Published July 4, 2023
The aftermath of COVID-19 brought devastating impacts on a global scale. Moreover, it introduced unforeseen changes, some positive and some negative, that caused a shift in many things we used to take for granted. From our individual pursuits, social interactions, and business operations, we continue to find creative ways to navigate through this new normal.
In the United States, one of the significant changes businesses are experiencing is the lack of workers. Reduced workforces are not only a problem for employers, but they are also impacting families. One prime example of this is the critical shortage of lifeguards. Over the past two years, many of the nation’s public pools have been closed or open only part time due to lifeguard shortages1. This is a big safety worry. Regrettably, the shortage of lifeguards does not deter people—especially young children—from accessing swimming pools, particularly residential ones. And as another summer gets into full swing and the days start getting hotter, there is no better way to cool down than to take a plunge into the refreshing waters of a swimming pool.
Swimming pools are a source of family fun and entertainment, but they can also be a source of danger, most notably to young children. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), children between the ages of one and four face the highest risk of drowning, and swimming pools are the most common location for drownings in this age group. The CDC notes that drowning incidents can occur even when children are not anticipated to be near water, such as when they gain unsupervised access to pools. Tragically, fatal drowning is the primary cause of death for children aged one to four, and it ranks as the second leading cause of unintentional injury death for children aged five to fourteen, behind only motor vehicle accidents.
While children are at the highest risk, the reality is that individuals of all ages can drown. But new technology presents an opportunity for both public and private swimming pools to address the risks of drowning and compensate for the shortage of lifeguards. By employing innovative technology, swimming pools can effectively mitigate the dangers associated with drowning, thereby serving as a crucial safeguard even in the absence of a lifeguard.
Advancements in cameras and sensors that can monitor and detect the movements of every swimmer in the pool, as well as the surge in artificial intelligence (AI) software that can analyze the images acquired by the cameras in real time and identify situations of danger or drowning, create opportunities for smartwatch technology or other signaling devices to promptly alert parents or lifeguards to a hazardous situation. The image and exact position of the swimmer in distress allows lifeguards to intervene immediately, saving valuable time that can make all the difference.
The International Organization of Standardization (ISO) developed the ISO 20380:2017 standard, which outlines the essential operational, performance, and safety requirements and the test methods for computer vision systems employed in drowning accident detection. However, ISO 20380:2017 expressly excludes systems utilized in domestic swimming pools and pool basins with a surface area of less than 150m2. Similarly, the EU Standard DIN EN 13451-1, released in 2021, regulates swimming pool equipment, general safety requirements, and testing methods.
MYLO claims to be the world's first virtual lifeguard designed for residential pools. According to their website, MYLO offers 24/7 smart pool AI monitoring technology, ensuring peace of mind for residential pool owners. The system features a patented underwater computer detection camera that provides real-time video of the pool and utilizes advanced AI monitoring to detect pool entrances and potential drowning incidents. MYLO actively monitors the pool, sending escalating alarms via mobile notifications and home alarm systems to alert owners of life-threatening scenarios. This virtual lifeguard employs AI technology to identify drowning risks and offers features such as pool entry alerts, real-time analysis, and pool views above and below water. MYLO's hardware includes:
The MYLO system continuously learns and improves over time, providing the highest level of protection. Additionally, unlike other pool safety devices, MYLO monitors the pool even when being used, offering an additional layer of protection.
AngelEye LifeGuard is a comprehensive drowning detection system designed for maximum safety in public swimming pools. Their website claims AngelEye LifeGuard actively detects potential drownings and promptly sends out alerts using the latest AI technology. The system works in close integration with pool cameras to continuously scan the pool and identify dangerous situations. In the case of a swimmer in trouble, AngelEye LifeGuard quickly generates simultaneous alarms within 10 seconds on various devices such as smartwatches, phones, and flashing lights. It can also provide real-time location and imaging of the danger, aiding rescue operations. Additionally, the system records pool activities, distinguishing critical situations from normal ones while also complying with data protection regulations.
AngelEye LifeGuard offers an additional level of security by supporting lifeguards in supervising swimmers, enhancing overall safety, and seamlessly integrating technology into rescue operations. The system's hazard detection functionalities can be customized to suit the specific needs of different pool facilities, such as water parks or sports facilities.
Swimming pool safety technology continues to evolve and improve over time, with new advancements and updates being made to existing technologies. Here are some of the latest swimming pool safety updates in terms of technology:
Overall, these updates in swimming pool safety technology are helping to make swimming pools safer and more secure for everyone who uses them. It's important for pool owners, operators, and lifeguards to stay up to date on the latest safety technologies and make any necessary updates to their pools to ensure they are as safe as possible.
This week's New Tech Tuesday showcases two powerful, advanced machine vision and deep learning AI tools from ams OSRAM and Xvisio. These products offer design engineers the flexibility to create tomorrow’s AI active vision solutions today.
ams OSRAM Mira Optical Sensor Evaluation Kit is a Raspberry Pi 4B platform for evaluating the Mira220 and Mira050 image sensors. Out of the box, there are multiple hardware components including the Raspberry Pi 4B, power supply, a Mira220 or Mira050 sensor board, an MIPI flat cable assembly to connect the sensor to the evaluation board, a mini-HDMI cable, a tripod, an M12 lens, and screws. The Raspberry Pi 4B can be configured in standalone or network mode that utilizes the built-in VNC server in the Raspberry Pi OS for access from a host computer. Besides Mira220 and Mira050 image sensors support, the board comes fully ISP configured for the best image quality. The software is based on libcamera, an open-source camera stack and framework for Linux, Android, and ChromeOS, capable of RAW image capture, and python scripting using the picamera2 library.
The Mira image sensors are global shutter near-infrared (NIR) image sensors for advanced 2D and 3D consumer and industrial machine vision and sensing applications at visible and NIR wavelengths. The sensors’ stacked chip design uses ams OSRAM back side illumination technology to shrink package footprint to optimized size, giving design engineers greater design flexibility in space-constrained products or applications. The sensors’ global shutter enables the distortion-free capture of fast objects by exposing all pixels of the array simultaneously. Additionally, the sensors have an MIPI CSI-2 interface to allow for easy interfacing with a plethora of processors and FPGAs, giving design engineers further flexibility to their Active Stereo Vision, Structured Light Vision, and AR/VR designs.
The Xvisio SeerSense™ DS80 Module is an all-in-one solution for VSLAM, depth, vision AI, and computer vision edge computing. It combines a 13MP RGB camera, dual 2MP fisheye cameras, a VGA ToF camera, a high-performance IMU, a USB Type-C™ port, and an extension GPIO port. With its powerful onboard computing engines, the DS80 module reduces host resource loading and minimizes power consumption. It supports multiple operating systems for versatile deployments. Xvisio Technology, a leader in spatial perception and human-machine interaction, offers feature-rich SDKs and toolkits for rapid development, enabling designers to quickly harness advanced machine perception capabilities.
In the aftermath of COVID-19, the world's new normal has been the result of significant changes that demand new solutions. The shortage of workers in the United States, including lifeguards, poses pool safety concerns, especially for children. However, innovative products such as MYLO and AngelEye LifeGuard, which can detect potential drowning incidents and alert parents or lifeguards immediately, offer opportunities to enhance pool safety.
Products like ams OSRAM's Mira Optical Sensor Evaluation Kit and Xvisio's SeerSense DS80 Module enable design engineers to create tomorrow's active AI vision cutting-edge solutions today and quickly and easily integrate them into their product designs, reducing the cost and time of developing such solutions. Today's AI machine vision technology is poised to transform swimming pool safety, making it easier for pool owners to monitor and ensure the safety of their pools.
Source
Rudy Ramos brings 35+ years of expertise in advanced electromechanical systems, robotics, pneumatics, vacuum systems, high voltage, semiconductor manufacturing, military hardware, and project management. Rudy has authored technical articles appearing in engineering websites and holds a BS in Technical Management and an MBA with a concentration in Project Management. Prior to Mouser, Rudy worked for National Semiconductor and Texas Instruments..