The Covid-19 health crisis is likely to transform the way that factories and other industrial facilities function — at least for the foreseeable future. Social distancing within industrial facilities has become the norm in many factories and other plant, and testing individuals to detect early signs of infection — such as raised temperature — is becoming a widespread practice. To simplify and speed up the latter, industrial automation firm Honeywell has launched a temperature monitoring solution that incorporates infrared imaging technology and artificial intelligence algorithms to conduct non-invasive, preliminary screening of personnel entering a facility.

The new system can also determine if individuals entering a plant are wearing the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE).

The Honeywell ThermoRebellion temperature monitoring solution is designed to be positioned at the entryway of a factory, airport, distribution centre, stadium or other commercial buildings to identify automatically whether personnel exhibit an elevated facial temperature. As individuals pass in front of a high-resolution, thermal imaging camera, their skin temperature is automatically detected within two seconds and displayed on an accompanying monitor.

Such technology gives plant operators real-time information about personnel entering their facilities, enabling them to take measures to keep their premises safe and secure.

The Honeywell ThermoRebellion system can also identify if individuals are wearing the required personal protective equipment needed for entering the building. 

“Protecting worker safety is the top priority for any building operator and today, more than ever, managers are looking for innovative solutions to enhance their health screening processes,” said Renaud Mazarguil, president of Honeywell’s Gas Analysis and Safety business. “We’ve developed this breakthrough technology to automate and streamline the monitoring of an individual’s temperature and reduce the need for invasive monitoring. Honeywell is committed to developing new solutions to help workers, families and communities stay safe.” 

Honeywell is piloting its new temperature monitoring solution at two of its US production facilities, including the company’s new N95 face mask manufacturing centre in Phoenix.

The Honeywell ThermoRebellion solution incorporates AI that can analyse each individual pixel captured by the camera for elevated temperature. 

Honeywell says that the solution is easy to install and commission, and it is simple to operate with minimal training using an intuitive graphical user interface. The system also automatically logs data to simplify and standardise record-keeping for compliance, reducing the need for potentially error-prone manual tracking processes.  

The system integrates with the Honeywell Forge platform and Honeywell’s Healthy Building Solutions that provide a holistic view of a building’s health based on key factors such as air quality, social distancing, occupant flow, sanitation, wellness density and governance adherence.

The new temperature screening solution incorporates intelligent visual monitoring technology from Rebellion Photonics, which Honeywell acquired in December 2019. Rebellion provides oil, gas and petrochemical companies a real-time monitoring platform that visually identifies and quantifies gas releases to quickly detect and analyse leaks keeping workers safe. The business features a AI software platform to provide operators with automated notifications for gas leaks, security issues, and fires.