Google LLC is said to be working on a new Google Nest Hub smart home device that will use a built-in radar chip to power some of its features.

The Nest Hub (pictured) is a smart display from the search giant’s bestselling Nest line of voice-enabled gadgets. The device pairs the features of a standard smart speaker with a screen. 

The radar chip the next version of the Nest Hub is said to include is based on technology developed by the search giant’s Advanced Technology and Projects unit, according to the Thursday report in 9to5Google that detailed the device. The unit first disclosed its work on applying radar to consumer devices in 2015. Four years later, Google launched an edition of its Pixel smartphone with a built-in radar chip that allows users to control the handset remotely.

The chip inside the Pixel provides the ability to perform basic tasks such as playing music and snoozing alerts by making hand gestures a short distance from the handset. The radar that will ship with the upcoming Nest Hub is expected to support a broader set of features. According to the tipsters who spoke to 9to5Google, the device will use the chip to power sleep tracking features aimed at giving users better insight into their health.

The tipsters didn’t go into detail about exactly what kind of sleep monitoring features Google is planning. But a separate report, about Amazon.com Inc.’s rivaling smart home device lineup, might provide a general idea of where the industry headed. Sources told Business Insider this week that Amazon is readying its own radar-equipped smart home device that will be capable of tracking a person’s breathing to monitor for sleep apnea.

If Google has a similar use case in mind, the radar chip inside the rumored sleep-tracking Nest Hub will likely be more powerful than the one inside the Pixel. The Pixel’s radar detects hand gestures only a few inches from the device. For a Nest Hub situated on a nightstand to track the user’s sleep, the built-in radar chip would require the ability to collect data from a significantly longer distance.

Extending the chip’s range is likely well within the realm of the possible for Google. The search giant stated last year that the underlying technology behind the Pixel’s radar could theoretically be used to detect objects from up to seven meters or about 23 feet away.

The reason why both Google and Amazon are reportedly exploring smart home applications for radar is that the technology has certain advantages over other sensing techniques. Most notably, radar waves can pass through barriers such as a smart device’s chassis. That means a radar chip doesn’t need to be placed on the outside of a device like a camera, which eases product design, and can sense objects in a 360-degree angle rather than the specific direction it’s facing.

The radar-equipped Nest Hub is expected to arrive this year. It’s unclear what editions of the Next Hub, which comes in several versions with varying prices and screen dimensions, will feature the capability. 

Image: Google