Chair alarm for patient fall prevention based on gesture recognition and interactivity

The Gesture Recognition Interactive Technology (GRiT) Chair Alarm aims to prevent patient falls from chairs and wheelchairs by recognizing the gesture of a patient attempting to stand. Patient falls are one of the greatest causes of injury in hospitals. Current chair and bed exit alarm systems are inadequate because of insufficient notification, high false-alarm rate, and long trigger delays. The GRiT chair alarm uses an array of capacitive proximity sensors and pressure sensors to create a map of the patient's sitting position, which is then processed using gesture recognition algorithms to determine when a patient is attempting to stand and to alarm the care providers. This system also uses a range of voice and light feedback to encourage the patient to remain seated and/or to make use of the system's integrated nurse-call function. This system can be seamlessly integrated into existing hospital WiFi networks to send notifications and approximate patient location through existing nurse call systems.