Smart body-close technology improves safety and health for ABBs operators

Today, a PiiA application was sent to Vinnova. The application concerns a project together with ABB Power Grid in Ludvika and the University of Skövde.

The project’s idea is to explore the possibility of using smart, close-to-the-body technology to improve safety and health for ABB’s operators. The project focuses on state-of-the-art technologies in smart textiles, wearables (smart wearable technology) and artificial intelligence. Through its innovative approach, the project has great potential to significantly improve the working environment, safety and health in the process industry. ABB always prioritizes health and safety and works to reduce the number of employees on sick leave, decrease work-related injuries and lower the amount of incident tickets raised. In the project we at WAVR are the technology supplier, ABB represents the process industry and the University of Skövde leads the research.

ABB has identified an opportunity to significantly improve the working environment for its employees by implementing, for its field, new knowledge and new technologies in a new way. A first market analysis of large industries in Sweden, technology suppliers and research actors shows that the overall solutions that the project focuses on do not yet exist.

In the process industry there are dangerous tasks such as working in confined spaces, working at heights, working alone with chemical products, working in spaces with harmful gases, working with and inside dangerous machinery as well as heavy lifting. For these reasons, the project’s idea is to explore the possibility of using smart, close-to-body technology to increase safety and improve health aspects for employees in the process industry.

When it comes to WAVR’s wearable products, built-in and connected sensors provide important real-time information about the operator’s health and safety situation. Examples include body positioning (where lying positions are critical to detect), posture (to detect overload and ergonomic positions), stress level (high stress increases risk of making errors and prolonged stress is unhealthy), unnatural acceleration (e.g. detecting falls) and spatial position (to detect entry into dangerous zones). By applying AI-based analysis to the data we collect from the sensors, both immediate and long-term risks in terms of safety and health can be detected and prevented. 

We at WAVR are pleased to collaborate with ABB to jointly improve the safety and health of their employees in a project that is fully in line with our vision “A world with less wear and tear on humans”.