Smart Sense(TM) From RF Technologies Upgrades Safe Place(R) Bracelets Using Industry-Leading Infant Security Technology, Fit and Comfort

BROOKFIELD, Wis., May 11 /PRNewswire/ -- RF Technologies®, a leading provider of healthcare safety and security solutions, announces the release of Smart Sense™ Technology for use with Safe Place® Infant Security Solutions. The soft, stretchy banding material and technologically advanced infant transmitter combine in bracelet form to reliably notify staff when a Safe Place bracelet is loose, tampered with or is cut.

Smart Sense was developed in response to requests from the company's clinical advisory council and other OB nurses who are charged with infant protection. "Nurses want an infant security bracelet that is soft and pliable, but that also has the technology needed to alert them when an infant bracelet is loose or tampered with. Current skin sensing technologies often generate nuisance alarms because they rely on a single sensing measurement. That's why we developed Smart Sense to incorporate three distinct detection methods," says Wyndham Gary, Vice President of Engineering for RF Technologies. The Safe Place infant security bracelet is the first in the industry to incorporate multiple methods of skin sensing infant protection.

In addition to the Safe Place bracelet's current ability to detect when a band is cut, detection methods used by Smart Sense technology include: (1) distance between the transmitter and skin, (2) stretch of the band, and (3) temperature change. All three detection methods, as well as their sensitivity levels can be custom configured at the system, unit or patient level. This allows each individual hospital to fine tune the alarm settings to achieve optimal system performance, which also results in far fewer nuisance alarms than with standard skin sensing infant security products.  

The Smart Sense banding material is soft and stretchy, similar to a woven infant sock. It uses no rigid materials, allowing for a better fit and reduced slippage. The elasticity of the band allows it to comfortably shrink around the ankle or wrist as a newborn loses water weight. This feature, combined with Smart Sense's advanced skin sensing technology, minimizes the number of size adjustments nursing staff need to make and reduces the potential for nuisance alarms resulting from loose bracelets.  Even if the bracelet does loosen, the patient remains protected, as the Safe Place® system will notify staff that the bracelet is loose.

Smart Sense infant security transmitters and bands are available to order now from RF Technologies, and will ship with Safe Place Infant Security Solutions beginning in August 2010. For more information, visit www.rft.com/smartsense.

SOURCE RF Technologies, Inc.