With Singapore’s population, of those 65 years and above, projected to triple from 8% in 2000 to 24% in 2030, developing solutions that enhance the independence and improve the quality of life for the elderly is crucial. InnoPal is a Singapore-based startup company specialising in developing innovative and cost effective healthcare and wellness products and services.
InnoPal was successfully matched up with the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) Technology Development Centre (TDC) in College Central at TechInnovation 2012 to work on an Emergency Alert System (EAS). The system enables seniors and physically-disadvantaged persons to lead fulfilling, independent lives without having to burden family members who may constantly worry for their safety, and improves care efficiency with timely alert to caregivers for immediate assistance.
The EAS comes equipped with a panic button and fall detection capability. The biggest risk in a fall is when the person becomes unconscious and is unable to call for help. The EAS has a sensor that detects falls automatically and wirelessly transmits signals to the base station which will activate an emergency call to the user’s caregiver or next-of-kin for assistance. This EAS system consists of a one-time setup cost without the need for a monthly subscription model for wider adoption.
ITE’s TDC at College Central provided technical expertise in hardware and software design to develop EAS such as equipping it with fall detection capability with integrated panic button to activate emergency calls, wireless communication with multiple programmable emergency numbers and more. Through this joint effort, the latest version of the EAS has been prepared for in house testing with end user groups with the aim for actual implementation at the end of the year. This has also reduced the time taken to bring the product to market.
“TechInnovation is a tremendous platform for matching technology innovation with commercialization needs. In our case, we were able to identify a partner in ITE at the event. The collaboration has brought benefits to both ITE and InnoPal and importantly, the end product will benefit the growing needs of our ageing population.” said Mr Martin Lee, Managing Director of InnoPal.
