They are extremely beneficial for those living with a disability or simply getting a little older in detecting and raising an alarm for help in case of a fall.
Fall detection devices alert caregivers when your loved one or resident cannot.
Depending on the device, they can be worn around the neck, on the wrist as a wearable device or in the case of radar technology no wearable is needed at all.
Let’s take a quick look at how these devices work:
Medical alert devices like smartwatches and safety pendants, for example, typically use accelerometers and gyroscopes to detect falls.
Accelerometers measure changes in velocity using low-power radio waves.
Gyroscopes are devices that measure orientation and angular velocity.
Both these devices work in conjunction to detect falls by measuring the abrupt change in height and distance.
Safety/Emergency pendants:
Safety pendants are battery-operated medical devices worn around the neck, the wrist, or clipped to your belt, that can alert emergency services in case of an emergency.
Some safety pendants feature a fall detection system that detects when a user falls and automatically notifies a central monitoring station so that aid can be rushed to them immediately.
These devices also tend to have an SOS button in times of need.
How Emergency pendants work:
Traditionally when the SOS button is pressed or automatically activated in case of a fall, the pendant signals a base unit that is in the home and it then alerts the emergency response centre. These are limited to use within the home only and do not offer any protection when outside.
Newer pendants are GPS enabled and do not rely on a base unit. They have a dedicated cellular connection that sends an SMS to nominated carers as soon as a fall or SOS trigger has been activated.
They also have two-way voice systems which give you the ability to communicate with the emergency service operator in real-time just like a mobile phone, whilst the GPS allows assistance to attend your location immediately.
Radar sensors:
Using radar technology to detect falls is a perfect fit for elderly care and aged care residential facilities given they require no wearable device and are completely non-intrusive. They enable seniors to live more confidently, become more independent, and reduce caregiver costs by reducing the number of people needed to care for them which in terms boost mental health due to not feeling they are being a burden.
How radar sensors work:
With radar, a microwave signal is bounced off a target and the frequency of the returned signal is analysed to determine the object’s velocity.
Unlike traditional wearable devices, radar sensors don’t need to be worn or carried around.
TEQ-FallsAlert Powered by SOFIHUB is one such device. It is a passive, real-time fall detection system for the elderly based on new unique radar sensor technology with AI.
This groundbreaking radar sensor is truly multifunctional. It monitors the presence of people in a room and offers live fall detection, without the need for a wearable.
TEQ-FallsAlert is connected to the SOFIHUB cloud portal and sends alert notifications to caregivers in case of an emergency.
As you can see, the best fall detection devices can prove extremely useful when it comes to getting help rushed to people in times of crisis.