Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/605412
December 2015 | EquipmentWorld.com 68 Transportation Institute. Thanks to improvements in tech- nology the sensors in these "smart vests" are no bigger than a cell phone, and eventually could become as inconspicuous as a pack of gum. Tom Martin, a professor with the College of Engineering who researches smart clothing like the InZoneAlert vest says it could also be used by policemen and first respond- ers. "Anyone who has to be out on the interstate with passing vehicles could benefit from an individualized warning," he says. One of the goals of the team working on the InZoneAlert vest is to make sure the alert is distinct but not jarring. "We don't want to add to their cognitive load," said Martin. "We don't want to give them false alarms. We just want to give them a few seconds notice to know that someone is coming toward them and then give them a chance to get out of the way." While still in the testing and devel- opment phase, InZoneAlert system has the potential to reduce vehicle-worker conflicts by 90 percent, says Martin. CONSTRUCTION TECHNOLOGY NEWS continued continued from page 67 Doctoral student Kristen Hines and Professor Tom Martin, both with the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, discuss the current version of the InZoneAlert. These sensors are about the size of a cellphone. WorkplaceAware Safety reporting app can keep near misses from turning into serious accidents F or every reported fatal workplace accident there are 29 minor injuries and 300 near misses that go unreported. And anybody who knows construc- tion knows why. Guys are afraid to interrupt the flow of work, or they fear retribution or paperwork, or to quote the Arnold, "I ain't got time to bleed." The WorkplaceAware system enables employees to report incidents from the field via text message, without having to come back to the office to fill out paperwork or hold up the workday. And if employees choose, reports can be submitted anonymously. The system consists of a free app that can be downloaded onto any smartphone and the MessageQube: a small, cellular desktop printer that receives text and photo messages. With the app, employees can photograph near misses and message a description of the problem to their company or supervisor's MessageQube. Reports are also posted to the employer's online Enterprise Dashboard where management can view and manage the information. And supervisors can be alerted instantly anytime an incident or unsafe condition is reported. For information about WorkplaceAware, visit www.workplaceaware.com and www.messageqube.com. Mobile phone app gives you oil sample results instantly P olaris Laboratories a new phone app Horizon Mobile can help you keep track of your oil analysis results. Built to run on iOS8 and higher, Horizon Mobile features a customizable push notification to alert users to oil analysis results without having to wait for paper reports. The alerts show users a sample report summary and overall severity plus give maintenance recommendations. The report can also be downloaded as a PDF to analyze wear metals and trending data. Polaris Laboratories also plans to expand the Horizon Mobile app to An- droid devices. Additional upgrades will allow users to submit sample data to the company through the app itself. The app is available for download at the Apple App Store. Get the bandwidth you need in remote locations with Portabella T oday's data heavy telematics can require a lot of bandwidth that isn't always available in remote locations. The Portabella wireless broadband bonding appliance from Mushroom Networks provides ultra fast mobile Internet connections over 3G and 4G systems in challenging physical environ- ments found in construction applications. The Portabella 7100i and 6100iw bond together multiple cellular wireless Internet access cards to aggregate performance and increase dependability. The 7100i supports SIM slots for six embedded modems and the 6100iw sup- ports up to five embedded modems. The devices are built from brushed aluminum and heavy-duty steel and weigh less than 9 pounds for unobtrusive installations. They are rated to with- stand 5 Grms vibration at 5–500 Hz and operating temperatures from minus 40-degrees to 158 degrees Fahrenheit.