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This wearable could help prevent sexual assaults

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What if I told you that a wearable could save your life? This is the purpose of Bindi, a prototype designed to detect and prevent sexual assaults. The innovative alarm system, consisting of a bracelet and a pendant, is connected to the smartphone via an application and is activated only in the event of a dangerous situation. Wearables of the future may not be used only used to check your emails, control your smart home devices or count your steps. They could also save your life.

Behind this idea is UC3M4Safety, a multidisciplinary team made up of different research groups from the Universidad Politécnica and the Universisad Carlos III, both from Madrid. The bracelet and pendant have been devised not only go completely unnoticed, as anyone can wear them as accessories in their usual attire, but they are connected to the phone with an application connected in turn to the "guardians" or circle of trust chosen by the user in question.

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Do you get harassed when out on a run? This wearable could be just the ticket. / © Jacob Lund/Shutterstock

Thanks to artificial intelligence, the bracelet will be able to detect if the wearer is suffering an anxiety episode by detecting a sudden change in their vital signs. This is where the so-called "circle of trust or protection" comes into play, the people whowill receive the location of the potential victim. The pendant, on the other hand, will activate the microphone and start recording the voice of the user to analyze telltale signs of anxiety in speech, as well as record everything that happened as evidence in case there is a subsequent dispute.

In addition, the Bindi team will have a panic button on each of the devices - bracelet, pendant and smartphone - that the wearer can activate with a simple touch at any time in a situation that compromises their safety.

There are still many steps to be improved, such as perfecting AI algorithms to prevent an accelerated rate of heartbeat for any other reason from being mistaken for aggression. But we are talking about a prototype that still lacks funding to become a reality. I hope it's soon.

What it does mean is a huge step forward in the face of a growing problem around the world: sexual assault, gender-based violence and the killing of women around the world. In Spain, where the device is being developed at least 10 women have already died as a result of gender-based violence in 2019 alone.

Would you like this kind of protective wearable to be on the market soon?

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  • 25
    Deactivated Account Feb 21, 2019 Link to comment

    Great article, Thank you. 😊


  • 6
    fl2oftmd Feb 21, 2019 Link to comment

    as I stated in another article comments. my wife and I use app to keep track of each other. has nothing to do with trust.. I am a truck driver and it's comforting for me to know that she can see my whereabouts at any given time. if I don't contact her or my truck has not moved in a given amount of time she knows that I may be in trouble. and the same holds true for her. we may be the exception but we would find a tool like this to be very helpful.


  • 16
    Deactivated Account Feb 20, 2019 Link to comment

    well this definitely isn't going to backfire

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