We have developed our own, affordable solution for automated human temperature measurement. Thanks to special sensors and an advanced measurement algorithm, which takes into account the distance of a person and the temperature in the room, it is possible to reconstruct the obtained data into the so-called heatmap and create an image well known from "thermal cameras".

The big advantage is that the device does not use a real camera that would capture the face. Thanks to that, it is secured personal data protection at high level. You will find this device at the entrance to the Fpt Slovakia building. The IoT solution was developed within two weeks by one of our colleagues, an IoT specialist – Tomáš Lörinc.

Tomáš had the idea to create an automated temperature measuring device in his head right at the beginning of the pandemic. However, he decided to implement it only after the April company meeting, at the initiative of colleagues. This is not Tomáš's first IoT project, he has been working in this area for a long time. He worked on this particular one for about 2 weeks. A second prototype is currently being deployed, which was the logical outcome of the internal PoC project.

"Since my area of interest is mainly IoT, connectivity and HW, I would welcome advice from colleagues who are experts in another field. Rado Bálint helped me choose a suitable solution for data visualization."

Of course, there are also ready-made solutions in the form of thermal cameras. However, these are very expensive and their primary purpose is not to measure a person's temperature at the reception. Our solution is more than 10 times cheaper and at the same time tailor-made directly for our needs. The device is connected to the Internet and is able to communicate using the MQTT (SSL) protocol, making it one of the most versatile devices for automated temperature measurement. Last but not least, we care about the protection of personal data, which we thus control „Of course, our device can be expanded at the customer's request with a camera with high resolution and face recognition, or a card reader and thus ensure that the temperature is assigned to a specific person,“ Tomáš adds.

We are constantly working to improve the device as well as its detection algorithm. Thanks to OTA updates, we are able to update FW devices even remotely. Tomáš sees other possibilities of use in the area of monitoring desk occupancy, which is currently a very popular segment. Thanks to a sufficient viewing angle, one sensor would be able to replace several motion sensors currently used for this purpose. Another possible area of use is the monitoring of premises with the remaining demand for personal data protection. For example, some airlines have a problem with the on-board toilet being used by more than one person at a time, the so-called Mile High Club. Such a sensor can unambiguously determine the number of people without invading privacy and notify on-board personnel.

„Our company has been working on innovative projects for a long time and supports creative people,“ said Mr. Jozef Vojtko, Vice Director of Fpt Slovakia. And stated further that the crisis gave way to new technologies, innovative ideas, and at the same time accelerated their implementation in practice.

„It doesn't always have to be big international things. Our colleagues proved it on several examples, either by automating internal processes or by automated temperature measurement. Tomas is an excellent example of this.“