According to the US Patent and Trademark Office, retail giant Walmart has won a patent application for “Obtaining a medical record stored on a blockchain from a wearable device”. The company applied for a patent in December 2017, but it was awarded only last week June 14.
The document describes a system designed to help medical personnel in emergency situations, when the patient remains unconscious, to gain accesses to the health medical data of the person. The new decentralized system will contain a ledger of patient records, designed to quickly respond to medical services to provide assistance at the point of emergency call.
The patented method will consist of three components. It will store information (on a bracelet). Secondly, a biometric scanning device that is used to obtain the patient's biometric signature. The third and final component is a radio frequency identification (RFID) scanner. The RFID scanner will read all the necessary information from the victim's mobile device to obtain an encrypted private key, as well as the public key intended for the particular patient. This will allow doctors and other medical personnel to study the necessary data of clients in advance, which would not only to save time but in some situations be vital in saving patient’s lives.
Walmart is exploring the blockchain technology extencivelly as a number of new patents by the company have appeared over the last month. Recently retail giant has won a patent for the development of an electrical grid that will be powered by Bitcoin (Bitcoin) or other digital currency. Earlier in May, Walmart filed for another patent application for a blockchain platform that enables the tracking and resale of purchased goods. The service will allow clients to register items after the initial purchase, stating a price for its resale. The system is set up to act as a digital marketplace.