2002

Evaluation and testing of an alarm system using GSM technology.

Evaluation and testing of an alarm system using GSM technology

Martin A. Jenssen, Specialist consultant, Norwegian Centre for Telemedicine Trond Are Bjørnvold, Daglig leder, Care Communications

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usability and functionality of a new alarm system utilising cell phones and GSM technology. The main features of the system are two different types of alarms, one acute alarm utilising GSM positioning technology to locate the user and one "reversed alarm" were the user gets the opportunity to leave a voice message prior to entering the house of a potential threatening client. Five users working in the home care service and child care service in a small municipality in the North of Norway tested the system for 14 days. The results indicated that the informants are positive towards the system even though the GSM positioning technology utilised in the test phase does not have sufficient accuracy yet to be utilised for this purpose. According to the informants, a voice message, which will be transferred to an alarm central in case of emergency, is necessary for sufficient accuracy in positioning. A thorough presentation of ! the system will be offered as well as a presentation of the results from the test phase. Future directions and potential future uses of the system will be discussed.

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