In Korea, more than 100,000 people are injured every year due to industrial accidents. As of 2020, there were 882 deaths. The death rate per 100,000 people is the highest among OECD countries. To overcome this situation, the government has been enacting the Serious Disaster Punishment Act from this year, but there is some debate about its effectiveness. The Ministry of Employment and Labor analyzed the causes of industrial accidents that occur constantly and carefully screened 2,011 of the industrial accidents that occurred over the three years from 2018 to 2020. As a result, it was found that non-installation of safety facilities accounted for the most cause, followed by non-compliance with work methods, non-establishment of work procedures, and non-wearing of protective equipment such as hard hats. As there are so many causes of industrial accidents, it is very difficult to eliminate all causes at the source in the current system. In the end, it can be seen that a solution from a different perspective is needed. At the same time, both managers and workers must have a safety management system to improve the awareness of industrial accidents. Good news, however, is that domestic small and medium-sized enterprises are attracting attention by introducing solutions that can remove risk factors, preventing safety accidents, and establishing a health management system for employees. <PowerKorea> met Kiram Tech / CEO Kim Hyun-soo.

In order to prevent industrial accidents, the mental health and fatigue of workers should be managed first

Occupational accidents are not simply caused by the absence or negligence of a safety management system. Even if the current safety rules are strictly observed, industrial accidents can occur. One of the main causes of industrial accidents that people are not aware of is the health of workers. When you have health problems, your physical vitality and fatigue increases. Concentration also decreases, which leads to mistakes, and ultimately to safety accidents. The biggest factor that harms health and increases fatigue is stress. Stress is such a big social problem that there is a survey that the foreign word that Koreans use the most is stress. From an industrial point of view, stress is close to a psychological industrial accident for office workers. Excessive stress can cause you to lose concentration. In the case of construction sites where industrial accidents occur most frequently, more than half are in their 50s and 60s, where even small mental factors can greatly affect concentration and physical performance. In order to prevent human errors due to health problems of workers, a system that can periodically check the mental and physical health of workers is essential.

 

‘Smart Health and Safety Management System,’ a new paradigm for health/safety solutions in the field with GPS signal device technology

Kiram Tech developed ‘Smart Health and Safety Management System (A-EHS),’ a new paradigm for health/safety solutions in the field with GPS signal device technology. CEO Kim Hyun-soo said “When the Severe Disaster Act came into effect, I thought that it was necessary to realize various measures such as mandatory on-site safety management systems.” 

‘Smart Health and Safety Management System (A-EHS)’ is loaded with biosignal access management function, location control and safety control, and intelligent CCTV fire detection. It is also driven by various functions such as heavy equipment access, HEPI, and positioning. Since it is a container type, it can be installed anywhere.  This multifunctional system controls on-site situations in the integrated control room located in the 3x6 container. 

‘HEPI(Human Error Prevention Index)’, Mental/Physical Health Care Solutions for Workers

Excellent effect can be expected in the health management of workers and prevention of safety accidents

The core of this solution is ‘HEPI (Human Error Prevention Index)’ and ‘Location Control and Safety Control’ functions. HEPI is a solution responsible for the health and safety management of workers. There are already many safety management systems on the market for construction sites. However, there has been no solution that takes responsibility for health. Kim said “Drinking, hangover, physical vitality, and reduced concentration were the first factors to be managed in the smart safety and health management system. HEPI is the first example of extending the concept of safety management equipment to human/health. It is operated as a data server built for on-site big data solutions in preparation for the Serious Accident Punishment Act.” 

HEPI measures the physical and mental health of workers using sensors that detect brain waves and pulse waves from blood vessels. In the EEG, you can check the brain health score, concentration, brain activity, brain stress, left and right brain imbalance, and through pulse wave measurement, you can check stress, heart health, cumulative fatigue, physical vitality, and health. The equipment used here is equipped with a two-channel EEG sensor and a PPG sensor, so it is the first in the world to measure brain waves and pulse waves simultaneously. 

 

Providing customized training content with algorithm-measured data and personal healing application

The measured data is analyzed in an algorithm, and the measurement result is derived within 3 minutes. The inspection equipment is a medical device certified by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and the US FDA, and the reliability of the measurement data is quite high. Measurement results are stored on the server through the network, and as a web-based program for administrators, measurement information, measurement history, and comparison before and after measurement are possible. When measuring biosignals, those who have a risk result can be automatically classified and managed separately. Reports are also automatically generated and can be easily checked by workers and managers and can be actively used in on-site safety accident prevention systems. In addition, you can receive care by providing customized training contents with a personal healing application to manage stress. The device has a kiosk type and a mobile type, so you can use what you want depending on the user and the situation at the site. 

 

Real-time monitoring of worker and safety status section by section

Building a system that can respond immediately without blind spots in the event of an accident such as a fall or fire

It is important to prevent occupational accidents from occurring, but it is also important to identify the situation as soon as possible and provide rescue and first aid. In some cases, an accident actually occurred but the manager or co-worker did not detect it in time, and an injury accident could turn into fatal. Depending on the work area or work content, there are cases where work is done alone, and in particular, in various industrial sites, there are many times when it is difficult to hear a sound coming from a close distance due to noises.

Kiram Tech applied intelligent CCTV and risk management solution with GPS-based location control technology to the Smart Health and Safety Management System to prevent such a tragic event from occurring. The system consists of biometric access management, worker location control, intelligent CCTV, heavy equipment access detection, health management, and integrated control. And it starts with registering worker information at the safety training center. The registered information is utilized by the safety gate, and a non-contact complex biometric authentication reader is attached to the gate. It is a high-speed authentication method that authenticates various kinds of bio-information at high speed and it is intuitively convenient as it recognizes on passing without stopping. The registered information can be accessed remotely by the management authority from the integrated control server to check all the workers regardless company and section. Since this terminal checks the condition of the worker in real time, it is possible to immediately check whether the worker is wearing a hard hat and whether there is an accident. The biggest feature is that it can control all sections without blind spots. A GNSS-based indoor positioning system is applied here. ‘GNSS Simulator’ technology, which reverses the existing GNSS technology, enables real-time pointing of accurate GPS coordinates even in indoor areas with a roof.

 

Real-time monitoring of fire detection and abnormal situations with artificial intelligence CCTV

In addition, three intelligent CCTVs are operated for each level for fire detection. CCTV equipped with artificial intelligence technology detects flames and smoke through real-time video, displays it on the screen when an abnormality is detected, shares the incident with the integrated control room, and sends a warning message to nearby managers. For more precise detection, powerful foreground area detection technology is applied to environmental noise such as lighting changes, interference, and moving backgrounds, and a robust algorithm through color and pattern analysis and image learning-based deep learning technology are combined. The heavy equipment approach detection system is a device that is installed in heavy equipment and detects the tag holder’s approach based on Bluetooth. It receives the location information of the work vehicle and transmits it to the server. Worker health information management is carried out in the same format as Omnifit, and the manager can easily check all situations and monitor the outside of the field through the integrated control system. 

▲ Kiram Tech / CEO Kim Hyun-soo

Mobility-based GNSS service development, Complete management of GPS shaded areas

Can be used in subways and railroads

Kiram Tech is putting a great effort into advancing the new DRGG mobility technology based on GPS technology. It is difficult to check the location in real time because the GPS does not catch the underground space. Therefore, it is difficult to respond quickly in the event of a disaster. Kiram Tech’s ‘Our BMW’ service is a solution that can check all subway-related underground spaces by eliminating the GPS shadow area. Existing technology uses a method of generating signals in fixed coordinates. However, the technology used in Our BMW generates a signal according to the movement coordinates through the DRGG technology. That is, the signal mounted on the train, not the station, is transmitted. Based on this, the outdoor GNSS and indoor GNSS will converge to determine the location, and this will be built as an existing map application or an independent application. In addition, the company plan to build a 3D database through the server to provide an underground-based app service. When this service is launched, passengers can accurately identify their moving location while boarding the train, and can quickly escape from danger in case of fire or disaster. While it has been possible to receive the same level of location-based map and movement service as on the ground instead of a rather inconvenient map or app, this solution enables railway managers to also check information service on GNSS-based real-time movement. Kiram Tech also plans to enter the high-speed railway market through this.

신태섭 기자  tss79@naver.com