I am wanting to create a proximity alert when I am more than 3-5 feet away from my walker or wheelchair. I sometimes get up and start to walk without using the walker or wheelchair. Can the iphone be used as part of this solution? Thx
iPhone 16 Pro Max, iOS 26
Apple has nothing here.
I’m not aware of much of anything that will both work (electronically) at a range of a meter or two (roughly 3 to 6 feet), and also be reasonably affordable.
Some sort of ultrasonic distance detection might work, maybe. Probably not cheap.
NFC and most RFID range is too short. UHF RFID has the range, and probably also way too much of it; 10 meters, or variously more, and some quite possibly a 100 meters range unimpeded. Think AirTags. All of this longer than you are seeking, too.
The Precision Finding feature is the right idea, but that doesn’t run continuously.
I’d am hesitant to suggest using any sort of breakaway physical tether for this case too, given what might be inferred here.
Check with your medical providers, as they may have some suggestions.
While you could certainly attach an AirTag to say, a cane if you were concerned you'd leave it somewhere, I don't think that would work in this case. My experience is that I don't get notifications that I left something behind until I'm quite a bit further away than 3-5 feet. It's more like a couple of hundred feet.
I honestly can't think of any clever ways to do this.
iPhone proximity alert for mobility aid?
