Daqri develops smart helmet for construction workers

The company Daqri has unveiled a smart hardhat that gives workers additional layers of information about their surroundings. The helmet – which has a blue scratch-resistant visor – was specifically created for workers in industrial settings, such as oil rigs, water treatment plants and construction sites. It is intended to increase productivity, efficiency and safety, said the company.
 
The headgear uses a combination of cameras and sensors to capture and record real-time information about the user's surroundings, from valve readings to thermal data. It can also show the wearer stored information like safety guidelines and worker instructions. The device could be integrated with building information modelling (BIM) software. This could allow the display to show users the insides of structural elements, such as the interior of a pipe.
 
 The helmet contains a sixth-generation Intel Core m7 processor, a sophisticated sensing technology, and an array of cameras that together capture 360-degree views. A computing program within the camera called Intellitrack captures, processes and displays information about the user's surroundings.
 
"The smart helmet knows how you move through a space, and it can map the environment and start to create a 3D reconstruction of a facility," said the company. "When you have multiple people wearing the smart helmets, they share that information and you build an entire model of that facility with that combined data."
 
The helmet has been in a pilot phase and is expected to be available for purchase in the first quarter of this year.
 

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