Smart floors gather intelligent data using sensor technologies from Interface
Smart floors represent a revolutionary leap in flooring technology, transforming passive surfaces into active, data-collecting platforms. Interface offers sensor technologies, including load cells, wireless telemetry systems, and measurement devices, that can be easily integrated into these advanced flooring systems and provide invaluable insights for various IoT applications deliver.
What are sensor-based intelligent floorsSmart floors are high-tech flooring systems equipped with sensors, pressure pads, or other digital technologies that can detect and analyze movement, weight, pressure, and other data in real time. They transform the floor into an Internet of Things (IoT) device that collects spatial information.
They often contain various sensors, such as strain gauges for measuring force and weight, which are integrated into advanced data analytics platforms as part of smart floor systems. They can wirelessly transmit data to other smart devices and building management systems.
Intelligent floors with Interface products offer possibilities that go far beyond those of a conventional floor:
- Fall detection and safety warnings
- Customer traffic mapping and flow analysis
- Tracking energy efficiency
- Proactive building management
- Motion and occupancy detection
- Behavioral analysis for health monitoring
- Interactive interfaces
Interface's high-precision force measurement solutions range from our load cells, torque transducers, and multi-axis sensors to wireless devices and digital instruments. As shown in our case study, "Interface Sensor Technologies Enables IoT CapabilitiesAs described in "Smart Floor," Interface offers a wide range of products for these types of use cases. For smart floor applications, force sensors, especially miniature load cells, are often used with wireless telemetry systems for a complete IoT solution.
Eight reasons why force sensors are used in smart floors
Force sensors are critical to smart flooring technology because they can accurately measure weight, pressure, and force distribution. This data is fundamental to many applications, including these use cases.
#1 – Accurate detection of presence and movement
Unlike simple motion sensors, force sensors can detect the presence of a person or object by measuring their weight, providing more accurate and reliable occupancy data. They can also distinguish between people and inanimate objects.
#2 – Fall detection and safety
This application is particularly relevant in senior living and healthcare settings. By continuously monitoring floor pressure distribution, force sensors can detect sudden changes in weight that indicate a fall and trigger immediate alerts to nursing staff or emergency services.
#3 – Gait analysis and health monitoring
For individuals with mobility issues or undergoing rehabilitation, force sensors can analyze gait, weight distribution while walking, and subtle changes in movement. This data provides valuable insights for healthcare professionals to monitor progress, identify potential problems, and prevent injuries.
#4 – Traffic flow and space utilization
In commercial environments such as retail stores, offices, or public facilities, force sensors can map customer traffic patterns, identify high-traffic areas, and analyze dwell times. This data helps companies optimize product placement, staffing, building layout, and even marketing strategies.
#5 – Energy efficiency
Smart floors equipped with force sensors can be integrated into building management systems to optimize HVAC, lighting, and other energy-consuming systems by accurately tracking occupancy in real time, resulting in significant energy savings.
#6 – Security and access control
Force sensors can detect unauthorized access or unusual movement patterns, thus increasing security in a building.
#7 – Predictive Maintenance
By monitoring the load and traffic on specific floor surfaces, force sensors can help identify areas prone to wear, enabling predictive maintenance and extending the life of the flooring.
#8 – Discreet Surveillance – Unlike cameras, force sensors offer a privacy-friendly method of monitoring activity, making them ideal for sensitive environments such as healthcare facilities or residential areas.
How are force sensors used in smart floors?
Interface offers several models of force sensors in different shapes, capacities, and sizes for the intelligent design, testing, monitoring, and maintenance of flooring. Manufacturers can integrate Interface load cells into innovative flooring systems to obtain precise and actionable data.
Interface’s miniature load cells, such as our SSB Sealed Beam Load CellsLoad cells can be strategically installed beneath the tiles or on the surface of the Smart Floor. This allows them to measure the force exerted when someone walks or places weight on the floor without being visible or obtrusive. Typically, multiple load cells are deployed per tile or area to capture pressure in detail.
When a person steps on the intelligent flooring, the applied force causes a slight deformation of the load cells. The load cells convert this mechanical change into an electrical signal. The electrical signals from the load cells are transmitted to wireless strain bridge transmitter modules such as our WTS-AM-1E These modules digitize the force measurements and transmit the data wirelessly. A receiver, the Wireless Telemetry Dongle Base Station WTS-BS-6, collects the transmitted force data wirelessly. This base station is usually connected to the customer's PC or laptop, where special software (such as Log100 from Interface) the force results are recorded, graphically prepared and analyzed.
The collected data provides real-time insight into various parameters, such as weight, pattern, and force. This information can be used to determine how the weight is distributed on the floor. You can also monitor individual steps and movement patterns and quantify the pressure exerted. Read more about our application Smart Floors.