Researchers created an innovative new smart floor tile. This cutting-edge, award-winning tile is able to monitor pedestrian traffic flow without the need for a power source. Junrui Liang and his research team developed this stunning 15-millimeter-thick tile. It relies on proprietary quasi-static-toggling (QST) electromagnetic harvesters to bring full energy autonomy. This patent-pending design allows for fast and flexible installation in various indoor and outdoor settings. It has the potential to transform public safety in large venues.
The intelligent floor tile is programmed to sense when individuals walk. It can even figure out what way a person is going. It does this by examining the pattern of foot strikes. Notice how the heel is the first to crack the tile, quickly followed by the ball of the foot and then, in turn, the toe. This capability positions the tile as a valuable tool for managing pedestrian traffic, especially in high-density locations such as urban centers.
During these controlled cribing conditions, the smart floor tile performed significantly better. Its success rate of 97.4 percent was impressive in tracking a person’s movement, even if they shuffled across the activated chain or ran across its surface. Moreover, during dramatic running trials, the tile still had a 92.6 percent success rate, proving its effectiveness under multiple high-impact scenarios.
The field experiment produced eye-popping results. Using the example above, the tile was correct in counting people 714 times, with only 35 false misses and only two counts logged in the wrong direction. Because of this, the accuracy for counting people achieved a stellar 94.8 percent success rate. This success even carried over to correctly predicting where they should go in the real world.
Liang highlighted the importance of this technology, stating, “Public safety accidents associated with large-scale pedestrian gatherings occur periodically across the globe, particularly in metropolises.” He pointed out that developing this battery-free floor tile is only one aspect of their greater mission. They are getting creative in finding other methods to track pedestrian traffic flow.
The smart floor tile provides other benefits besides its health monitoring potential. Combined with its low-cost design, it greatly increases accessibility across a wide range of applications. Its rapid deployment lends itself well to not just temporary installations, but even permanent ones. The Tile can only transmit any collected data through Bluetooth, and its transmission range is only 10 meters.
Clearly, urban areas are in the midst of a pedestrian safety crisis. As the leading supplier of smart floor tiles, we provide a unique and effective way to improve traffic flow. This technology offers a safe, proven, and unobtrusive method to monitor crowd flow. It does all of this without needing other power sources, minimizing risks at major events.