Brian Blum
December 8, 2021

Israel “sensors-on-a-chip” startup Vayyar has launched Vayyar Care, a camera-free solution that provides round-the-clock protection for seniors at home.

The contactless, wall-mounted sensors alert responders when a senior has fallen and isn’t able to push a button or pull a cord to summon help.

Seniors won’t have to remember to strap on a wearable monitor every morning. That’s not an insignificant problem: A third of seniors forget to put on their devices, while a fifth refuse to use them entirely, fearing a loss of independence.

Vayyar sensors can detect if children are present and buckled in a car. Photo courtesy of Vayyar

Vayyar will be available as part of Alexa Together, a new subscription service from Amazon designed to facilitate safe aging in place.

If Vayyar Care detects a fall, it will contact the Alexa Together Urgent Response emergency helpline. Alexa will also send a notification to the designated caregiver.

Vayyar Care can detect falls in all lighting conditions – including pitch darkness and dense steam – making it ideal for use in bathrooms, which is where some 80 percent of falls happen and where customers don’t generally want to install a security camera.

“We designed Alexa Together to help aging customers feel more comfortable and confident living independently,” said Nicolas Maynard, senior manager for Amazon Alexa.

“Alexa Together offers even more value for aging customers when they can connect a device like Vayyar Care.”

The company has come a long way since ISRAEL21c first wrote about it in 2017.

Vayyar places multiple sensors on a single silicon chip to reduce the physical footprint of the device as well as the cost. The company’s “4D” sensors were originally created to detect breast cancer.

That was then expanded to cars – Vayyar sensors can help a car navigate in bad weather and without line-of-sight visibility. Inside the car, it can detect whether children are present and wearing their seatbelts.

Vayyar Care is a contactless solution with Alexa Together for detecting and alerting to falls. Photo courtesy of Vayyar

The company won a CES award for its Walabot wall scanner that lets contractors “see through” walls to find studs.

Now Vayyar might make its greatest impact yet.

“With today’s seniors more empowered and engaged than ever, there’s a clear need for smart technologies that enable them to maintain their lifestyles, providing the protection they demand and the peace-of-mind their families expect,” said Raviv Melamed, Vayyar’s CEO.

Vayyar Care is available now for Amazon Alexa Together for $244.

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