Social distancing is here to stay and it will change our way of life in some ways forever. Keeping that in mind, Architecture Discipline is working on a choker-cum-social distancing neck brace. “We wanted to create an icon which is in keeping with the times. The need was to make something that is easily available, upholds privacy, and allows people to be socially normal and not distant,” says Akshat Bhatt, Principal Architect, Architecture Discipline.
sChoker is inspired by the choker fashion accessory, and designed by Bhatt along with team members, Amit Gupta and Pankaj Kumar. This neck brace allows proximity monitoring and sends alerts to wearer when they are at a social gathering or in a public space.
“The first prototype is made from carbon fibre, and uses 3D printing technology or CNC moulding. Latter versions could integrate velvet, plastic, beads, latex, leather, or metal such as silver, gold or platinum, and can be adorned with sequins, studs, or a pendant.”
sChoker uses PIR/PID sensor (passive infrared sensor/ passive infrared detector) to detect the infrared radiations emanating from the body temperature of humans and animals in its field of view. The proximity is monitored in three steps — Sense, Map and Evaluate, and Indicate.
“As someone moves in the range of the choker, microprocessor chip in it receives the infrared radiation, records its wavelength, and sends a signal — visual (LED indication) or audio — to the person wearing it,” he adds.
Red Zone with proximity value 0 stands for no tolerance zone; Yellow Zone with proximity value 1 means guarded tolerance zone, and Green Zone with proximity value 2 is for comfortable tolerance zone.
This device can primarily be helpful for the visually or hearing-impaired.
“Once manufactured, we will reach out to government bodies to further our initiative in dealing with COVID-19,” he adds.