Covid-19: social distancing wearable for returning workers

Equivital, a company that develops professional wearable technology, announces the launch of eqWave, a wearable social distancing device which enables workers to return to work with confidence.

Developed with staff safety in mind, the compact eqWave device works out-of-the-box, alerting personnel if they are within two metres of each other.  

The alerting distance is configurable and can be changed in line with current government guidelines. 

eqWave can be worn anywhere, even with PPE, and uses highly accurate Ultra Wide Band (UWB) radio and Bluetooth technology to detect other devices and measure the distance between them.

The device offers 360-degree coverage and if there is an infringement it will alert the wearer via a bright LED and haptic vibration that someone else is within two metres. 

In these unprecedented times, eqWave offers employers the ability to provide a safer working environment for staff so that they can confidently adhere to social distancing guidelines while at work.

“We wanted to support employers to be able to bring their teams back to work safely,” said Anmol Sood, CEO Equivital. “An organisation has a duty of care for its workforce. eqWave is an added measure in ensuring their safety and well-being. Our team identified a way in which we could support the fight against Covid-19 and have then developed and deployed the eqWave device within record time to support staff returning to work.”

The accompanying eqWave partner app will offer ‘over the air’ firmware updates and access to new features such as contact tracing. 

In addition, organisations can build the eqWave into their existing systems, thanks to the API being made available for 3rd party integration.

Features of the eqWave include:

• High accuracy
• No additional infrastructure requirement
• Simple user interface with two modes of alerting
• Small form factor & lightweight (50g)
• Configurable – if the social distancing guidelines are reviewed
• Cost-effective to deploy and scale across an organisation.