Sparrow: A Smart Device for Fall Prevention

An interdisciplinary, inter-institutional team of engineers, professors and physicians have demonstrated Sparrow, a simple to use tool to provide nurses the information they need to lower the fall rate among the elderly. Sparrow fuses multiple sensors, a microprocessor, and internet technologies into a wheel chair accessory that communicates with any Android mobile device that has downloaded the Sparrow mobile App. The mobile Android device carried by a caregiver is sent continuous information about a wheelchair occupant's position, movement and posture. This information, combined with the experiences and observations of the caregiver, provide medical professionals or family members the opportunity to prevent a fall by returning in a timely manner to help the patient or loved one, who may soon attempt an unobserved and unattended egress from the chair.