In Case of Emergency (ICE) is a handheld personal security device designed to provide alerts at the touch of a button. The device, which is set to launch this month, can share signals with emergency services, ICE users within the local vicinity and pre-designated ICE contacts. Infologue.com spoke to Marc Lewis, founder of ICE and the Dean at the School of Communications in London, to gain a further understanding of the product.
It was an opportunity that I couldn’t turn down…
Ryan Gordon, News Desk at Infologue.com, began the interview by asking Marc about his background at the School of Communications, the art school based in Brixton. “I was a student at the college about 25 years ago. When I was offered the opportunity to re-open and run the school by the industry, it was an opportunity that I couldn’t turn down”.
Marc gave an insight as to how he came across the idea of ICE. “As a school, we are very much motivated when we’re doing creative work. We think about problem-solution and trying to make society better. We’re always looking to try and solve societal problems. The idea of ICE was born in last year’s intake by a whole number of students”.
“What Uber is to personal transport, ICE is to personal security”
Bobby Logue, Infologue.com’s Publisher, continued the interview by quizzing Marc further about ICE. The device has a robust design, yet is small enough to attach to a set of keys or fit in the palm of the user’s hand.
Marc explained his thoughts towards ICE, which has been in development for the last 9 months. “We envisage that there will be such a crowd of people on this platform that wherever you are in an urban area, there will be people to help you when you require assistance. One of the things that my students discovered on this journey was the bystander effect. The big part of the bystander effect is that in a city environment the more densely populated it is, the less likely it is someone will come to your help.
“With ICE, the opposite is true. Firstly, the mobile phone is the most personal thing that you own. So if somebody needs your help and you receive an alert on your phone, it’s like a tap on the shoulder saying “Somebody 2 minutes away needs your help, this is where you’ll find them. Will you be a Good Samaritan and go to their aid?” With the bystander effect you assume that somebody else is going to go, it’s not your business you can just walk on by”
Three alerts…
Once the panic button within the device is activated, ICE sends three alerts within information about the person in danger:
1) An alert is sent to ICE users in the local proximity,
2) A text is sent to the emergency
3) A text message is sent to pre-determined ICE contacts
Marc stated that once the system is fully complete, ICE will be able to discern between types of help. “By the time it is released it discern. At the moment, one press sends out the three types of alert, that’s how we built the prototype. By the time it’s in the consumer’s hand, they will be able to press to alert their ICE or press to alert neighbours nearby”.
Marc explained that he has spoken with numerous different public bodies about his intuitive device. “We have considered ICE with various different police departments. Further to this, the developers of ICE have been approached by a number of neighbourhood watch associations asking how they can get involved”.
ICE, which is compatible with all Apple devices and most Android devices, will start at £20.