Safety signs are present in our everyday lives to the point that it can become easy to forget about their slow yet important developments. While the overall design of safety signs remains largely similar, the industry is receptive to technological changes, especially as the wider world modernises. Below, we list how technology is changing safety signs and their meanings, as well as reflecting on where the wider industry can go from here.
Grounded Road Signs
Staring at your phone may offer some form of escapism when walking around, but its distracting nature can lead to some nasty roadside accidents. Accidents including pedestrians have increased in recent years, leading to industry experts calling for specialised road signs and warnings for phone-addled people. Shaun Helman works for a company that advises the Department for Transport, he is a big advocate for specialist road signs. Suggested measures include adding traffic light colours to pavements, indicating when pedestrians should stop and cross safely, as well as creating signposted “text-walking lanes”. While it’s probably easier just to pay attention to the road ahead, safety signs must adapt to modern risks.
LED Signs
In the future, it’s looking like painted-on and floor signs will be LED-based. Instead of using regular traditional signs, roads and factory lanes may employ a responsive system of LEDs. An example of this is the Starling crossing, which is in the prototype stage by London-based design firm, Umbrellium. Instead of having signs and walkways painted on the road, the system monitors traffic to activate LEDs and change signs according to traffic volume.
For example, the technology is currently being designed for a zebra crossing. The zebra crossing will activate when a pedestrian is waiting, the width of the crossing will change according to the number of people waiting:
https://vimeo.com/238188855
By combining machine learning with adaptive technology, these LED signs may be the first step in creating bespoke signs suited to individuals, businesses and traffic management.
Projected Safety Lines and Signs
Similar to LED signs, projected safety signs are predicted to save businesses a significant amount in repainting and putting up safety signs. Currently, a lot of money is spent on factory floors and other related industries on repainting safety lines. Whilst cutting down costs, the process also reduces business downtime.
This technology will be relatively cheap in the future, too, as businesses will only need a projector and gobo outlines to project safety signs, warning signs and health and safety signs with little to no maintenance.
Future Signs
With the rate of new technology progressing, there will come a time where safety signs need to be created to control modern risk. Modern inventions that will likely be part of HSE’s range of signs include:
- Drone warnings
- Automation/Robot warnings
- Driverless Cars and Forklift Lanes
While these technologies are often seen as the future, people often forget that appropriate health and safety protocols need to be in place before they’re embedded into the mainstream working culture. The above are certainly exciting innovations for the future workplace, but they need to be controlled with appropriate signs and training first.
It pays to stay ahead of the curve with workplace signs and their meanings, so Label Source has stocked the best in safety signs for a variety of uses. For more from the ever-changing world of labels, be sure to follow Label Source on Facebook and Twitter.
