How Qualcomm Technologies and OneScreen Are Helping Businesses Navigate the New Normal [Video]

As cities and entire countries cautiously ease out of the COVID-19 lockdown and into recovery, they face the task of reducing risk in the workplace and public spaces. Our collaboration with OneScreen, a member of our Qualcomm Smart Cities Accelerator Program, is delivering technology that both private and public sectors can use to help reopen safely.

Public health guidance for the new normal

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued guidance on several topics of workplace safety including the wearing of cloth face coverings (masks) in public settings. Particularly in areas of significant community transmission, “cloth face coverings may prevent people who don’t know they have the virus from transmitting it to others.”

The CDC also offers guidance on screening employees for symptoms with techniques such as temperature checks. Airlines have taken the lead in considering biometric temperature scanners to clear passengers for travel. It’s a natural addition to the security checks that are already in place.

Monitoring at points of entry

Now that businesses, schools, industrial plants, and potentially all private and public spaces are gradually reopening, the need to follow public health guidance has become more acute.

OneScreen GoSafe is designed to detect masks and elevated temperatures as people enter offices, schools, buildings, hospitals, and public spaces. It securely scans for temperature, masks, ID cards and other factors using on-device artificial intelligence and real-time assistance over video. GoSafe is powered by the Qualcomm MSM8953 system-on-chip (SoC), built on our octa-core processor with the Qualcomm AI Engine for high-performance edge computing, AI/machine learning, connectivity and security.

See the OneScreen GoSafe video demo here

GoSafe is a timely application of technology that can prevent people from entering a building if they have an elevated temperature or if they’re not wearing a mask. In less than a second, it can measure temperature, perform facial recognition, and read an ID card. Then, based on the results of the scan, the device can notify a human monitor or automatically grant/deny access when connected to a building security system.

Here's what system integrator Fluid Sound had to say about OneScreen:

Public health in smart cities

OneScreen is a member of the Qualcomm Smart Cities Accelerator program, which is designed to connect cities, municipalities, government agencies, and enterprises with an ecosystem of providers. The work of member companies like OneScreen supports Qualcomm Technologies’ goal of helping to overcome the coronavirus pandemic while protecting the safety of employees and maintaining business continuity.

Collaboration with our program members is one way we’re bringing technologies for the smart city and smart connected spaces to commercial, industrial, and municipal sectors. In fact, Qualcomm Technologies has deployed GoSafe in a pilot program at one of its buildings on its main campus in San Diego, California. As a part of the Qualcomm Smart Cities Accelerator program, various colleges, airports, and other commercial and municipal venues are evaluating GoSafe and similar Internet of Things (IoT) devices.

Of course, no single organization can eradicate COVID-19 or repair all the damage it has caused. But through the efforts of OneScreen and other program members, we can provide businesses and schools, large and small, with the tools they need to begin recovery. With foresight and technology working in unison, we can all help minimize the risks and promote public safety as we move toward the new normal.

Learn more about our Smart Cities Accelerator program