IHL presented a webinar on the impact of COVID-19 on the overall economy and segments the hardest hit. It is recommended. One of the takeaways for us is the large opportunity for automation, HMI and kiosks in the future.
How do the US C.A.R.E.S Act stimulus programs affect retail? The answer might surprise you. Get an update on retail/hospitality and how the stimulus plans, with delays and competing priorities, will, unfortunately, hasten the demise of many retailers. Click the photo below to launch the webinar replay.
In the short term, it is going to be tough for small businesses which are basically owner-operated and under 50 million in revenue. The confluence of the minimum wage, unemployment benefits, questionable at best awards of first-round SBA loans along with a diluted environment for selling due to social distancing, once again has Small Business having to look out for itself.
Editors Note: We applaud companies such as Shack Shack which having received CARES money decided it was better utilized by struggling small businesses. We cannot say the same for companies and institutions like Ruth Chris and Harvard. We recommend resources such as the CRFB and their ongoing analysis of monies and recipients (much like 2009 stimulus).
Peerless-AV® Joins Forces with Blue Planet Energy to Create a Premium Grid-Optional Energy Solution
Ed Note: Peerless-AV announced today they have partnered with Blue Planet Energy to create a Premium Grid Optional Energy Solution. Introducing The Blue Ion LXHV, a patent-pending, premium grid-optional energy solution brings a wide range of sustainable energy options to power critical infrastructure and businesses.
Companies pair custom enclosure, manufactured by Peerless-AV®, with Blue Planet Energy integrated microgrid solution to support global resilience projects
AURORA, Ill. – April 21, 2020 – Peerless-AV®, an award-winning designer and manufacturer of the highest quality audio and video solutions and accessories, is proud to announce a product partnership with Blue Planet Energy, creator of super-high performance off-grid and microgrid battery systems, to develop the Blue Ion LXHV, a patent pending, premium grid-optional energy solution that brings together a wide range of sustainable energy options to power critical infrastructure and businesses.
Through a ruggedized, custom enclosure manufactured by Peerless-AV, Blue Planet Energy’s non-toxic battery system and an integrated site controller, the companies are bringing together premium technologies to provide reliable energy for resilience projects that are built independent of, or in conjunction with, the utility grid. These include applications where energy is absolutely critical, like emergency services and healthcare facilities, or prohibitively high-cost, such as regions with expensive utility rate structures or where business continuity during grid outages is imperative.
“Because energy is such a critical element of modern life, we focus on bringing the broadest range of energy options to individuals and communities seeking more resilient and clean energy infrastructure,” stated Michael Menendez, Head of Product Development at Blue Planet Energy. “Peerless-AV’s stellar team, as well as their ability to quickly manufacture custom solutions at scale right here in the USA, make collaborating with them inspiring and effortless. What we created together transforms clean energy to an on-demand resource that makes grid-free commercial operations a reality.”
The Blue Ion LXHV grid-optional energy solution enclosure is built to withstand and thrive in the toughest situations possible. Features of the solution include a fire-safe battery chemistry and built-in battery management system; an integrated site controller accessible via an industry-leading touchscreen on the enclosure or an app; a tunable cooling system and eco-friendly reusable and washable air filter; and easy installation and serviceability features like the industry’s first zero displacement door hinge and removable top service entrance.
“We are honored to be partnering with Blue Planet Energy to create an impactful solution that offers life-saving energy and encourages sustainability,” said Nick Belcore, Executive Vice President, Peerless-AV. “As resilience experts, Blue Planet Energy consistently provides resilience options to communities where this is a need, as can be seen in the tremendous effort the company put forth in Puerto Rico after the hurricane in 2017. That effort and mobile infrastructure is still in place today benefiting the people of Puerto Rico. We are proud to partner with a company like Blue Planet Energy and are eager to help spread their mission.”
The Blue Ion LXHV is a 125kW/128kWh system that is easily expandable in 32kWh increments to 2+MWh, with a 21-year life expectancy (8,000 cycles). The system also includes a pre-tested and pre-configured battery inverter and flexible microgrid control software allowing for optional integration with generators, renewables or the grid. Blue Planet Energy solutions are available in various locations around the world, with installations in California, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Mexico and beyond.
About Blue Planet Energy
Blue Planet Energy is making the promise of grid independence a reality. With our scalable Blue Ion energy platform, we enable safe, resilient, clean energy to be delivered through distributed smart energy storage and microgrids. Our energy storage systems are used by both businesses and homeowners to provide energy security, independence from the utility grid and to drive the increased use of renewable power generation. To learn more about our technology or join our top-notch dealer network, visit: blueplanetenergy.com.
About Peerless-AV
Driving Technology Through Innovation
For over 75 years, passion and innovation continue to drive Peerless-AV forward. We proudly design and manufacture the highest quality products, including outdoor displays and TVs, complete integrated kiosks, video wall mounting systems, professional carts and stands, and more. Whether a full-scale global deployment or custom project, Peerless-AV develops meaningful relationships and delivers world-class service. In partnership with Peerless-AV, you are trusting an award-winning team of experts who will support your business every step of the way. For more information, visit peerless-av.com.
Operation Open Doors – Path to Reopen Retail, led by NRF and Seyfarth LLP, is providing guidance and tools that NRF members can use as they navigate opening stores after this international health crisis. Areas for guidance on gradual reopenings include logistics, social distancing and safety issues, and how to bring employees back to the workforce.
Operation Open Doors Checklist
Explore the Operation Open Doors Checklist, an outline of key topics to consider as retailers seek to reopen operations. The checklist and select other Operation Open Doors resources will be available to the public for a limited time before they become members-only resources. Click here more information about NRF membership.
Resource Downloads
Resources are being developed in the following areas. Check back often for the latest additions.
COVID-19 Logistics
Access to property (including mall and landlord issues), inventory cleaning and management, protocols for soft openings, obtaining cleaning supplies and PPE
General Touch has been a leading touch solutions provider in the global marketplace for more than 20 years. By putting the customer’s interest first, GT consistently offers exceptional customer experience and satisfaction through its wide variety of touch technologies and solutions including All-in-One touch systems.
WHO WE ARE
As a forerunner in China’s touch screen industry, General Touch quickly became a global player in delivering high-quality, cost-effective and versatile touchscreens for customers from 80+ countries with over 4 million installations. GT produces touchscreens and touch displays that meet international standards such as CCC, FCC, CE, UL, and ROHS.
WHAT WE DO
General Touch makes available advanced touch technology at a sensible price for its clientele. GT further adds unbeatable
value through customization to meet particular needs when required. The versatility of GT’s touch products is evident from their presence in varying industries such as Gaming, Kiosks, POS, Banking, HMI, Healthcare and Public Transportation. GT heavily invests in R&D so as to produce touchscreens with broad range of sizes (7” to 86”), for wide range of applications and for long periods of utilization. With a focus on delighting both customers and users, GT’s Pcap/ PIT/ SAW/ IR touchscreens have garnered loyal and prolonged support from international brands. General Touch even offers up its touch products for ‘adoption’, empowering customers who have proudly branded GT’s touch products as their own (OEM), thus, increasing their corporate stature and extending their market reach.
WHY WE ARE LOVED
By betting our success on our customers’ success, we do whatever it takes to fulfil their product requirements. Should there be any shortcoming, our customers know that we will do right by them. At the end of the day, our customers are delighted by our passion to help them thrive in their business arena with our competitive, reliable and appealing touch products backed with our dedicated aftersales service. Best of all, our customers get to enjoy the benefits of our continual growth and improvement in our business practice and technical competence.
For more information and a free quote fill out the form
KioWare innovations for clean touchscreens and the User Monitored Maintenance Cycle
Ed Note: Using the kiosk as the “fulcrum” or proxy is not a new idea but it is coming of age with the current situation. These new functions allow users to use their mobile phones as the proxy touchscreen. Statistically their mobile phone is a hotbed for bacteria but this method isolates users from contaminating the usually very clean touchscreen. People without mobile phones have cleaner fingers. Kind of an odd situation of juxtaposable factors.
As an added feature KioWare announced their new Maintenance feature which displays “Last Cleaned” date to users to add extra level of confidence. This allows users to alert store personnel if a maintenance cycle has been missed. A new characteristic of an interactive kiosk.
Establishments will have to increase maintenance cycles and no longer will it be the redheaded stepchild so to speak.
What is KioTouch?
KioTouch is a clean innovation in the kiosk industry that will help in preventing the spread of potentially contagious and harmful microbes by giving the end-user full access to the kiosk’s interface via their personal mobile device.
Across grocery and retail stores, and quick-service restaurants it is reported that of the total bacteria in these facilities 63-percent have potentially harmful consequences to humans.
How KioTouch Works
KioTouch allows the end-user of a shared device to interface without physically touching the device itself. This is accomplished by scanning a QR code via the end-user’s personal mobile device. and navigating to a landing page that gives the user full control of the kiosk while their user session is active, just as they would have had by directly interacting with the kiosk.
What is Maintenance Management?
Maintenance Management is a KioWare feature that assists in the janitorial maintenance schedule of a self-service kiosk. This is critical in preventing bacteria spread from user-to-user.
How Maintenance Management Works
Maintenance Management works on two sets of parameters that can be defined individually for each kiosk: total time between cleanings and total number of user sessions between cleanings. If either of these thresholds are passed, then the status of the kiosk changes and staff notifications occur. After cleaning, the technician resets the time and user session counter, and the cycle starts again. The KioWare toolbar has a special icon that can be displayed with the time since the last cleaning. The time will increment every 36 seconds, so the that the kiosk user can see it is working.
What Maintenance Management Looks Like
Click for full size
The screenshot shown here depicts KioPay with Maintenance Management enabled. In the upper-left hand corner of the screen is the Maintenance Management logo with a fractional timer that indicates the last time since the kiosk device was cleaned. After tapping on this icon a maintenance employee can reset the timer after cleaning by inputting a unique code.
McDonalds Kiosks Self-Service Post-COVID Distancing In Netherlands
Erwin DitoManaging Director at McDonald’s Netherlands
As a result of great and swift teamwork, we’ve launched our ‘test and learn prototype’ restaurant in Arnhem. It’s an important step closer to operating in the new social distancing society. The team designed safe work & dining solutions for our employees and guests, while providing the fun experience this should be. As a part of our continuous improvement journey, we gladly invite industry colleagues to give feedback and come up with new ideas. We believe in a safe and smart exit for seated dining and take out. A big thank you to Desarc, Keller, Construct, HMT, our people and franchisees and restaurant staff at McDonald’s Arnhem Gelredome.
OUR LEADING TECHNOLOGY GETS YOU TO MARKET EASIER, FASTER AND WITH MORE PROFIT
When you choose Zebra as your OEM partner, you get a portfolio of scan engines and devices that deliver industry-leading features, durability and reliability — saving everyone time and money. You save on development time and cost. And, your customers get best-in-class, well-proven solutions that drive time and cost out of their everyday operations.
We have a 1D or 2D scan engine for the whatever range you need. When you work with Zebra, keeping your products updated with the latest technology is easy. Our platform strategy allows you to simply replace existing scan engines with the next generation engine — no expensive re-tooling required.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Google unit won approval from U.S. regulators to deploy a radar-based motion sensing device known as Project Soli.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said in an order late on Monday that it would grant Google a waiver to operate the Soli sensors at higher power levels than currently allowed. The FCC said the sensors can also be operated aboard aircraft.
The FCC said the decision “will serve the public interest by providing for innovative device control features using touchless hand gesture technology.”
A Google spokeswoman did not immediately comment on Tuesday, citing the New Year’s Day holiday.
The FCC said the Soli sensor captures motion in a three-dimensional space using a radar beam to enable touchless control of functions or features that can benefit users with mobility or speech impairments.
Google says the sensor can allow users to press an invisible button between the thumb and index fingers or a virtual dial that turns by rubbing a thumb against the index finger.
Google’s Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) team has been working on Project Soli since 2015. The gesture-based system uses broad beam radar to detect and capture hand movements, turning them into commands for mobile devices. Until now, though, the tech has been restricted, with some companies — including Facebook — claiming that the high frequency levels required might interfere with existing technology. Now, the FCC has granted a waiver that will allow Soli to operate at higher levels than currently allowed, and therefore continue development as Google originally intended.
CHARLOTTE, N.C., May 12, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Honeywell today announced a new temperature monitoring solution that incorporates advanced, infrared imaging technology and artificial intelligence algorithms to conduct non-invasive, preliminary screening of personnel entering a facility.
The Honeywell ThermoRebellion temperature monitoring solution can be rapidly deployed at the entryway of a factory, airport, distribution center, stadium or other commercial buildings to quickly and efficiently identify whether personnel exhibit an elevated facial temperature. As individuals pass in front of a high-resolution, thermal imaging camera, their skin temperature is automatically detected within two seconds and displayed on an accompanying monitor.
This can alert a person with an elevated temperature to seek additional screening. In addition, operators gain reliable, real-time information about personnel entering their facilities enabling them to take measures to keep their premises safe and secure.
The Honeywell ThermoRebellion system can also identify if individuals are wearing the required personal protective equipment needed for entering the building.
“Protecting worker safety is the top priority for any building operator and today, more than ever, managers are looking for innovative solutions to enhance their health screening processes,” said Renaud Mazarguil, president of Honeywell’s Gas Analysis and Safety business. “We’ve developed this breakthrough technology to automate and streamline the monitoring of an individual’s temperature and reduce the need for invasive monitoring. Honeywell is committed to developing new solutions to help workers, families and communities stay safe.”
Honeywell is piloting its new temperature monitoring solution at two of its U.S. production facilities, including the company’s new N95 face mask manufacturing center in Phoenix.
The Honeywell ThermoRebellion solution incorporates software powered by AI allowing for each individual pixel captured by the camera to be rapidly assessed for elevated temperature. The solution is easy to install and commission, and it is simple to operate with minimal training using an intuitive graphical user interface. The system also automatically logs data to simplify and standardize record-keeping for compliance, reducing the need for potentially error-prone manual tracking processes.
The system integrates seamlessly with the Honeywell Forge platform and Honeywell’s Healthy Building Solutions that provide a holistic view of a building’s health based on key factors such as air quality, social distancing, occupant flow, sanitation, wellness density and governance adherence.
The new temperature screening solution incorporates intelligent, visual monitoring technology from Rebellion Photonics, which Honeywell acquired in December 2019. Rebellion offers the oil and gas and petrochemical industries’ real-time monitoring platform that visually identifies and quantifies gas releases to quickly detect and analyze leaks keeping workers safe. The business features a sophisticated AI software platform to provide operators with automated notifications for gas leaks, security issues, and fires.
Honeywell’s Gas Analysis and Safety (HGAS) business delivers fixed and portable gas detection solutions for industrial, commercial and governmental applications where workers can be exposed to toxic or flammable gases. The business also provides protective gear for first responders and advanced electrical safety solutions for workers in high-risk environments. For more information about HGAS solutions, please visit safety.honeywell.com.
Honeywell (http://www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 technology company that delivers industry-specific solutions that include aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings and industry; and performance materials globally. Our technologies help aircraft, buildings, manufacturing plants, supply chains, and workers become more connected to make our world smarter, safer, and more sustainable. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywell.com/newsroom.
Peerless-AV® Announces New 65” Xtreme™ High Bright Outdoor Display
Award-winning line-up of XtremeTM High Bright Outdoor Displays now offers a larger size with included Outdoor Flat Wall Mount
AURORA, Ill. – May 13, 2020 – Peerless-AV®, an award-winning designer and manufacturer of the highest quality audio and video solutions and accessories, is pleased to share the availability of the new 65” Xtreme™ High Bright Outdoor Display (XHB652). The new addition to the award-winning line of displays features an all-weather IP66 rated design, as well as Peerless-AV’s patented Dynamic Thermal Transfer™ System, bringing an extended size option for maintenance-free applications.
The 65” Xtreme™ High Bright Outdoor Display includes cover glass that is optically bonded to cut down on glare and provide amazing picture quality, even in direct sunlight. With an operating temperature range of -31°F to 140°F, Xtreme™ Displays are designed to thrive year-round outside in even the harshest of environments. The display’s integrated ambient light sensor automatically adjusts the display’s brightness to optimize the power consumption and enhance the overall viewing experience.
Built to withstand the spectrum of outdoor elements, the Peerless-AV Xtreme™ High Bright Outdoor Displays are maintenance-free and are fully protected against the moisture, as well as any potential debris. With unrivaled capabilities, Xtreme™ High Bright Outdoor Displays are the perfect digital signage or entertainment solution for any professional application including mass transit, stadiums, theme parks, retail, quick-serve restaurants (QSR), corporate applications, education, hospitality, and beyond.
“Bringing a 65-inch option to our line of Xtreme™ High Bright Outdoor Displays will allow Peerless-AV to better meet the growing demand for larger screen sizes” said Todd Mares, Director of Emerging Technologies, Peerless-AV. “Xtreme™ High Bright Outdoor Displays allow our customers to creatively communicate in all types of extreme weather conditions and industries, while also offering a long-lasting, maintenance-free digital signage solution.”
The 65” Xtreme™ High Bright Outdoor Display comes with a rich feature set that includes:
Operating temperature range of -31°F to 140°F
Optically bonded, anti-reflective cover glass increases the perceived contrast ratio and cuts down on glare, providing amazing picture quality, even in direct sunlight
Daylight readability with an LED backlight and full HD 1080p resolution for a bright, crisp picture
Includes Quarter Wave Plate polarizer, allowing for portrait and landscape installations
IP66 rating and fully-sealed design prevents the ingress of foreign materials, such as water, dust, moisture and insects, from entering the display
IK10 rated, impact-resistant, tempered cover glass helps to protect the screen against vandalism and debris
Remote and local monitoring, supported via IP addressable user interface, for temperature, humidity, and power draw diagnostics of the display
Includes a Peerless-AV Outdoor Flat Wall Mount to provide a safe and secure installation
Optional Waterproof Xtreme™ Outdoor Soundbar (SPK-080) can be mounted in addition to display to deliver highest quality sound
For over 75 years, passion and innovation continue to drive Peerless-AV forward. We proudly design and manufacture the highest quality products, including outdoor displays and TVs, complete integrated kiosks, video wall mounting systems, professional carts and stands, and more. Whether a full-scale global deployment or custom project, Peerless-AV develops meaningful relationships and delivers world-class service. In partnership with Peerless-AV, you are trusting an award-winning team of experts who will support your business every step of the way. For more information, visit peerless-av.com.
New Health Kiosk for Temperature Verification by Pyramid
Provides fast temperature sensing before allowing access to buildings and venues. Easy, safe deployment including office, healthcare, transportation, leisure and retail environments
Freiburg, Germany, May 18 2020 – Pyramid Computer GmbH today announced the worldwide availability of its new polytouch® 32 curve – access controlkiosk which automatically measures human body temperature as part of authorized personnel and visitor access to buildings and public areas.
By streamlining the flow of people through the kiosk, quick but very accurate contactless checks can determine if an individual is running a fever and therefore potentially has the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) or possibly another virus or bacterial disease such as influenza. With the gradual easing of public lockdown measures and a return to work, the Pyramid polytouch® 32 curve kioskhelps businesses, institutions, public transportation and venue operators rapidly detect and reduce the potential spread of infection among employees, guests and visitors.
Temperature check kiosks
They are becoming the new norm and part of the access process to many places such as workspace, airports, stations, shops, restaurants, healthcare facilities, schools, universities, conference, concert and sporting venues. Combining contactless thermal temperature screening sensors with software from ZipKey – well-proven in border control passport verification and biometric facial recognition – the Pyramid polytouch® 32 curve kioskoffers a level of public access safety and accuracy that cannot be matched by existing human-error prone processes.
Using intelligent sensor technology – with over 1.000 measuring points – and tracking the distance of the subject to the sensor results in a reliable statement of body temperature. This is performed in less than a second enabling fast processing of up to 700 people per hour, therefore maximizing user convenience and safety without compromising the customer organization’s need for efficiency and security. Single or multiple kiosks are easily and safely deployed in and around buildings and can be connected to automatic doors, turnstiles, locks or barriers for access control after successful testing.
“As we strive to take back control of our daily lives, the combination of personal identity verification with real-time body temperature measurement is the ultimate key for ensuring safe, secure public access,” said Patrick Hagemeister, International Account Director at Pyramid Computer. “Our new polytouch® 32 curve – access controlkiosk establishes a test barrier at the entrance to your building – it could be your contribution to helping prevent virus spread by offering more protection to employees, visitors, suppliers and the general public.”
Using ZipKey’s software, the Pyramid’s polytouch® 32 curve – access control kiosk scans, verifies and extracts data from an individual’s identity credentials (e.g. card or driver’s license) and performs facial recognition to verify their identity. At the same time their body temperature is monitored. Protection from user manipulation is assured through intelligent thermal image analysis technology. The system is fully GDPR compliant with anonymized data collection and pre-defined automatic data deletion mechanisms. Data required for auditing requirements can be centrally accessed.
Patrick Hagemeister added: “Our easy to use health screening kiosk will help hasten the return of social contact and provide greater confidence in public health safety. Government and health organizations could also leverage our solution when tracking localized infection hotspots, by utilizing the real-time anonymized data capture functionality.”
Pyramid’s modular, ergonomic polytouch® 32 curve – access control kiosk can be easily customized with add-on peripherals where necessary for accommodating customer-specific access control management tasks. These include RFID card/token dispensers and label/badge printers. A retrofit kit is available for modifying existing kiosk systems.
Note to editors:
With the current COVID-19 pandemic and other viral infections and bacterial diseases, fever/raised temperature is the most frequent initial diagnosis: according to the WHO Report 2/2020: 87.9% for COVID-19.
About Pyramid Computer
Pyramid Computer has focused on the development of high performance and tailor-made IT solutions since 1985. The company has produced more than 30,000 customized kiosk terminals for retail and QSR customers throughout the world. In addition, it has developed a uniquely precise system for localization and automation in hospitality and retail – Pyramid Location System. All IT hardware, indoor localization, and network & security and industrial PC & imaging products are engineered and designed in Germany by Pyramid for shipment and installation via worldwide OEM and distribution partners.
ZipKey is a spin-off of the leading provider of data-center facilities and services in Europe. More than 15 years of experience and excellence in access control management has been productized in ZipKey which and is now available to customers for any location and security requirement.
Even before COVID-19 officially had a name, public health officials said the virus could be transmitted through infected respiratory droplets and by touching infected surfaces and then touching your nose, mouth, and possibly your eyes. So, people began snatching up face masks, wearing gloves, and ramping up hand hygiene to try to protect themselves.
While touching infected surfaces has always been part of the messaging on how the virus spreads, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently shifted its stance online. The CDC now says that COVID-19 spreads from person to person contact, and then lists touching infected surfaces under a section titled, “The virus does not spread easily in other ways.” The CDC adds: “This is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads, but we are still learning more about this virus.” The language is a subtle change from the organization’s warning in early March, when it wrote simply that it “may be possible” to spread the virus through contaminated surfaces.
The CDC, which did not respond to Yahoo Life’s request for comment, still recommends that you wash your hands often with soap and water, and routinely clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces to protect yourself and others from the virus.
The rush for temperature check and elevated body temperature is still going strong. Like any other technology though there are different solutions with different accuracy and different application extensions. Instead of touch technology terms such as PCap or SAW we now talk in terms of thermopiles and thermal imaging cameras. Pixels are still the determining factor ironically enough even between those two technologies. With touch technologies we have even entered new territory with “Touchless Touchscreens”. Reminds me of interactive digital signage.
The advantage of thermal cameras — look at this purely from a physics and physiological point of view. Take the thermal image from a face below. The colors represent the temperature distribution across my face. Would you agree that the thermal landscape is rather complex? The spread of temperatures is quite dramatic.
If you now take a pyrometer with a single pixel and measure a 1 inch or 2 inch region of my face, you will measure the AVERAGE temperature of that region. Even if the accuracy of that device is +/- 1C it doesn’t matter. This has to do with optics. If we focus thermal radiation with different energy levels onto the same detector element, we end up with an AVERAGE.
Mathematically, the average will be lower than the max. temperature. Hence, this is the largest source of error, using these sort of detectors. That is why a thermal camera with 320 x 240 detector elements (pixels) is far superior to any single element or 32×32 pixel sort of detector. It doesn’t matter who makes it. Simple physics!
The way these manufacturers test the accuracy of their sensors is to point them at a black body. That surface temperature of that black body (calibration source) is UNIFORM and at least as large as the measurement region of that detector. A human face is anything but uniform as you can see below. So looking at their accuracy specification for this application is pointless, as it ignores the spatial resolution requirement for accurately resolving the temperature variations of the human face. This is the same problem with using forehead thermometers. As these tend to also just have a single detector in them.
Click for full size image
Take the example. we took a small region from the face and zoom in. This would be one pixel of one of the detectors you sent to us. You can see the pixels of the thermal camera clearly measuring all temperatures present. The thermal camera would report 97.3F in that region.
If that is the pixel size of one of the low cost detectors – these temperatures would be averaged. (92.6+91.2+95.8+97.3)/4= 94.2F A 3 degree error! In other words, the low resolution sensor would have missed that person.
Again – this has nothing to do with brand bias – it is Physics/Optics/Math related.
Thermal Camera Imaging Technical
Elevated Body Temperature Screening – Read this, before buying a Thermal Camera
Elevated body temperature screening. This article discusses six topics you need to know before buying a thermal camera. There are so many options out there, it can quickly can overwhelming. Especially when you have no background in using thermal cameras for elevated body temperature screening or “EBT”.
This “6 Things you need to know before buying a thermal camera for elevated body temperature screening” article and accompanying video is intended for readers that are in the research and decision making process. Which thermal camera screening solution is right for me?
I have witnessed about 30 new “solutions” and entire new companies enter the market, just in the past two month alone. There is so much misinformation out there and so many false claims, that I felt compelled to write this article and make this video. The COVID-19 crisis has brought out the best in people and unfortunately also the worst.
A lot of companies are currently investing significant sums of money into technology they do not understand the first thing about. A lot of vendors out there didn’t even know how a thermal camera worked two months ago and are now calling themselves experts.
Elevated body temperature screening (EBT) not only requires an in depth understanding about thermography, but also a solid understanding of physiological effects of the human body. In particular, how the body thermally regulates.
Some companies promote their solutions as “fever screening” cameras. This is a misleading statement, since no thermal camera has ever been cleared by the FDA for fever screening.
These cameras can merely detect a variation in skin surface temperature. My name is Markus Tarin, and I am the President & CEO of MoviTHERM – Advanced Thermography Solutions.
I have spent the past 20 years developing thermal imaging systems for industry and research. Never before have I seen such a frenzy and unethical business practices when it comes to thermal cameras being offered for elevated body temperature screening.
When I started to learn about thermal imaging technology, back in the 90s, it took a go six months to get a fundamental understanding about the infrared spectrum, heat radiation, conduction, convection, emissivity, reflectivity, transmissivity and all the other fancy physical effects that influence the accuracy of a thermographic measurement.
So I empathize with so many of you out there trying to make an “informed” purchase decision within a very short period of time. Many of you may not even have an engineering background, let alone the ability to interpret technical specifications of thermal cameras. Now add to this the complexity of human physiology and how the body’s thermoregulation may skew the results of an optical instrument used for temperature measurement.
The reality is that you won’t have enough time to properly understand enough about these subject matters to truly make an educated and sound decision. What you are left with, is often the marketing literature of the solution provider. And their whole purpose is to play into the panic and fear around this subject matter to sell you their solution.
I felt compelled to share my knowledge and help educate people on this topic. For that purpose, I have put together six topics and boiled them down to the essentials. Hopefully people will find some value in this. This article is not meant to be an exhaustive “training course” or white paper by any stretch of the imagination. Rather, it is meant to convey some basic concepts to separate the marketing hype from technical facts.
Topic# 1 – How does a Thermal Camera work?
A thermal camera captures the radiated infrared energy from the surface of a solid object. The captured energy is then mathematically converted to a temperature reading. The temperature reading of each pixel of the camera is then being associated with a color, representing a temperature.
The absolute accuracy of a thermal camera depends on many factors. Considering all factors (Emissivity, spatial resolution, detector and system noise, temperature drift etc.), the expected accuracy of these cameras is no better than ±2° Celsius or ±3.6 °Fahrenheit. It technically can’t be better, unless you are placing the thermal camera into a very tightly controlled thermal chamber under laboratory conditions.
This is due to the fact that the image detector in the camera, the lens and the electronics warm up and create a temperature drift. Without active temperature compensation, this drift is a large contributing factor to the achievable accuracy on these cameras. All the cameras that are being offered for elevated body temperature screening are based on microbolometer type detectors.
Micro-Bolometer Pixel
I have to get technical – sorry…
I have seen marketing literature lately, that claim a camera accuracy of +/- 0.5C without the use of an external black body i.e. calibrated temperature reference source. They back up the claim with the fact that the entire calibrated temperature range was optimized for human body temperature, rather than the typical 170C to 350C range of typical thermal cameras. It is true that using a smaller dynamic range potentially helps with accuracy. However, this also requires a higher degree of amplification. With amplification comes additional noise. If the detector has an NETD of 0.05k (50mK) at 30C. The best theoretical accuracy achievable is about 10 times NETD. So 0.05K x 10 = 0.5K or 0.5C, ignoring all other error sources. Typical dynamic ranges of microbolometer detectors require a 14bit analog to digital converter. So, in order to make use of the largely reduced dynamic range, one would have to amplify the signal from the detector. This will also amplify the detector noise and hence will affect the achievable accuracy negatively. None of this helps and none of this deals with the temperature drift problem.
Takeaway: Achieving an accuracy of 0.5C with a microbolometer detector based camera requires one of two things:
– Active cooling and temperature control of the lens, the detector and signal electronics, which none of these have OR
– Using a external temperature reference source (aka black body, that is stabilized to better than +/- 0.5C)
Topic# 2 – What can a Thermal Camera detect?
A thermal camera can only detect, measure and document the variations of skin surface temperatures.
It cannot detect or diagnose any of the following:
If somebody has a fever or not
If somebody is sick or healthy
If somebody has an infection of any kind
If somebody is contagious or not
A diagnostic decision can only be rendered by a healthcare professional, using other FDA approved methods (fever thermometer, blood test, viral tests etc.)
A thermal camera used for this application requires an FDA 510k clearance. With such a clearance, it can be used as an “adjunct” screening tool for skin surface temperature measurements. It shall never be used on its own to render any diagnostic decision.
Topic# 3 – How to properly measure elevated body temperature?
Body temperature is correlated closest at the inner canthus/tear duct.
Measuring skin surface temperatures anywhere else in the face, will not work properly.
Eye-wear will obstruct the tear ducts and must be removed
Person should be standing still at a fixed distance to the camera
The inner canthus should be covered by a sufficient number of camera pixels to allow for an accurate measurement. (At a minimum 3 x 3 pixels, ideally more)
Topic# 4 – What camera pixel resolution do I need?
The tear duct area is about 5mm. We need at a minimum 3 pixels to cover that region for an accurate measurement.
5mm / 3 pixels = 1.6mm/pixel
Using a thermal camera with 320 pixels, we can capture an image size of 320 pixels x 1.6mm/pixel = 512 mm [~ 20 inches]
Using a camera with 160-pixel resolution, we are left with an image size of ~10 inches.
Therefore, pointing a camera into a crowd to detect elevated body temperature will not work.
Assuming an image size of 5 feet, it would require a thermal camera with >12 Megapixels and these do not exist.
Topic# 5 – Reference black body vs. reference population
There are two legitimate measurement setups available for elevated body temperature measurement.
One uses an external black body reference to increase the accuracy of the measurement to about ±0.5° Celsius or better.
The other one uses a relative comparison of skin surface temperatures (baseline group)
Both setups are valid and require a manual correction from time to time to account for external factors that are impacting the thermoregulation of the human body.
Thermoregulation is the ability of the human body to keep its inner core temperature stable.
Core body temperature is: 36.4–37.1 °C (97.5–98.8 °F)
The body will either try to conserve energy or try to get rid of excess energy to maintain its ideal core temperature.
This results in increased or decreased skin surface temperatures, as the skin is the
interface to the environment.
Topic# 6 – Which solution can I trust?
Be aware of “ambulance chasers”. More than 30 new solutions and companies have been created in the past two months.
Work only with reputable companies with a proven track record.
How long has the solution they are selling been on the market? Was it successfully used during previous pandemics, such as SARS & Swine Flu?
Be aware of false camera accuracy claims.
Be aware of fully automated systems.
Be aware of low-cost solutions.
Do not buy a solution that claims to be able to scan more than one person at a time. (Crowd scanning).
Be aware of false claims in marketing literature and websites.
(i.e. Fever detection, avoids spreading infection, any diagnostic claims, keeping you safe etc.)
Not all thermal cameras and solutions are created equal!
IntraEdge and Pyramid have created a contactless kiosk that can check the temperature of up to 1,500 people per hour.
The kiosk utilizes Pyramid’s thermal imaging technology and has an error margin of less than one-tenth of a degree Fahrenheit.
No data is stored on the kiosk itself. Using IntraEdge’s Truyo Privacy Rights Platform the data is immediately encrypted and transferred to Truyo’s cloud.
Janus, a temperature-reading kiosk from IntraEdge and Pyramid, can be installed freestanding, using a wall mount or on a countertop. IntraEdge
As states reopen to the public during the coronavirus pandemic, retailers, hotels, movie theaters and sports stadiums are all looking for ways to keep patrons and staff safe.
Many of these businesses have been closed since mid-March to help stop the spread of the virus, and they are eager to rehire staff and welcome back customers and the billions of dollars they bring. But these businesses want to do so safely to protect employees and encourage customers to return.
One common strategy is to implement temperature checks at the front door. While not perfect, temperature checks can weed out the most obvious of Covid-19 cases. Still, for venues that typically have large crowds, trying to do mass temperature checks can be an overwhelming undertaking. In these situations, the handheld temperature readers aren’t a perfect solution.
On Thursday, IntraEdge and Pyramid Computer said they are working with Intel on a possible solution that leverages existing screeing and privacy technology thatthe companies manufacture.
The Italian Place, “THE” destination for fresh, delicious and authentic Italian favorites, is sharing lessons learned during COVID-19 – including its strategy to leverage self-serve kiosks to streamline its ordering process, maintain consistency and enhance convenience and safety for customers. Although The Italian Place is an emerging concept at the start of its franchising journey, their significant upfront investment in technology has enabled them to remain adaptable in these uncertain times, and increase its revenue and profitability.
“We pivoted fast, communicated with our customers, and pursued opportunities to build efficiencies and add profitability to our model,” said Adriana Penachio-Sifakis, founder of The Italian Place. “We added pizza to our menu, leveraging the latest ventless technology to cook the pies in 90 seconds at more than 900 degrees, which enabled us to increase revenue and profitability over the past few months.”
In addition to ventless technology, The Italian Place is making full use of its portable self-serve kiosks. The kiosks can be moved easily to a window or other isolated area in the store, giving customers the ability to place orders without the need to come into direct contact with a person. Customers are also able to quickly review products, pairings and process their orders independently with additional payment options like Apple Pay.
Before you go installing or reselling the new Digital Signage Sanitizer Kiosks be sure to verify that it’s UL certified. Ask for the certificates on the exact machine you are looking to purchase. Manufacturers have this information readily available if they have done the tests. Sanitizer is flammable. Faulty electronics, poor wiring etc… are all great sources of a flash-point. We’re a huge fan of all the innovation going on in my industry from around the world but, safety before profits.
Some other notes:
Reviewing most offerings the units were designed as wall mount.
Notice never anyone in the picture as a reference. Because the height of applicator is at 29.2 inches so a 2 year old is at risk if walking.
Electronics are not UL or CSA approved.
Companies using these could be liable for multiple avenues for lawsuits. Not to mention their insurance would not cover lawsuit problems.
Reference link on dangers of sanitizer kiosks from CBS News
There’s a hidden risk with keeping hand sanitizer in your car to help protect against COVID-19 and other illnesses, especially during the hot summer months. Flammable liquids and direct sunlight can make it explode, CBS Dallas warns.
“It’s flammable and it’s an irritant,” retired Dallas firefighter Sherrie Wilson told the station. “When it’s venting and if it’s venting in a small space like a car, and vapor is released, it can explode.”
First released on PRNewswire and below content as echoed on Yogonet. They included the YouTube videos embedded for the gesture kiosk nav and the foot nav which is a “nice touch”. These technologies are truly a bit of a departure from the more conventional gesture kiosk technology usually presented. And this is the first occurrence of foot navigation that we have ever seen. Kudos to the engineering team at Kiosk Innovations. Proprietary interface which connects to USB. Windows support only. Much like the Storm Interface accessibility devices and we didn’t mention accessibility but it is definitely a notable factor. Innovative things! — Editor
Touchless kiosks and Gesture Kiosks
These devices use simple Up, Down, Forward, Backward, and Enter/Select keys for touch-free navigations.
Hand Gesture Navigation and Foot Controlled Navigation can be mounted on any existing or new kiosks with a USB connection. They can both be integrated at the same time, and the end-user has the ability to use either the foot pedal or the gesture module.
Kiosk Innovations has developed two No-Touch solutions that allow touch-free navigation to mitigate the spread of any virus — Hand Gesture Kiosk Navigation and Foot Controlled Kiosk Navigation.
The company said in a release Thursday that the development came after having studied the available Covid-19 kiosk safety options in the market, and come to the conclusion most available have shortcomings. “Voice, sanitizing wipes, AI conversations, speech recognition, mobile proxy and camera-based navigation to name some of them all have limitations in terms of effectiveness and usability,” the provider said.
Gesture Kiosks and Foot Kiosks
Kiosk Innovations’ foot-controlled (Foot-Nav) and gesture-controlled (Gesture-Nav)can be mounted on any existing or new kiosks with a USB connection. These devices use simple Up, Down, Forward, Backward, and Enter/Select keys for navigations. They can both be integrated at the same time. The end-user has the ability to use either the foot pedal or the gesture module. The touch screen is still available for those who want to do it traditionally.
Rick Freeman, Senior Vice President of Sales at Kiosk Innovations commented: “We have evaluated every possible user ‘touchless’ interface available as well as preventative mitigation and after consulting with our customers we came to the overwhelming consensus that for navigation alternatives the most intuitive are gesture and foot navigation. Users not only need trust the interface as ‘clean’ but the technology needs to be easily adopted.”
Kiosk Innovations also provides a full range of Antibacterial Kiosk solutions depending on the customers’ preference. The firm provides self-service innovative technologies with a company emphasis on safety, education, and communication. It is a major provider of custom transactional terminals for markets such as Bill Payment, Hotel Check-in, Casino/Gaming, and Amusement.
From NRF : “The coronavirus pandemic is dramatically affecting businesses all over the world including the retail industry. To support retailers, NRF’s technology, research and consulting industry partners are providing free or discounted resources and guidance. This includes tools, strategic insights, products and services and more to help retailers navigate through the current environment.”
The below listing includes: webinars; research and consumer insights; free products and services; and discounted products and services.”
Description:We have multiple temperature check solutions that our members are delivering to clients. Included are basic temperature screening only, to more complex solutions for recording credentials and more. We can extend 10% discount to NRF customers. U.S. and International support.
Thermo Sensing Software with integration to backend systems
Offer type:Discounted products and services
Categories:Technology; Customer Experience
Description:Protecting yourself, your staff, and other visitors and patrons from the spread of contagious diseases begin with identifying, quarantining, and treating infected individuals. TempDefend’s thermal sensor technology provides an accurate and affordable solution to alert individuals of heightened temperature (possible infection) status while protecting others in and around your facilities. 22MILES TempDefend can capture analytics that ensures your operational, compliance, and HR requirements (optional client consent). AI enabling of response customization, analytics, networking, and synchronizing of TempDefend anomaly alerts, as well as compliance logs for legal audit trails, are available.
Software and hardware solutions for COVID Response by KMA
Offer type:Free products and services
Categories:Technology; Customer Experience
Description:The Kiosk Manufacturer Association sponsors, members and working groups understand the pain and trouble that current companies are undergoing with business disruption. Many of these COVID specials are free, or discounted, or deferred payment. We share your pain. All hands on deck is a good motto. To help here are some COVID-19 specific solutions being offered, many of them free. They range from Ecommerce, Digital Signs, Portable Digital Signs, Temperature Check Kiosks, Secure Endpoints for home corporate and footfall or customers-in-store count.
TECA Model AHP-451XE Peltier coolers are protecting over a dozen customized bill-pay kiosks. This example illustrates the power of TECA’s smaller air conditioner models. With just over a 100 Watts of cooling power, the AHP-451XE is meeting the thermal requirements of this fairly large (over 4’ tall) kiosk. Housing heat sensitive equipment including computing core, printer, imager, and a 15” LCD touchscreen, this kiosk is exposed to high ambient temperatures as well.
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TECA has extensive experience protecting kiosk components. Many of our air conditioners – whether for AC or DC input – are safety certified to UL/CSA standards and are CE marked. TECA builds our products in the USA. Kiosk end users will benefit from our informed design and manufacturing talents. Our low-turnover assembly team is dedicated and experienced. We consistently deliver quality products. Peltier cooling technology is long-lasting, reliable, and virtually maintenance-free. Please contact us today with our kiosk cooling questions! We look forward to hearing from you.
The following is an editorial comment by Kiosk Industry editors on the modified current outlook for self-service in the post-COVID-19 world of customers and employees.
Self-Service (and Touchscreens) Set for Accelerated Growth
We spent an hour with Philadelphia Inquirer this morning. The same one it turns out who wrote up the cash versus cashless policies set up in Philadelphia (and apparently mostly at the insistence of ATM lobby industry, kudos to ATMIA on that).
self-service interaction is going to jump even higher as person-to-person declines. It’s simple math.
Privacy issues with credentialing and biometrics will rise in visibility. No more hotel mag card keys but a facial recognition camera built into the new door lock for example. AntiTheft AI engines (recent Walmart screwup e.g. with its Digital Eye on checkouts scanning for theft – link)
The majority of the “purchasing populace” has a very short attention span. Example might be the premature opening of states here in US with nine of those states now faced with big spikes – link to Washington Post
Quarantine fatigue or “Screw it, I’ll do it” is getting closer and close to emerging. Example premature opening of states….
Majority of your multi-generational customers (teens and younger) have no fear and less confirmed bias (like old white guys like me…)
In post-COVID — Retail and Hospitality and Transportation/etc must “reformat” their business platforms. They will invest in Technology, not people.
The point we took away is that all of the avenues and techniques for customer interaction which are NOT primarily person-to-person are going to be increasing, dramatically.
Nice article on NRN with Panera Bread and Fish City Grill on how marketing is changing in the post-COVID-19 world. Article link
Making it transparent to the consumer —
“Up until now, no one wanted to know what was happening behind the curtain,” Greene-Wallace said. “Our team members were good about washing our hands, but now we put in a dining room timer that goes off every 20 minutes and everyone stops what they’re doing to wash their hands. Customers can see what’s happening live.”
Main KI Contact Form
This is xxxxx with the Philadelphia Inquirer. I’m working on a story about the future of touchscreens in a post-pandemic world. As you know, kiosks have been widely adopted at stores, banks, and airports because of their convenience and efficiency, but I suspect the high-touch surfaces will make some consumers leery, possibly forcing businesses to make changes. I’m reaching out to see if you or someone else from the kiosk manufacturing industry can talk to me today. I’m curious how your industry is handling this both in the short and long term. Is there a low-tech fix, such as nearby wipes for consumers to use? Or could bigger changes be on the way, perhaps voice or contactless technology? Any insight would be greatly appreciated. I’m speaking to banks, stores, and airports about the consumer-facing end of this, but I’d really like to get the manufacturing perspective too. Thanks, xxxxx
In a letter to members of Congress, IBM CEO Arvind Krishna said the company would no longer make general-purpose facial recognition and analysis software, citing concerns about the technology’s use by law enforcement agencies. He clarified that IBM “firmly opposes” the use of facial recognition “for mass surveillance, racial profiling, violations of basic human rights and freedoms.” The letter also outlined various efforts the company would take in response to ongoing anti-police brutality demonstrations, such as endorsing a federal registry for police misconduct.
IBM wasn’t super specific in its announcement. However, a person familiar with the matter said that IBM will limit itself to the development of visual object detection and will no longer make APIs that could be used to power facial recognition available to outside or internal developers. The company would not comment further.
Meanwhile the next day (June 12) we have announcements from Amazon and Microsoft
Amazon and Microsoft announced on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, moratoria on police use of their facial recognition technology, amid a call for federal regulation of the controversial technology. Amazon’s moratorium is for one year, while Microsoft said its moratorium is indefinite until laws are in place.
In a short statement, Amazon said it would continue to make Rekognition available to groups like Thorn, the International Center for Missing and Exploited Children and Marinus Analytics to help the victims of human trafficking and reunite missing children with their families. Microsoft President Brad Smith said any national law should be “grounded in human rights.”
More Information on Facial Recognition in Self-Service
With over 25,000 kiosks installed across 60 countries, we are
one of the world’s leading kiosk manufacturers and have built
a strong reputation for delivering exceptional products
to some of the world’s largest brands. These include
McDonald’s, Google, Walmart, Mastercard and Tesco.
These new health solutions are made in the USA and available for immediate deployment in a variety of settings, such as corporate, retail, hospitality, education, transit and more.
Peerless-AV® Creates Multiple Health Protocol Solutions to Assist with Occupancy Control, Temperature Sensing, and more
New solutions, from tabletop and floor stands, to small and large format integrated kiosks that are completely customizable to assist businesses with public health and safety needs
AURORA, Ill. – June 11, 2020 – Peerless-AV®, an award-winning designer and manufacturer of the highest quality audio and video solutions and accessories, is pleased to share the availability of new solutions for public health preparedness and viral transmission prevention. The new products include an Occupancy Control Kiosk, three variations of Temperature Sensing Digital Signage Kiosks, as well as Temperature Sensor Tabletop and Floor Stand Mounts that will allow businesses to communicate and implement proper health standards in real time. These new health protocol solutions are made in the USA and available for immediate deployment in a variety of settings, such as corporate, retail, hospitality, education, transit and more.
“We took the time to research what type of solutions were needed to keep both employees and customers safe and satisfied,” said Brian McClimans, VP Sales, Peerless-AV. “We looked into a variety of different studies, surveyed consumers and had detailed discussions with our current customers to develop these products, and we firmly believe these solutions will become a part of prevention protocols all industries are implementing as the country begins to reopen.”
Peerless-AV’s lightweight and durable Temperature Sensor Stand Mounts (THR-100-COUNTER, THR-200-STAND) are offered for tabletop or floor applications. With installer-friendly features, such as internal cable management and clearance holes in the base to secure the mount to a surface or leave free-standing for quick reposition, these mounts are designed to support an 8″ temperature sensor tablet (not included). Once the stand is paired with a self-service, non-contact temperature screening tablet, it will alert individuals of heightened temperature status.
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Peerless-AV is also offering three new small-format, indoor Kiosks for public spaces. The first version of the Temperature Sensing Digital Signage Kiosk (THR-300) is integrated with a 22″ display, as well as non-touch, thermal sensing TempDefendTM Protection Basic Software from 22Miles. The second option of the Temperature Sensing Digital Signage Kiosk (THR-400) is integrated with a 21.5″ Mimo Monitors Display and digital signage software from Revel Digital, which provides detection within 3′ and temperature readings up to 18″. The third variation of the Temperature Sensing Digital Signage Kiosk (THR-500) comes with personal protection dispensers for refillable touch-free antibacterial foam dispenser, disposable gloves and facial tissues, and accommodates a 32″ display, FLIR temperature camera, as well as non-touch, thermal sensing TempDefendTM Protection Basic Software from 22Miles.
These small format, indoor kiosks feature a thermo-sensing system that leverages a combination of camera technology, facial and body temperature detection software, integrated sensors, and dynamic machine learning algorithms to aid in the prevention of viral spread, while also working as a dynamic digital signage solution when needed. The self-service, non-contact temperature screening system will alert individuals of heightened temperature status as they enter the premise, alleviating customer and staff concerns. It will also capture analytics that confirm operational compliance and Human Resource requirements.
The ongoing concern for public health has further emphasized the need for regulating the flow of foot traffic in public places. To aid businesses worldwide, in managing customer and employee access to keep everyone healthy and comply with new regulations, Peerless-AV has partnered with Navori Labs to introduce a new, completely integrated digital signage solution for occupancy control. The Occupancy Control Kiosk (THR-600) is integrated with a display, Navori Labs QL 2.2 Digital Signage Software, media player, and web camera. This indoor, portrait kiosk regulates foot traffic at each point of entry and detects if a visitor is wearing a mask, while also displaying dynamic digital messaging, such as rules, instructions, wait times, promotions, and other information.
While these standard kiosk solutions are available, Peerless-AV also offers customization options to create unique solutions that help businesses meet their specific requirements and margins. Peerless-AV kiosks are customizable in every way – from the choice of integrated technology to custom paint and vinyl wraps. Through offering the ability to adapt and equip businesses with a customized solution to address health concerns, Peerless-AV hopes that more businesses are able to operate safely.
“Peerless-AV is committed to providing businesses with a variety of solutions to choose from that will allow them to communicate and implement proper health protocols to protect their employees and their visitors alike. It was also very important for us to develop a versatile product that can be repurposed into a dynamic digital signage device should temperature sensing no longer be required,” said Nick Belcore, Executive Vice President, Peerless-AV. “These new health protocol solutions are ideal for corporate, public transit, retailers, stadiums and beyond. Customers can expect these new offerings to meet a variety of needs with the same level of support you have come to expect from Peerless-AV.”
In addition to these new solutions, Peerless-AV has also been involved in several global projects designing health protocol solutions, such as the recently launched bundled Digital Signage Solutions from Peerless-AV, as well partnering with LG to provide businesses with bundled Health Protocol Solutions.
Please contact a Peerless-AV Sales Representative for more information: www.peerless-av.com/pages/sales-contacts
For over 75 years, passion and innovation continue to drive Peerless-AV forward. We proudly design and manufacture the highest quality products, including outdoor displays and TVs, complete integrated kiosks, video wall mounting systems, professional carts and stands, and more. Whether a full-scale global deployment or custom project, Peerless-AV develops meaningful relationships and delivers world-class service. In partnership with Peerless-AV, you are trusting an award-winning team of experts who will support your business every step of the way. For more information, visit peerless-av.com.
Enabling Innovative Telehealth Solutions on Digital Kiosk Devices – Information Systems
MONROEVILLE, Pa., June 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Compunetix is pleased to announce a partnership with KIOSK Information Systems (KIOSK) to deliver Video Call Center™ (VCC) on digital kiosks. Compunetix Video Call Center (VCC) for Healthcare is a browser-based, real-time voice and video workflow solution for healthcare providers that need to remain available to their patients in a safe and secure manner. Built on WebRTC technology, VCC supports high definition video connections, secure and encrypted media and data connectivity, video call transfer and routing, and mobile access via smart devices such as phones and tablets. This HIPAA compliant solution enables secure communication with no download or application installation.
With one touch, patients have instantaneous access to an active network of medical professionals throughout the world. Rather than waiting for help and further constraining limited resources, patients can use a kiosk to get secure, face-to-face virtual assistance. This digital approach to patient care is gaining adoption as a preferred mode of communication as more people opt for the direct connection and convenience that technology provides.
“With greater volume and complexity of patient needs, healthcare organizations need better ways to connect with patients at scale that can enable a more personal experience while at the same time improve operational efficiency. In partnership with Compunetix, our joint telehealth solution offers healthcare facilities and insurance providers the ability to help patients, face-to-face virtually – from service questions to advanced care access – all without the need to travel or wait at high traffic facilities,” shares Kim Kenney, President of KIOSK Information Systems.
“As the global leader in self-service systems for businesses, KIOSK provides a flexible new platform for our Video Call Center solution, especially in the healthcare markets where the combined solution offers a powerful and accessible new paradigm for distributed services,” explains Gerard Pompa, Compunetix Senior Vice President and Manager of the Communications Systems Division.
As healthcare organizations look to technology for better ways to connect with patients, Compunetix and KIOSK can enable an improved and more efficient experience. We are pleased to be exhibiting at this year’s ATA Virtual Conference and Expo. ATA2020 is the world’s largest telehealth innovation event. Join us and other providers, developers, and leaders as we come together virtually to have an in-depth, thoughtful, critical discussion about the future of health.
About Compunetix: For over 50 years, Compunetix has been providing advanced communications solutions all over the world, building and maintaining a reputation for reliability, customer service, product quality, and technological excellence that others simply cannot match. Compunetix is the leading developer of converged VoIP, voice, video, and data collaboration and conferencing applications for service providers, government, and corporate enterprise markets. Combined with world-class support and innovative professional services, Compunetix delivers the right solution, every time.
About KIOSK Information Systems: KIOSKhelps organizations digitally transform by enabling automation with self-service solutions to improve the customer experience, while increasing operational and cost efficiencies. With over 27 years of experience and 250,000+ kiosks deployed, KIOSK is the trusted partner of Top 100 Retailers and Fortune 500 clients; delivering proven expertise in design engineering and manufacturing, application development, integration, and comprehensive support services. We offer an innovative portfolio of kiosk solutions along with managed services and IoT capabilities to ensure a seamless user experience. Learn more at kiosk.com, 800.509.5471
Everything you need to know about using thermal imaging cameras for identifying potentially sick people.
Elevated body temperature screening
As government and corporate America develop post-COVID-19 action plans for responsibly reopening the country, some businesses are scrambling to keep up with the demand for thermal cameras, which many believe can help identify novel coronavirus cases via elevated temperature detection
During the SARS outbreak in 2002, the same demand occurred, albeit on a much smaller scale and mainly in Asia. As with most infectious diseases, people want to keep it from spreading. Fever represents a common COVID-19 symptom. Sometimes a person with a fever may not feel particularly sick and may still attempt to travel or come to work. Afraid of being booted off a plane or sent home, the motivation for self-reporting a potential illness quickly outweighs the consequences. Technology offers an attractive route for companies looking to screen for sick people. Companies feel severe economic pressure to reopen their businesses to survive, while other essential businesses fear that a company outbreak could bring them to a screeching halt, as has happened in the food and restaurant industries.
Several methods to check somebody’s temperature exist (Figure 1), but the larger the company, the less practical it becomes to have a medical professional use a handheld thermometer to screen everyone entering the building. This method is somewhat invasive and not conducive to social distancing guidelines, which is why non-contact thermal imaging has emerged as a popular alternative.
Thermal camera solutions pop up like mushrooms as demands soar. MoviTHERM has counted 52 new solutions just in the past eight weeks in the US. Many of these are brand new startups, while others simply rebrand mass produced existing, commercially available thermal cameras. Offerings range from cell phone attachments with low resolution thermal cameras to dual view thermal and visible cameras with built in artificial intelligence for tracking people in a crowd. Marketing literature and demonstration videos from such companies may impress the panic buyer looking for a way to keep their workforce safe. What used to take engineers weeks and months of research is now being decided in 24 to 48 hrs. Even Amazon bought 1,500 thermal cameras for $10 million from a US Government-blacklisted Chinese supplier.
How hard can it be? A thermal camera is a thermal camera! Or is it?
If that was the case, why do the prices of these cameras vary from $400 to $40,000? It isn’t just the thermal camera that matters, it is how it is being applied to the application. Measuring elevated body temperature happens to be a rather complex application once you peel back the layers. After all, this does not involve simply measuring the temperature of a piece of steel but measuring the temperature of living beings under various conditions. Throwing a startup company together and hiring a few software developers to get an image out of a thermal camera is missing the point entirely. Thermal imaging uses some rather complex physics and involves optics, thermodynamic laws, emissivity, atmospheric variables, thermal drift compensation, infrared radiation, reflection, transmission, and in the case of this application, a slew of physiological effects of the human body.
Thermal cameras cannot detect a fever or diagnose any disease. A thermal camera can only measure the infrared radiation emitted from the first surface it encounters. When pointed at a face, this first surface happens to be the surface of the skin. However, when examining the thermal landscape of a human face, one will quickly notice the complexities. Additionally, such measurements vary tremendously from individual to individual.
Figure 2: The tear duct region of the face (inner canthus) offers the most accurate part of the face when it comes to optical temperature measurement
Accurate measurements
Scientific research shows that most of the facial skin temperature is not even that closely correlated to the body’s core temperature. The human body thermoregulates its core temperature using a complex biological closed-loop system. It either exerts excess heat, conserves it, or maintains equilibrium, and it does so as a survival mechanism. This regulation causes the skin temperature to vary based on environmental condition (passive heating or cooling due to exposure to the elements), physical exercise, or other biological processes.
Studies show that the inner canthus (tear duct region) represents the most accurate part of the face when it comes to optical temperature measurement (Figure 2). The inner canthus is only about 5 to 7 mm in size. Using a thermal camera, the inner canthus needs to be covered with enough pixels for an accurate measurement. The projected pixel size for the inner canthus area needs to be around 1.5 mm/pixel or better for best results.
Table 1: Common detector resolutions and the corresponding recommended image size for inspection.
Camera resolution vs. image size
Unlike typical machine vision or surveillance cameras, thermal cameras have low pixel resolutions. The most common resolution for thermal cameras is 320 x 240 or 640 x 480 pixels. Using the 1.5 mm/pixel figure from above makes it possible to calculate the field of view size of the thermographic measurement setup for measuring elevated body temperature.
For a 320 x 240-pixel detector, the horizontal field of view is therefore 320 pixels / 1.5 mm per pixel = 480 mm [18.9in.]. Other common detector resolutions and the recommended image size for inspection can be seen in Table 1.
Figure 3: An accuracy test of a thermal camera with 464 x 348-pixel resolution and 24° optics are shown here, with e= 0.98 representing camera’s emissivity setting and atmos referring to atmospheric reflection. These parameters must be set in the camera for accurate measurements, as an object absorbs, reflects, and may transmit infrared radiation.
Crowd scanning solutions
Based on the resolution criteria discussed above, crowd scanning solutions cannot produce the desired results. Artificial intelligence also does not help to bend physics and has no impact on human physiology. In addition to the pixel resolution problem, a second issue exists that impacts the accuracy of a crowd scanning camera – depth of field. In a crowd setting, individuals will be present at different distances to the camera. Not only does this change the projected pixel size, but it changes how well the pixels are in focus.
Figure 3 shows an accuracy test of a thermal camera with 464 x 348-pixel resolution with 24° optics. The test subject’s oral temperature was confirmed with a clinical grade thermometer prior to the test and determined to be 37°C [98.6°F]. Measurements were taken of both subjects starting from 0.5 m [1.64 ft] to 6 m [19.7 ft]. The maximum skin temperature (inner canthus) was recorded and graphed. This experiment shows a significant temperature drop with increase of distance. The camera used is a higher end thermal camera – the FLIR Model T540. Performing the same experiment with a lower grade and lower resolution camera will undoubtedly yield worse results.
Camera accuracy
Absolute accuracy represents an even bigger issue with these types of cameras. Such cameras are based on the same measurement principle and use a microbolometer type detector. These detectors do not capture photons, but directly measure infrared radiation. Each pixel comprises a small MEMS structure and represents a small temperature dependent resistor. The downside of these detectors is extreme temperature sensitivity. The slightest change in heat causes a bias in the measurement. The same thing happens with infrared optics made from Germanium or other exotic optics. These effects, along with noise equivalent temperature difference (NETD) create the error budget of these cameras. An achievable absolute accuracy specification is typically around +/- 2°C. Controlling the temperature drift to any tighter tolerances requires a sophisticated active heating and cooling system inside the camera, which would be cost prohibitive.
Some manufacturers claim their cameras can achieve an accuracy of +/- 0.5°C. The question people should consider is how the cameras measure accuracy. One way of achieving this would be to point the camera at a reference black body and rapidly take successive measurements before the camera drifts. Doing so would be cheating if the companies omit their method of determining accuracy, however.
Figure 4: A black body is an actively temperature-controlled device that provide a reference source for calibrating thermal cameras and other optical temperature sensors such as pyrometers.
Black body method vs. relative difference
Two legitimate methods for measuring elevated body temperatures exist. One employs a calibrated reference source (or black body, Figure 4) and the other uses a baseline population to create an average for outlier detection. Using a black body allows the camera or software to calibrate out the long-term drift and correct the absolute temperature of the measurements to better than +/- 0.5°C. For this to occur properly, the black body must be visible in the field of view of the camera at the same working distance as the subject.
The other method does not require a black body and makes use of the repeatability of the thermal camera, although combining the two methods would be ideal. In the relative difference mode, 10 known healthy individuals present to the camera or screening system. Their maximum facial temperatures are taken to build an average baseline temperature. Now all subsequent subjects are measured and compared against that baseline reference. This creates an outlier detection. The baseline needs to be updated throughout the day to compensate for environment changes like temperature swings.
What is a black body?
A black body or calibrated reference source is an actively, temperature-controlled device. Black bodies typically provide a reference source for calibrating thermal cameras and other optical temperature sensors, such as pyrometers. These devices consist of an active surface with a special high emissivity coating, an internal temperature sensor and a closed loop (PID) temperature controller. Some black bodies have an adjustable temperature controller, simpler devices have a single, fixed temperature. For special high temperature applications, there are cavity style black bodies available. The name black body comes from physics – black body radiation. The name was given because the idealized version of a black body absorbs all radiation of all wavelengths. However, some practical limitations to this exist. A perfect black body would have an emissivity value of 1. However, most good black bodies only achieve an emissivity value of 0.98 or lower.
Planck’s law describes black-body radiation. The higher the radiated energy, the shorter the wavelength. This phenomenon can be seen when heating up a piece of metal. The heat cannot be seen until it reaches a certain energy level, then the piece of metal starts to faintly glow red. As the energy further increases, red becomes orange, orange becomes bright yellow. The wavelength shifts from the infrared region into the visible region and becomes perceptible by human vision (400 nm to 700 nm).
Rules and regulations
In the US, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) deems this a medical application. As such, cameras need to have a 510k approval (bit.ly/VSD-510). Any customer or vendor using a camera without such an approval risks being subject to recalls and/or stringent corrective action measures, which is exactly what happened during the SARS outbreak. Although the FDA recently issued a non-binding and temporary guideline to ease their regulatory overview, the 510k ruling is still in place and may be enforced at any time. Besides the FDA, there is also a heightened risk of civil litigation for companies using a non-approved camera.
In conclusion, the most important questions to ask a potential supplier are:
How long has your solution/camera been on the market?
Has your solution been used successfully during the SARS outbreak?
What is the ideal distance to subject during screening?
Does your camera have a 510k approval and can you send it me?
KioTouch™, a revolutionary, touchless interface solution for self-service kiosks, is now available for download. KioTouch is KioWare Kiosk System Software’s actionable response to the COVID-19 global pandemic and will prevent the spread of potentially harmful microbes and pathogens between end-users.
Empowering Users with Touchless Control
KioTouch allows the end-user to control a self-service kiosk using their own personal mobile device. The user scans a QR code, generated on the screen of the kiosk, which then opens a trackpad-style mouse interface on their device that can be used to send commands to the kiosk. Scrolling, swiping, and clicking gestures allow the user to interact with the kiosk as they normally would, but do not require the user to physically touch it. KioTouch also allows users to input specific information into custom fields using the keyboard on their mobile device, safely and securely.
Works On Any Kiosk
KioTouch works on any kiosk and does not require KioWare to be installed to run, nor does it require the user to install any apps or software on their device. This gives you flexibility when implementing this health and safety software into your kiosk network without requiring you to complete a total overhaul of the system software you currently have installed and keeps the experience totally convenient for the user!
Upsell & Marketing Opportunities Maximized
The kiosk deployer has the ability to capture more conversions and potential customers by implementing session-end content that will be displayed on the user’s mobile device after their session is over. The deployer can load in a simple “thank you” message as well as surveys, newsletter sign-ups, coupons, app downloads, and more!
Moe’s Southwest Grill launched its first-ever kiosk-only restaurant this past weekend in Pittsburg, PA.
The kiosk-only restaurant, owned and operated by Moe’s multi-unit franchisee, Mike Geiger, seats 16 and features Moe’s new brand design. The build took approximately 10 months to complete, with the final inspection scheduled for one day after the city shut down due to COVID-19 (March 13).
This timely launch provides a more contact-less ordering option in the time of Covid-19, as well as additional sanitation efforts have been put in place in accordance with CDC guidelines. This is just the latest in a string of new product offerings and technological advancements the brand has put into place since March of this year. Other examples include:
A completely revamped app which launched earlier this month
Launch of Taco Kits for easier family-style dining at home
The announcement of Moe’s Market, where stores would sell bulk ingredients that were in low stock at local markets.
Free delivery via the Moe’s app March 16-April 17
Ramped up curbside dining
Across Moe’s more than 700 restaurants, provided thousands of meals to healthcare workers and first responders
Informational article on thermopiles and infrared sensors. Includes 2009 report on swine flu and the use of IR arrays by Craig Keefner
Table of Contents
Overview
There are several companies which are the component manufacturer of infrared thermopile sensors and infrared thermopile arrays. They simply provide the sensor component to manufacturers of devices. E.g. non-contact infrared thermometers like in-ear- and forehead thermometers (measuring from a small distance like 2-3cm) or devices for fever screening.
As the technology is basically the same (infrared thermopile), it is in generally possible to use IR array sensors for such kind of applications.
Accuracy and Reliability
The main question is about the accuracy of such systems and the reliability.
Many of the non-contact thermometer manufacturers claim to have FDA approvals for their devices and showing a “medical accuracy” of +-0.2°C. (this is true only if applied correctly).
Now with the upcoming of the new fever screening devices, that aim to measure from a greater distance, there is a need of a sensor with higher resolution, so instead of a “single pixel” like in ear and forehead thermometers, we see the smaller pixel thermopile arrays with different lenses to achieve a certain field of view that is best for their measurement setup. If you want to measure in a distance (like 50 cm), you will have to make sure that enough pixels of the array will be illuminated by the area of interest (e.g. human forehead). So the 33° FOV or 40° FOV are in general good options. (90° FOV is mostly used for person detection or hot spot detection, because it can overview a larger space. If you want to use this for forehead temperature measurements, you will have to come rather close to the sensor to illuminate enough pixels).
When selling factory calibrated thermopile array sensors to customers, several manufacturers state an accuracy of +-3°C or 3% (whichever is higher). This is due to the rather simple factory calibration and the high temperature range 0 to > 500°C the sensors can be used. Some manufacturers also offer an additional calibration for the temperature range of 30-45°C with a higher reproducibility of 0.3°C. Note here, that it is not called accuracy, but reproducibility, because manufacturers cannot guarantee absolute accuracy under any conditions. This is also why the FDA states you should control your ambient conditions.
So again, some manufacturers explicitly make the difference between absolute accuracy and reproducibility when selling sensors to customers. Manufacturers tend to give a rather big error range of +-3°C or 3%, because they will not guarantee for a better accuracy under any conditions. A higher accuracy can be achieved with additional calibration effort, in a limited temperature range and if you control your setup and environmental conditions (like also stated in the FDA guideline).
What also might be of interest for our readers is this paper about fever screening, previously published in 2009 after the swine flu epidemic. There it is shown that fever screening systems are just one tool to identify people with elevated body temperatures, but this will never be an exact measurement, so you will always have to retest with a “medical” thermometer. This paper talks also about the problem of the rate of “false positives” and “false negatives”, depending on the threshold you set on your system. E.g a low threshold will give you many “false positives” (systems judges a fever, even if they do not have one). Then you will have to re-test many people with the “medical” thermometer, but it is very unlikely that you will miss a person with a fever. If you set a higher threshold, you will increase the chance of getting “false negatives” (people with a fever will not be detected).
Thermopile Recommendation:
The KMA recommends multiple measurements and ideally independent lab testing of the specific sensors in the specific configuration, ideally with wide variety of subject including different racial profiles as many factors must be considered.
If we ask most manufacturers, they tend to say that these fever screening devices are only helpful to select people with higher temperatures and then their temperature should be taken again with a medical thermometer to verify.
The problem of claiming accuracies of devices. The attached paper might be of interest because if you measure forehead temperature, you have to understand this is not body temperature (37°C), but well below depending on ambient conditions. Most devices will display temperature around 36° or 37°C, because that is the number most people have in mind when they talk about “normal” human temperature. Most devices will just add an offset to show 37°C instead of the real 35.2°C which is the measured forehead temperature value at room temperature. Article-skin-temperature-2016
Informational Video from one of the device manufacturers:
Standards Which Are Involved
These are standards which are involved. One way to verify quality is to ask potential manufacturers which standards (IEC or ISO or ASTM) are taken into considerations.
It is not unlike asking regarding HIPAA and ADA for that matter.
IEC 80601-2-59 Ed. 2.0 b:2017
Medical electrical equipment – Part 2-59: Particular requirements for the basic safety and essential performance of screening thermographs for human febrile temperature screening
ISO/TR 13154:2017 (en)– Medical electrical equipment — Deployment, implementation and operational guidelines for identifying febrile humans using a screening thermograph
ASTM – https://www.astm.org/Standards/E1965.htm Designation: E1965 − 98 (Reapproved 2016)
Standard Specification for Infrared Thermometers for Intermittent Determination of Patient Temperature 1
Another Point of View
It’s indeed a bit of a wild west out there with all those thermal imaging fever screening solutions popping up and lack of clear standards.
Clarifying, of the many models a manufacturer may offer which are similar there is always specific models that are recommended and deemed suitable for human measurement. Most of the sensors are used in microwaves checking food temperature.
This is an excellent standard (FDA refers to the same one) clearly stating the required accuracy for a medical-approved body thermometer using a single pixel.
For an unattended kiosk the difficult part is the distance between sensor and test person. A body thermometer gun can be brought easily close to the forehead of a person (if need be a few cm), but it’s not always practical to bring the forehead of a person in a few cm range of the kiosk sensor.
The wider the field of view (FoV) of the sensor, the shorter the distance should be between forehead and sensor, so specifically for kiosk applications, the KMA recommends a narrow FOV such as 5 deg FoV which can achieve +/-0.2C in the relevant (according to ASTM) body temp range.
Manufacturers have customers claiming solutions going up to 20-25cm distance under the condition the sensor is aimed perfectly at the forehead.
The correct alignment is usually guaranteed by integrating a CMOS camera in the solution checking position of the face. Such a solution could in principle claim an FDA certificate as “medical body thermometer”, provided they run the necessary clinical tests.
The benefits of having a thermopile array instead of a single-pixel is you can in principle have a lot of such narrow FoV pixels sitting next to each other.
Today the technology is not yet good enough to achieve +/0.2C and qualify as medical body thermometer, but the question rises if that is really necessary for a kiosk fever screening system and if not, who will define what level of accuracy is necessary.
IEC 80601-2-59:2017 is well-regarded standard, but heavily tailored towards bolometer technology so it’s not really useful from a thermopile point of view. (as mentioned before thermopile technology doesn’t drift heavily like bolometers do, so having that reference black body within the thermal image makes little sense)
A lot of work in progress for device makers and regulatory bodies. Interesting times to say the least.
Request More Information
You can request more information and the also any of the standards mentioned here by contacting us.
As a service to the community here is paper from Journal of Hospital Infection listing their results on Persistence of coronavirus on inanimate surfaces and their inactivation with biocidal agents. Thanks to Vispero for forwarding the information onto us. We are also hoping to receive some additional information on powder coat (polymer and paint).
Summary
Currently, the emergence of a novel human coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, has become a global health concern causing severe respiratory tract infections in humans. Human-to-human transmissions have been described with incubation times between 2-10 days, facilitating its spread via droplets, contaminated hands or surfaces. We therefore reviewed the literature on all available information about the persistence of human and veterinary coronaviruses on inanimate surfaces as well as inactivation strategies with biocidal agents used for chemical disinfection, e.g. in healthcare facilities. The analysis of 22 studies reveals that human coronaviruses such as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) coronavirus, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus or endemic human
coronaviruses (HCoV) can persist on inanimate surfaces like metal, glass or plastic for up to 9 days, but can be efficiently inactivated by surface disinfection procedures with 62e71% ethanol, 0.5% hydrogen peroxide or 0.1% sodium hypochlorite within 1 minute. Other biocidal agents such as 0.05e0.2% benzalkonium chloride or 0.02% chlorhexidine digluconate are less effective. As no specific therapies are available for SARS-CoV-2, early containment and prevention of further spread will be crucial to stop the ongoing outbreak and to control this novel infectious thread.
With the pandemic and trade shows basically reduced to virtual tradeshows, webinars are one of the ways that companies continue to communicate.
Virtual showrooms, live, are another mechanism being used by companies.
Upcoming Webinars
[Zebra] Webinar: Innovating with RFID in a Time of Change
Thursday, July 30, 1:00PM EST Learn how RFID can fuel business transformation and help reveal opportunities hidden in plain sight. Hear from Zebra’s industry experts on the ROI and impact of RFID on your business
[22Miles] Webinar – Join 22Miles & AOPEN – Thermal Imaging Kiosk Solutions for Enterprise and Education
The health and safety of students, employees, and visitors in our new normal has never been a more critical priority. Temperature screenings are a common safety measure, and thermal imaging technology is the most efficient way to detect elevated body temperature. During this 45-minute webinar, you will learn about the latest thermal imaging kiosk solutions from AOPEN and its valued partner, 22Miles.
[Zebra] Webinar: Innovating the Warehouse in a Time of Change
Thursday, Aug 13, 1:00PM EST Explore how you can leverage new technology to help your operation gain greater levels of visibility through mobile technology, integrated with flexible robotic solutions, all while keeping workers safe.
Past Webinars
[Zebra] Webinar – Innovating with Zebra in a Time of Change
Thursday, July 23, 1:00PM EST Employee safety is top of mind today. Learn how Zebra proximity sensing solutions empower employees to proactively maintain social distance, while creating a record of proximity events for reporting purposes.
Self-service kiosk technology has been on the rise for years, across fast food restaurants, in cinemas and entertainment venues, in banks and across retail stores. A MarketsandMarkets report claims that the global interactive kiosk market could be worth $30.53 billion by 2023, up from $20.37 billion in 2016. It’s a huge growth opportunity for OEMs in the coming years—even more so in times like these when faced with a global pandemic; face-to-face transactions are far less popular, and the way we all make purchases is likely to have changed, forever.
Listen to Zebra Technologies’ Jelle Baudouin, Director of OEM, EMEA, as he expands upon these trends and explains how OEMs must seize the opportunities presented and meet this new heightened demand for kiosks.
Also joining is Mark Thomson, Zebra’s Director of Retail and Hospitality Solutions, EMEA. Mark works closely with retailers and hospitality businesses to provide input on how to face the challenge of a new digital retail landscape. Link to On Demand
No frills. No fuss. Here’s a quick demonstration of KioTouch™!
If you are interested in how KioTouch can help your company or organization achieve a new level of safety and sanitation, please feel free to reach out to us at [email protected].
KioTouch: Revolutionizing Self-Service – KioWare
KioTouch allows the end-user to control a self-service kiosk using their own personal mobile device. The user scans a QR code, generated on the screen of the …
Seattle’s iconic Space Needle has invested $1 million in state-of-the-art technologies and safety measures that officials say will allow visitors to soon return to the structure, which has been closed since March 13 because of the health crisis. The initiative, called “Elevating Clean,” viewed first-hand by GeekWire this week, goes far beyond ordinary face masks and hand sanitizer.
The Space Needle has added an array of ultraviolet light technology intended to rid the air and surfaces of harmful viruses. Guests will pass through Far-UV-C “sanitizing” body scanners at the front gates that look like airport metal detectors. Inside, they’ll breathe air that’s been zapped by even stronger UV-C light inside the building’s mechanical systems.
Another entry for the kiosk history file as longtime touchscreen manufacturer 3M is exiting the business.
We read about it first on Sixteen:Nine who heard it from one of the manufacturers. We confirmed with longtime contacts at 3M since then. We are sure the other self-service technology division are unaffected and that includes ID card readers as well as passport readers for example. We updated the kiosk history file.
About 3M Touch
3M Touch Systems was created in 2001 though the acquisitions of MicroTouch Systems (Massachusetts) and Dynapro Thin Films (Milwaukee and Vancouver, Canada). MicroTouch Systems was founded in the early-1980s and was the company that patented and commercialized surface capacitive technology, which became and continues to be the preferred touch technology for many heavy-use, public access applications, especially for video slot and card games. Dynapro was a leading supplier of 4- and 8-wire resistive and developed projected capacitive touch solutions for industrial applications. 3M Touch Systems is headquartered in Methuen, Massachusetts, with dedicated technical and sales teams in North America, Europe, Australia and throughout Asia. Within the 3M Company structure, 3M Touch Systems reports to the 3M Electro Communications Business (Austin, Texas), which is one of the five 3M business units. Link
Effective kiosk design comes over years of experience and here is a short video on one of the more common designs: integrating a common desktop POS printer like the Epson T88 into a kiosk. Providing the design tip is Frank Olea, CEO of Olea Kiosks, Inc. one of the largest, if not largest privately owned American kiosk companies.
The Epson is an extremely popular printer for Point-Of-Sale as it is very reliable, small and fits easily on a desktop. Normally in a kiosk a printer designed for kiosks is used typically known as an open-frame.
Here the equation is reversed.
Designing a POS printer into a kiosk can be tricky. They weren’t designed to be stuffed into a box. A little extra effort has to be made to make paper changes easy and for the paper to actually come out of the kiosk. If you must use a desktop product make sure you do it right.
MILPITAS, CA—While travelers have started to frequent hotels again, it will likely be a while before any sense of normalcy returns. To help hotels deliver a sense of safety to hotel employees and guests, 22Miles, which offers 3D wayfinding and digital signage technology, has launched a Protection-as-a-Service (PaaS) solution.
“It is likely that we will see an impact on travel at least through 2020, if not longer, with hopes that in 2021 we will start to see normalcy again,” said Tomer Mann, EVP, 22Miles. “The hospitality industry, like many others, took a big hit when the pandemic struck, but along with these challenges also comes new opportunities for hospitality management and executive leadership to adapt and still provide safe and memorable guest experiences.
“To continue to see growth in the travel and hospitality industry, there is a need to support public confidence by taking important operational measures to ensure safety and security,” he added. “One such way to do this is through the implementation of flexible digital signage and wayfinding technology designed specifically to tackle these new COVID-related challenges.”
Enter TempDefend, a protective digital signage communication and direction tool that uses 22Miles’ thermo-sensing technology, advanced camera hardware, facial and body temperature detection software, integrated sensors and dynamic machine learning algorithms for existing or new digital signage displays.
“TempDefend can be positioned at a building’s entrance or at interior building checkpoints, providing protection for hotel properties, to equip them with the ability to confidently open to employees and customers,” Mann said.
The plug-and-play solution is also touch-free: TempDefend delivers instruction via voice command to direct individuals into a camera frame. The thermal sensor technology can scan temperature from up to four feet away.
