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Photos: Computer saves drowning girl

Monitoring system springs into action

By on 1 September 2005 12:45

The system springs into action within three seconds, viewing her from a number of different cameras

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  1. 1. anonymous

    Wow! How did people ever survive the pool before computerized pool monitors? What ever happened to lifeguards? Seems to me that the lifegaurd on duty should be paying attention and not relying on technology to do his/her job.

    • 1 September 2005 15:56
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  2. 2. Chris

    Anonymous said: "Wow! How did people ever survive the pool before computerized pool monitors? What ever happened to lifeguards? Seems to me that the lifegaurd on duty should be paying attention and not relying on technology to do his/her job."

    You could take the time to read the story - "It is virtually impossible for lifeguards to see everything that is happening in the pool all of the time, given the warm, noisy and crowded environment in which they typically work."

    • 1 September 2005 16:16
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  3. 3. Mike G

    I wish my computer could do something as useful as that!

    • 1 September 2005 16:31
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  4. 4. Andrew Lewis

    I have just read this article in today's Daily Telegraph. Apparently due to the amount of glass incorporated in 1960's pools, there is a lot of reflections off the water making the lifeguard's job of seeing what might be happening below the surface quite difficult. At £65000, this is a good investment if it aids and assists saving even one life.
    Maybe Anon from the US should appreciate the benefits of such a system in a support roll and preach slightly less sarcasm.
    Great innovation - well done to the designers.

    • 1 September 2005 16:46
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  5. 5. anonymous

    No kidding. Motion detection is hard enough...Detection of LACK of motion has got to be near impossible!

    The designers of this software should get a medal for each life they have saved.

    • 1 September 2005 17:13
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  6. 6. Michel Merlin

    Chris, he probably read. Among lifeguards (and others), the ones casual enough to not pay the attention they should, also are most often the ones complaining that it is impossible, and demonstrating for more and more investment in easing their work.

    None disputes that the investment done here was right - but whatever the means available, if vigilance lessens, more accidents will happen; so it is normal IMO to worry whether lifeguards remain worried enough.

    Now let's continue cheering with all others the life saved, the appropriate investment and maintaining and using of it. The pics in the pool are wonderful.

    Paris, Thu 1 Sep 2005 18:14:35 +0200

    • 1 September 2005 17:14
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  7. 7. anonymous

    There is not a price on human life!, So I guess that system has just paid for itself

    • 1 September 2005 17:44
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  8. 8. anonymous

    There is not a price on human life!, So I guess that system has just paid for itself

    • 1 September 2005 17:48
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  9. 9. Michel Merlin

    The most life-saving investments should be preferred to others. And this one apparently proved to be an efficient one - even if expensive.

    "There is not a price on human life" is a spectacular phrase for medias, not an efficient one for the ones really caring to help people and to save the most lifes.

    Paris, Fri 2 Sep 2005 08:25:55 +0200

    • 2 September 2005 07:25
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  10. 10. Alan Arnold

    That is absolutly amazing!

    • 2 September 2005 09:52
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  11. 11. Tim R

    What an excellent system. Congratulations to the system designer for a great exploitation of the anomaly situation in a CCTV application.

    • 2 September 2005 10:01
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  12. 12. Ashley

    Quite some time ago, I was a lifeguard, for my sins.
    I agree that perhaps some lifeguards sometimes don't pay as much attention as they should, but it is indeed almost impossible at times to see everything thats going on - especially if one of your colleagues is one of those mentioned above.
    In a busy pool, especially one that from the photos appears to be a wide and very deep pool, things can get missed, no matter how vigilant you are. If a brilliant system like this saves lives, then surely it is worth it. Sarcastic comments, however, are definitely not.

    • 2 September 2005 14:10
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  13. 13. anonymous

    Mike G, and programmer from Calif.

    Take a look at some GeoVision digital cctv DVR cards, I recently installed a Geovision GV250 on a customer site.

    They have motion (and lack of) detection and web services etc. with a appropriate camera (PTZ) and add-on card, you can also get the system to follow people / objects as they move around the 'target' zone.

    • 2 September 2005 16:49
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