GeoFencing on a Mobile Platform with Alert Escalation

The increasing availability of GPS-enabled mobile devices can utilize position to provide a safer tracked environment allowing vulnerable people to continue with their daily activities, as much as possible. This paper investigates the technology options for alert escalation. The aim is to provide a safety net, without triggering unnecessary alarms. The escalation procedure involves initial speech alert to the user, then a speech and vibrate alert to the user as a reminder; this is followed by a text message to an identified carer if the user has not entered the safe zone. Parameters for alert escalation can be tuned to individual circumstances. The user can seek help at any time by getting directions from the current position to home or by calling a carer. We report on a small technical evaluation (n=6) of the development.