DALLAS-AirGate Technologies, a subsidiary of The X-Change Corp., said it has completed an RFID prototype for car child safety seats.
The prototype uses the company’s Smart Buckle technology incorporated into a standard child seat. Miniature RF transmitters send a low-power signal to a reader mounted on the dashboard or visor and trigger a warning if the seat’s straps are not properly buckled. The product also sounds an alarm if the car is parked and the ignition turned off but the child seat remains engaged, indicating the child may have been unintentionally left in the car.
“We believe that the AirGate Smart Buckle technology addresses two serious situations surrounding child safety and the use of child car seats: seat buckles not engaged and children who are mistakenly left unattended in vehicles,” said Michael Sheriff, chief executive officer of AirGate Technologies. “There have been a growing number of instances where sleeping infants and small children have been accidentally forgotten and left in parked cars with tragic results. The AirGate Smart Buckle technology is very simple for any parent to install and will be very reasonably priced. We plan for the Smart Buckle technology-enabled child safety system to become a standard feature installed by the manufacturers of child safety seats.”
The company plans to demonstrate the technology in September.
