Phuket yacht visitors first to receive ‘smart wristband’ trackers

Nine foreigners and one Thai who arrived in Phuket, Thailand on a yacht last Saturday (6^th March) have become the first people in the country to wear “smart wristbands” to track their location and their health while observing their mandatory 14-day quarantine while still on the boat.

The yacht, Sapphire, arrived in Phuket from Australia and was boarded by health officials and Royal Thai Navy personnel from the Third Area Command at Cape Panwa to conduct tests to ensure none of the crew were infected with COVID-19, reported the Third Area Command.

The yacht and its crew are now staying in the holding area designated for arriving yachts at Ao Por, off Phuket’s east coast, where it will remain while the crew complete their mandatory quarantine.

After the crew have completed the 14-day quarantine, the yacht will be moved to moor in Phuket Boat Lagoon Marina, the Navy added.

All 10 on board have been issued “smart wristbands” created under the “Digital Yacht Quarantine” project, developed by the Digital Economy Promotion Agency (Depa) and AIS, and two other private companies.

The smart wristbands operate on a 900MHz “Narrow band - Internet of Things” (“NB-IoT”) connection that maintains connectivity up to 10 kilometres over the sea, AIS chief enterprise business officer Tanapong Ittisakulchai explained at a press launch for the devices in Bangkok.

“We also have a cloud platform to be a main network for the NB-IoT Wristband Tracking,” Ittisakulchai said.

Chatchai Tangchittrong, CEO/co-founder of PMH Holding Co Ltd, noted, “In this project, we have two models, the ‘Activ 10+’ and the ‘Smartwatch Activ 30+’. The two models can be both location trackers and health devices which tourists can wear as wristbands all the time, in order to prevent them from leaving the yachts.

“The wristband has sensors to check tourists’ pulse, blood pressure and body temperature. They also have an option to send SOS signals if tourists urgently need help. All the information from the wristband will be shown on the website dashboard in real time for medical staff,” he explained.

“Smart wristband health-monitoring services we use are the same models that are used for the ‘Hotel Bubble Project’ in the Cayman Islands,” Tangchittrong said.

In explaining his company’s role in the project, Tanapat Thuatraiphop, CEO of Flow Corporation, said, “We are partnering with Patri Tour Group Co Ltd, which operates Ao Por Pier. We conduct the registration for the NB-IoT Wristband Tourist Tracking and arrange medical staff for monitoring the tourists’ health information.”

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Source: The Phuket News