Israeli start-up to combat spread of coronavirus using touchless tech
Israeli start-up Sonarax has developed an ultrasonic sound technology which allows different devices to communicate using ultrasonic waves, eliminating the need for physical touch.
By TAMAR URIEL-BEERISonarax technology allows users to perform everyday work tasks without having to come into contact with the objects, therein slowing the spread of the coronavirus(photo credit: SONARAX)Sonarax, a Haifa-based start-up which specializes in ultrasonic communication technology, announced this week that it will be offering its touchless technology to help with in-office physical distancing in light of the novel COVID-19.The company's technology allows for different mobile devices to communicate with one another on ultrasonic sound waves, which are imperceivable to the human ear. Today, when people must be careful in the public realm so as not to catch and spread the virus, the ultrasonic technology may come in handy to create a working platform for touchless work spaces."We developed a very specific algorithm that allows the transfer of data over ultrasonic waves," said Nimrod May, CCO for Sonarax, to The Jerusalem Post. "The way that this is being done is by implementing a very simple, fast software development kit (SDK) ... Instead of us putting our hands on a fingerprint module or swiping a card or punching something in, we basically implement our SDK on the employee's mobile application, and this SDK communicates [with] the secretary's simple desktop computer."The technology would, May claims, allow for a safer workzone without the need to touch the tools surrounding the employee.This machine-to-machine connectivity "creates the 'identifier handshake' between the employees and the employer time attendance system," May explained.This would work very well for monitoring quarantine, for example. The same technology was implemented in an undisclosed European university which has implemented the Sonarax solution into their student attendance system."They implemented our SDK into their university mobile app," he said. "In each class, the teachers use their touch pads, which have our SDK implemented on the university application, and that's it. We define the parameters on what is 'student in' and what is 'student out.'"May explained to the Post, "There's so many normal behaviors that were common prior to the pandemic which are going to be changed due to the fact that people are going to be more concerned about interacting on different interfaces within the physical space. We came up with this whole suit of solutions for touchless use of our mobile phones as our third hands."He both congratulated and dug at the cooperative project announced between Apple and Google, which plan to use bluetooth technology to fight the spread of coronavirus.Advertisement"As much as it's amazing that these two giants are going to be sharing, just like a Family Guy and Simpsons crossover, bluetooth can't even come close to the benefits that ultrasonic sound waves have for social distancing," May claimed. "You can't make accurate measurements through bluetooth, unlike ultrasonic sound waves, which are the most accurate means in order to measure distances and such."
