Falls account for around 80% of all injuries in people aged 65 years and over, and a fifth of all deaths in this age group. Falls not only cause physical injury but leave psychological trauma, resulting in an increased sense of vulnerability and insecurity in one’s own home. The personal fall alarm allows people with health risks the freedom to live independently at home. As opposed to current personal alarms on the market which are user activated, the personal fall alarm self activates when it detects the motion of a fall. It also incorporates the standard activation/deactivation push button for cases where a fall has not incurred injury, or where a fall has not occurred but assistance is still required.

The fall alarm consists of two units. A fall sensor is worn on the body and transmits to a console which is attached to the home telephone line. The fall sensor unit is made up of a dual-axis accelerometer, a microprocessor, a buzzer and a transmitter. When rapid acceleration is detected followed by a substantial period of rest, a potential fall is noted. The buzzer sounds and there is a 30sec delay during which the user may deactivate the device. Otherwise, the fall sensor unit transmits an activation signal to the console. When activated the console takes control of the phone line and calls an emergency unit.

Olivia Laskowski, Professor Iven Mareels, Sapna Shah, Emmanuel Koumoundouros, Yan Liu