With the Apple Watch 6 coming soon, future models of Apple's smartwatch will be able to protect against drowning and contaminated water.

AppleInsider discovered an Apple patent titled "Portable Electronic Device As Health Companion." While this is simple enough to detect that it is raining and inform you of the weather forecast, the patent also discusses more exciting possibilities.

According to the patent, water sensors can identify what kind of water the wearer is in or exposed to, and can tell whether the wearer is getting rained on, going for a swim, or simply sweating. The Apple Watch, equipped with such a sensor, would read the calendar and location information to try to determine this water situation and determine whether the person likely went swimming intentionally or accidentally fell into a lake or river. The type of water the person is in and the situation to which he/she is exposed are indicated by UI elements.

Presumably, if someone fell into the river, they would not need an Apple Watch notification to inform them of that fact, but would know about it directly. However, such a notification could be used to alert others that the person wearing the Apple Watch is in danger, perhaps by calling emergency services or notifying the person's trusted contacts.

The watch of the proposed design could also examine the quality of the water (fresh or salt water) in which it is immersed through openings in the watch and band (see figure below). The watch could then use this in combination with location information to determine if the wearer is in danger and if emergency services are needed. Sensors could also measure water contaminants and warn the user of possible exposure to harmful chemicals or other water.

Watches can also use sensors along with location and other information to alert the wearer to the presence of rapids or sharks.

While this patent relates to smartwatches that use these features, it suggests adding this functionality to other devices as well. The most obvious option would be a future iPhone. This is because this is probably the device that users are most likely to have in their pockets at all times, and furthermore, Apple has already made the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro waterproof to IP68 standards.

On the other hand, we can look forward to the Apple Watch 6. We expect to see sleep tracking (a long-requested feature), mental health tracking, and an optical sensor embedded in the side of the face instead of the Digital Crown. We expect it to launch in September along with the iPhone 12, although it could be delayed depending on how the coronavirus outbreak affects Apple's final production and shipping plans.