Project to explore ways to make concerts safer
Researchers at Kingston University, UK, have secured a €900,000 grant to explore ways in which internet of things (IoT) connected devices could make concerts safer.
The research team wants to investigate how a network of devices such as drones, wristbands and body-mounted video cameras could improve security at outdoor events that attract large crowds.
This work forms part of a broader Europe-wide research project, costing €18m across three years and involving sound and technology experts from 28 partner organisations.
Named MONICA, the project is being co-ordinated by German research organisation the Fraunhofer Society and will aim to demonstrate how IoT technologies are beneficial to event organisers and attendees.
Kingston University has been selected to focus on the security aspect of this work.
The team will look at ways event organisers can integrate smart devices into an internet-enabled security system.
Such a system could help them to improve video surveillance and speed-up response procedures from security teams.
Professor Paolo Remagnino, from the university’s research team, said that big events raise many complex issues for security teams but that the latest technology can help.
He said: “The bigger the event, the more potential issues you have in terms ensuring the safety of those attending.
“We want to help develop a way of bringing these technologies together to help establish a secure environment during public events where many thousands of people are attending.”
The university will work closely with several project partners in determining how IoT devices cans secure live video, audio and other data for concert security purposes.
