IoT-enabled gadgets not only generate data that helps caregivers predict elder requirements, but they also allow seniors power over their physical environment.

FREMONT, CA: With the improvements of mobile devices and long-range, low-power technologies over the last ten years, senior care technology has improved.

Previously, caregivers were responsible for manually monitoring a senior citizen's status and location. Now, technologies such as medical tracking and smart home gadgets can help elders by automating duties and processes. Implementing IoT technologies, such as wearables, telemedicine, and smart home devices, can provide families and loved ones with peace of mind and safer living conditions for seniors.

Smart Home Devices

IoT-enabled gadgets not only generate data that helps caregivers predict elder requirements, but they also allow seniors power over their physical environment. Wirelessly connected gadgets like a heating control panel, doorbell, or door lock assist seniors in better managing their home applications and creating safer living conditions

According to the World Health Organization, persons aged 65 and older are more likely to fall, which is the second biggest cause of accidental injury or unintentional death globally. IoT-enabled gadgets can let seniors conduct daily tasks such as opening garage doors or activating the sprinkler system from inside the home using an app on a tablet or smartphone. Long-range, low-power technology, for example, can provide elders with access to difficult-to-reach regions such as the basement, porch, attic, or even outside. This device monitors data in real-time to offer safer experiences for seniors, promptly warning them if a door has opened, if there is a leak, or if any other potentially dangerous developments occur.

Smart Lighting

Smart lighting is another key smart device application. Seniors can utilize IoT-enabled applications that use long-range, low-power technologies to manage lighting both inside and outside the home. Utilities can interact with other applications for better efficiency by utilizing the Internet of Things.

Smart lighting technologies provide scheduled lighting, allowing seniors to safely navigate their homes at all hours of the day and night without manually turning lights on and off. Smart lights are often equipped with a Wi-Fi or Bluetooth receiver and can be controlled via speech recognition for quick, direct orders. Long-range, low-power communication means that the technology works regardless of where the light is located.