A Real-Time Location System Design for Production Facilities Working under COVID-19 Pandemic Precautions

Abstract

By reason of the COVID-19 pandemic, essential digital transformations are taking place in many areas of business life. Although the most important one of these transformations is due to the widespread use of the remote working model, the production sector does not have the opportunity to switch to such a model completely. Therefore, it is inevitable to maintain social distance to prevent the spread of COVID-19 while working in production facilities. In this study, a real-time location system (RTLS) model is proposed to keep track of social distance in production facilities and to ensure occupational health safety (OHS) at the same time. Since the social distance rule is essential for every production facility, the most important feature of the proposed system is that it can easily be integrated into the standard personnel tracking system in almost every enterprise. Besides, the proposed RTLS is designed as an efficient system based on ultra-wideband and radio-frequency identification, which can operate as a closed-loop monitoring system within itself. An adequately installed RTLS can monitor the position of employees in real-time and provides to intervene in the situation instantly when necessary. In case of a violation of social distance or a situation against OHS, it can be prevented instantly by the proposed system. It is also a useful model in the management of emergencies.