By Sam Weitzman, CEO and Founder of Deep Innovations
Anyone with a pool on their property knows that, as enjoyable as they may be, they can also be dangerous. Every year, there are 390 fatal pool drownings in the US alone. From 2015-2017, 73 percent of nonfatal swimming pool injuries involved children younger than five. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, drowning is the leading cause of injury-related death for children ages 1 to 4. The statistics are frightening, and the stark reality has spurred many to seek answers to the problems associated with pool safety.
As a father, this issue is one that hits close to home. My eldest son almost became a statistic when he was nearly in a terrible swimming accident. Although I will remain forever grateful for his near-miss, it prompted me to research how I could use my knowledge of technology to make swimming safer, and response times faster.
Securing Your Pool
When one decides to purchase a home with a pool or install a pool in their backyard, safety and security need to be top of mind. Property owners not only need to be cognizant of their own family members’ safety, but aware that they could be held liable for any injuries to others that occur in their pool.
In many regions, swimming pools are regulated at the state or local level, and some statutes require pools to have a fence built or places around them. Other pool safety measures often include improved lighting, gate sensors, outdoor video surveillance, and a sturdy pool cover. More recently, advancements in technology — such as artificial intelligence, or AI — have allowed pool owners additional ways to consistently monitor their pool’s area for potential safety issues.
AI-Driven Pool Safety
While not intended to replace the best security for pools — adult supervision — pool security systems that use AI in a much smarter way, can monitor your pool 24/7 and allow you to respond to security concerns in real-time, whether you are at home or away. The apps and platforms contain technology that can scan the pool area, livestream a feed to your phone, as well as identify and distinguish between young children, adults and even pets that may enter the pool area. The system can determine whether a toddler or pet is unattended and send an alert to your phone in real-time, maximizing your response time.
The consistent monitoring and identification capabilities of this AI technology gives people more time to respond in situations where every second counts. The alarms from the app and alarm unit will sound until they are addressed and offer the ability to contact emergency services through the app.
AI for Home Security
Home security is a $47 billion dollar business and is projected to reach $84.4 billion by 2027. Technology is only making home security easier and more intuitive. Together with cloud technology, advanced video capabilities, and smart-home technology, AI is set to revolutionize how we make our homes safer and more secure.
AI technology has become more prominently used in security systems in recent years, elevating the capabilities of people to protect themselves, their loved ones, and their possessions. The ability for monitoring to stretch beyond the four walls of one’s home and enter a cloud-based space has offered a whole new level of protection.
Recent studies conducted by Facebook show that home security technology only stands to expand. The study brought to light several innovations in home security technology which sound like something pulled right out of “The Jetsons.” Big revelations involving robotics technology, environment mapping, and microphone array technology stand to truly change the security industry. Moreover, Facebook’s studies predicted a not-so-distant future where AI-driven personal assistants will be able to cover the security needs of an entire home, including locking doors, answering cell phone calls coming from other rooms, and monitoring the entire home — inside and out — for possible security threats.
Innovations such as AI-driven pool security are part of the new world of home ownership, where safety and security are significantly upgraded, providing ‘round the clock smart insights and capabilities. Advanced pool monitoring with such AI is a significant step to address real life-threatening situations, which ultimately can help us lower the scary statistics around pool-related injuries.
Sam Weitzman is the CEO and Founder of Deep Innovations and the creator of PoolScout. They are focused on enabling the future of pool enjoyment with cutting-edge artificial intelligence and advanced video analytics to create a safer world around pools. The creation of PoolScout was inspired by an event where Weitzman’s eldest son was nearly in a terrible swimming accident. Weitzman noticed the small margin of error in this space, and he decided to bring his expertise in deep learning technologies and cloud computing together to help give parents peace of mind.
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