Buildings Could Save Energy By Spying On Workers

Galactic_grub writes "In the future, your place of work (or apartment) may very well spy on you. But that doesn't mean it'll be able to name and shame you for all your nasty habits. Researchers at Mitsubishi Electric Research Laboratory (MERL) have devised a 'dumb' surveillance system that monitors the movements of workers without identifying them individually. The idea is to have a computer system automatically configure the air-conditioning to save money, or illuminate the most appropriate escape signs in an emergency."

Comments

Emergencies?

[msauve]

illuminate the most appropriate escape signs in an emergency.

Well, I would illuminate all escape signs in an emergency, infinitesimal energy savings be damned!

Re:Emergencies?

[PPH]

And if they're all blocked, the signs say, "You are going to die".

Re:Emergencies?

[ajs318]

I can just see Clippit popping up on someone's screen .....

It looks like you are on fire. Would you like to

( ) Try and put it out
(o) Search MSN for more information on firefighting
( ) No thanks, I'll deal with it later

I'm sorry Dave

[spun]

I'm afraid I can't allow you to turn that light on. My cooling systems take precedence over the illumination needs of primates. How can I compute your optimal escape route in case of a fire if my systems are overheating?

You'll just have to pee in the dark, Dave.

Re:Paranoid?

[Penguinshit]

No.

You think that's bad?

[Slur]

I worked at a place where our floor, 7 1/2, had been left too short, so everyone had to crouch down all the time, and I was relatively tall. In an emergency the quickest way out was through a hole that led to being John Malkovich for ten minutes. You can imagine all the mayhem. It was hellish.

Re:Already exists

[Greyfox]

Yup IBM conference rooms have this too. Except they didn't work too well back when I worked for IBM so the lights would inevitably go out in the middle of the conference and we'd all have to jump around in hopes of hitting the sweet spot that would cause the lights to come back on.

In my current building the restrooms are wired with motion sensors but if you have to sit still and concentrate for longer than 5 minutes the lights go out. Unfortunately that's somewhat distracting from the business at hand and I suspect that the energy saved is probably offset by the length of time the lights going off extends your visit to the restroom. I suppose that could be resolved by mandating that all employees have Keloggs Prune Bran for breakfast...

Re:Already exists

[Tablizer]

My company already has this.

Mine too, but ours is motion activated. However, sometimes the sensors go bad and the lights go out even though people are there. Multiple people have to go and do the YMCA dance or the Macarana to trigger the motion sensors. We sometimes joke that people aren't working hard enough to trigger the motion sensors and that management uses them as productivity detectors.