Olympus Adopts Proximity Detection and Contact Tracing in its Japanese Factories to Fight Against COVID-19 Using LoRaWAN®

Solution Features and Reasons for Adoption

This “Tracking Solution for Infectious Diseases (COVID-19)” provided by Macnica Networks is a system that monitors the contact status using small sensors using LoRaWAN®/BLE from Abeeway, a subsidiary of Actility, a global provider of LWPAN connectivity solutions. The sensors, under a badge format, are worn by each employee and measure the distance through BLE wireless communication with each other, and when the contact condition exceeds the standard value corresponding to intensive contact, an alert is sent to the centralized management application in the cloud. The application displays and records the contact alert status of all devices. The data can be searched backward in time and date and can be exported as a CSV file.

“Even though the solutions introduced in Japan before were over-spec and highly accurate, they were expensive as a result. Moreover, they were still in the development stage, so they were not the most suitable for us, who wanted to deploy them as soon as possible,” said Hosoya. They wanted a solution with a system and logic as simple as possible.

“That’s why we focused on the LPWA solution using LoRaWAN provided by Macnica Networks. In particular, the simplicity of the solution, which can be managed by a server in the cloud, as well as the budget, met the company’s requirements“. However, Mr. Atsunori Ikeuchi, who is in charge of systems in the medical repair department, recalls that there were some systemic concerns from the beginning. “We were concerned about whether or not the system would have any impact on the company’s internal facilities, as it uses radio waves, and whether or not there would be any radio wave interference from the already installed facilities. In fact, we found out that LoRaWAN is capable of long-distance communication, saves power, and is resistant to noise. In this sense, we thought that it would have little impact on the existing environment,” he explains.

There was another concern that the number of repeaters would become huge because many devices would communicate with one repeater in order for repair workers to wear the device. “If a large number of LoRaWAN repeaters are required, the operational burden will increase in terms of maintenance and response to failures. However, we found out that we only needed about two of them for a single floor, which impressed us once again with the amazing technology,” said Mr. Ikeuchi.

Operation and effect

This solution is currently in operation at two factories, monitoring the contact status of hundreds of employees. Employees wear dedicated devices on their chest at the beginning of their workday and keep it on until the end of their workday. The badge is small enough that it does not interfere with the work and is operated with little burden.

In fact, when a case of suspected close contact occurred among employees, the company was able to use this system to quickly determine who the person in question was in close contact with in the factory, and the company was able to confirm the effectiveness of this system.　　

As for the concerns about behavioral monitoring, they were able to resolve them by turning off the GPS function, informing the field that they would only use the contact history in case of emergency, and educating them about the significance of this.

Olympus decided to implement this system because of its superiority in the following areas:

• The ability to quickly narrow down the list of people based on accurate and objective contact data.
• No other manufacturer in Japan offers a similar service.
• The system can be implemented immediately by purchasing dedicated devices and gateways.
• The device is very small, lightweight and does not interfere with people’s work.
• Using LPWA communication, specifically, LoRaWAN®, allows to cover a wide area, with small number of gateways installed, which allows significantly reduced communication and operating costs.

The introduction of the LPWA solution has made it possible to quickly investigate the contact history in the event of an emergency and has succeeded in creating an environment that minimizes business risks from the perspective of business continuity. The company has also been able to establish a stable process for medical institutions that request repairs, which is helping to build a sense of trust. “We have been holding weekly status sharing meetings with each SORC, and we have received reports that the system is operating without any problems, such as the stable collection of contact history,” Hosoya explains. 

With the introduction of this solution, some workplaces have begun to use the acquired data to design work lines and work styles that do not lead to intensive contact in the first place. Mr. Hideki Ohki, who is in charge of SORC management and implementation, explains the new trend: “By looking at the history, we are able to identify the processes that may lead to intensive contact, and we are now considering how to avoid such processes in the process of business improvement”.