The handwashing tracking feature in watchOS 7 has been years in the making and is not just a hasty response to the call for thorough handwashing in the face of a coronavirus outbreak. And there is a further feature that will probably be included in Apple Watch 6.

Kevin Lynch, Apple's vice president of technology, told TechCrunch that it took a lot of trial and error to create a hand-washing feature that would ensure Apple Watch wearers clean their hands for at least 20 seconds according to World Health Organization guidelines. In fact, Lynch claims, "It took years."

The hand-washing feature works by using the compatible Apple Watch's accelerometer to detect specific washing patterns and listen for the sound of running water. It also listens for the sound of soap use.

When it detects that hand washing is taking place, a 20-second countdown timer is triggered and a hand washing animation is displayed; if the Apple Watch wearer stops hand washing before the 20 seconds are up, the app prompts him or her to continue hand washing.

This all sounds like a fairly simple and elegant solution to the problem of people not washing their hands effectively. However, despite these efforts, 9to5Mac tested the hand washing feature in watchOS and noted that the wash detection was quite unreliable.

This means there is room for improvement, and Apple may incorporate more wash-focused health features into Apple Watch 6 when it arrives at some point this year.

Sumbul Ahmad Desai, Apple's vice president of health, noted that the company will not be putting its own research into tackling the COVID-19 virus, but will support such efforts.

"We have not specifically studied how the Apple Watch can track COVID," Desai told TechCrunch, "but we are happy to support the research being done by the medical community." We really support their efforts by enabling our colleagues in this field." "We look forward to seeing what they learn."

With that in mind, it is quite possible that Apple will consider ways to use research projects like this one to introduce features to the Apple Watch 6 that will help address health issues beyond ECG monitoring and general health and fitness tracking. Apple Watch Series 5 health features are already comprehensive, so Apple will need to draw inspiration from others to offer something truly fresh with the Apple Watch 6.