Garmin Seizure Detector

NOTE: I strongly recommend that new users try OpenSeizureDetector with the low cost (£35) PineTime watch (https://pine64.com/product/pinetime-smartwatch-sealed/) rather than buy a Garmin watch to try.
This is because Garmin watches are much more expensive, and the setup process is more difficult than for PineTime. The PineTime installation instructions are here.
The exception is if you need to use the heart rate alarm functionality – the heart rate monitors on Garmin watches are much better so a Garmin watch should be used in that case.

Overview

OpenSeizureDetector works on the high end Garmin smartwatches (ones you can install ConnectIQ apps on). It monitors the movement of the wearer’s arm and raises an alarm if shaking similar to a tonic-clonic seizure is detected for more than 10 seconds. It will also raise an alarm if the measured heart rate goes outside of specified limits, which gives additional confidence in detecting a serious condition.

The watch sends raw data (acceleration and heart rate) to the phone which analyses it and generates alarms both locally (The phone beeps), via wifi to another device in the house, or by sending an SMS text message with the user’s location (see OpenSeizureDetector Components for an overview).

Compatible Devices

OpenSeizureDetector works with the high end Garmin smartwatches – those that allow you to install additional ConnectIQ apps. The watch needs to support ConnectIQ SDK level 2.3 or higher. There is a Garmin web page which lists which watch supports which SDK level. If the watch is either not on the list, or is shown with an SDK level lower than 2.3, it will probably not work.

The VenuSQ is currently the lowest cost compatible watch, which has very good battery life (~24 hours), but there is currently an issue with it stopping working after several hours, so avoid the original VenuSQ for the time being (I have had mixed reports about whether the VenuSQ Version 2 is affected or not, so best avoid the VenuSQ2 too.).

Users have reported not being able to use the new Vicoactive 5.

Garmin’s Compatible Devices page gives a list which devices support ConnectIQ which SDK level (the minimum for OpenSeizureDetector is SDK Level 2.3). A list of devices which are known to work with OpenSeizureDetector can be found here: https://www.openseizuredetector.org.uk/?page_id=1324#Compatible_Devices

OpenSeizureDetector is expected to work on any of the newer Garmin smartwatches that support extra Apps, but I have not tested it on others. Therefore if you are getting a watch specifically for this app make sure you buy it from somewhere where you can return it if it does not do what you need it to. (Some users find the number of false alarms generated by OpenSeizureDetector to be a problem for them)

The phone must be able to run the Garmin Connect app. This needs Android V7 or higher, and must be the full version of Android, not the ‘Go’ edition. We have had issues with some of the Chinese brand phones having different security features, so avoid phones by Huawei and Xaomi. I use a Samsung J5(2017) for our ‘production’ system, and a Samsung A20e for development and they work ok.

Installation Instructions

Garmin Connect

Follow the watch installation instructions to connect the watch to the phone using the Garmin Connect app.

Check that the watch is connected ok and that the Garmin Connect app data is updating from the watch – if this does not work, OpenSeizureDetector will definitely not work.

Disable notifications: Garmin Connect will send notifications to the watch if emails, SMS messages are received. I recommend that you disable most, if not all notifications as this interferes with the seizure detector data transfer. In the Garmin Connect menu, select Settings->Notifications->App Notifications and disable apps from sending notifications to the watch.

OpenSeizureDetector Android App

Install the latest version of the OpenSeizureDetector Android App from Google Play Store (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=uk.org.openseizuredetector).
[You Need V2.6.0 or higher but should use the latest version as that has cured some issues identified recently as a result of changes to Google’s security policies.]

Open the OpenSeizureDetector App, and configure it to use the Garmin Seizure Detector as follows:

1. In the Settings menu (or settings button on the start-up screen) select General Settings, and change the data source to ‘Garmin’
2. In the Seizure Detector settings, select ‘Enable Heart Rate Alarm’, and set the thresholds to something you think is reasonable.
3. It will show ‘Fault’ until you install and run the watch app on your Garmin watch.
4. IMPORTANT – go into the phone settings and search for “Optimise Battery Usage” and make sure that OpenSeizureDetector is set to NOT be optimised – otherwise it might be shut down by the android system to save battery power, and it will not work in that condition.

Open the Garmin Connect app and select the Settings->Notifications->App Notifications menu items and make sure that notifications from OpenSeizureDetector are DISABLED in Garmin Connect (otherwise it might keep displaying notifications on the watch and making the watch buzz, which interferes with the seizure detection data transfer).

Garmin Watch App

The instructions below can be a bit tricky to follow if you are not used to manipulating files on a computer, so there is a (very un-professional looking) video of me walking through the steps on youtube if that helps (note it is a bit old now, so read the instructions below too!):

1. Download the latest version of the watch app (GarminSD.prg) from the source code repository here.
   NOTE: There is currently a problem with v2.0.7 not working on newer watches. If you have this problem, try v2.0.7x, which is compiled using the latest Garmin tools and works on the new watches, but not the older ones.
2. Connect your watch to a computer. It should appear as a disk drive on the computer.
3. Copy the GarminSD_vx.x.prg file to the GARMIN/APPS folder. (on some older watches you need to re-name it to GarminSD.prg or it does not appear on the list of apps on the watch)
4. Disconnect the watch from the computer.
5. You should see a GarminSD app available on the watch (*See Below for more details)
6. Start the GarminSD app. It should look something like the picture below. The HR figure should update with heart rate readings every second. See below for more information on starting the app.

Note, if you need a previous version of the watch app for some reason, they are available in the source code repository here with the version numbers in the file name. If one of these is used, it should be re-named to GarminSD.prg on the watch (ie remove the version number).

Starting the Watch App

The following instructions are for a Vivoactive 3 – the buttons to use are slightly different for different watches……

Once you have installed GarminSD.prg onto the watch and disconnected the watch from the computer

• Press the main button on the side of the watch – you should see a list of the ‘favourite’ apps
• Scroll up through the list until you get to the icon showing four dots in a square, and press that.
• You now see a list of all of the apps available on the watch. Scroll to the bottom and you should see GarminSd. You can start the app by tapping the GarminSd title.
• It is more convenient to add GarminSd to the list of Favourite apps that you see by just pressing the main watch button once. To do this you need to do the following:
  • Press the main watch button several times to get back to the main time display watch screen.
  • Press the main watch button once to open the list of favourite apps.
  • Press and hold one of the app icons and select ‘Manage Apps’.
  • Scroll through the list of apps until you find GarminSd and select it.
  • Select ‘Add Favourite’ to add GarminSd to the list of favourite apps.
  • Press the main watch button a few times to get back to the time display screen.
  • Press the main watch button once to display the list of favourite apps. GarminSd should appear on that list to allow you to start it more easily. It may be useful to go back to the ‘Manage Apps’ screen and de-select some apps from the favourite apps list to make the list shorter.
  • The images below show the above steps on a Vivoactive 3.

Troubleshooting

If you have trouble with the Garmin Seizure Detector not working as expected, please work through the troubleshooting procedure here.

The Frequently Asked Questions page includes a list of the watch error codes which may be displayed if the watch can not communicate with the phone for some reason..

Please report any issues (or successes!) to graham@openseizuredetector.org.uk, or the OpenSeizureDetector facebook page.