. Third Party Applications It only makes sense to install if you want to get some advanced statistical information, such as counting calories burned. You can find the widest selection of walking and running apps in the AppStore.

Nowadays, more than ever, being an attractive person means being healthy. Therefore, the increase in the number of sports accessories or various applications that allow you to track the number of kilometers traveled, calories burned and much more is not at all surprising. Apple is also keeping up with the times, having recently released, one of the important innovations of which was the Health application, as well as a new set of tools for developers HealthKit. And if the latter does not really interest us, as users, then what “Health” is and how to use it is a pressing question. Let's try to figure it out.

“Health” is your personal medical card containing information about your date of birth, height, blood type, allergies, chronic diseases, medications taken, contact information in case of emergency, and so on, as well as the latest medical data collected in “Health” from other iPhone programs created with HealthKit. In general, “Health” is an application that allows you to aggregate all the information at your disposal about your health and training in one place.

How to use the Health app on iPhone

There are two ways to use the Health app:

1. as a medical record that can play an important role in an emergency when strangers provide assistance to you;
2. as an aggregator of data from other applications.

In the first case, launch the “Health” application, go to the “Medical Card” tab, where, after reading the accompanying text, tap on the “Create Card” button. Next, fill out a kind of questionnaire, trying to indicate as much as possible all the information you know, and click “Finish.”

From now on, in any emergency, the person providing care will simply need to open your medical record to know how to contact your emergency contact or if you have any allergies.

The second option for using the “Health” application will be especially attractive for people who lead an active lifestyle and use various fitness applications. Of course, in the present, not all fitness applications are compatible with “Health”, but such programs exist, and the rest is a matter of time.

As noted earlier, Health collects incoming information, such as heart rate, calories burned, blood sugar or cholesterol, in one place. This will allow you to see a complete picture of your health, which is convenient for analyzing your current lifestyle, the effectiveness of training, and so on.

Here, offhand, is a small selection of applications that work with Health. True, not all programs have support for the Russian language:

• FitStar Personal Trainer (free) – training plan;
• Calorie Counter & Diet Tracker (free) – calorie counter;
• Human (free) – activity and calorie counter;
• MotionX 24/7 (33 r.) – sleep control;
• CARROT Fit (99 RUR) – personal training plan;
• Zova (free) – training for women;
• 7 Minute Workout (free) – 7-minute workouts;

Of course, you can use only one section of “Health” - “Medcard”, which will definitely be very prudent on your part, or you can, if you haven’t tried it yet, start using various applications designed to help you with your training. Either way, staying on track with a healthy lifestyle has never been easier.

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