ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, March 19, 1996 TAG: 9603190054
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 3 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: At Home with technology
SOURCE: DAVID BUTLER
Q: My wife and I gave our teen-age son a pager so we could keep tabs on him. We'd like to do something similar for our 5-year-old daughter, but a pager doesn't seem appropriate. Are other products available that could help us keep track of her?
A: Several products are available to help parents keep track of curious youngsters. Derived from both pager and personal alarm technology, these devices are portable and won't break the budget.
One approach would be to set up a local paging system. Unlike conventional pagers, there's no monthly fee. The base unit has a maximum stated range of 2 miles. From the base, you can send one of 10 single-digit codes to a selected receiver or all receivers at once. A basic system with one receiver costs about $100. Additional receivers cost $30 each.
Given your daughter's age, a simple alert system may be more practical. Both transmitter and receiver units are portable. If you give your daughter the transmitter, she can alert you if she needs assistance. Conversely, when she's carrying the receiver, you can "call" her when it's time to come inside. The maximum range is 100 feet.
Another type of alert system is designed to help you locate your child - FAST! The parent carries a tiny two-button transmitter. The child wears a colorful tummy pouch that carries the receiver unit and a 120dB electronic siren - that's as loud as a car alarm! The system has three operating modes:
Let's say you and your daughter are cruising the flea market. Suddenly you realize she's disappeared into the crowd. By briefly pressing button one, her siren will emit a short burst. Just as you begin turning red from embarrassment, you hear your daughter shout "Here I am, Mommy! Over here!"
Button two, a measure of last resort, activates and locks the siren (within a 200 foot range), thus preventing a bystander (or attacker) from silencing the alarm. Only a special key attached to your transmitter can shut it off. Finally, your daughter can activate the siren directly by pressing a panic button.
Several companies produce what might be called an invisible "leash," intended to help a parent keep their child close at hand in a crowded area such as a mall, theme park or airport. If the child wanders too far (typically 20 to 35 feet), an "out-of-range" alert sounds on the parent unit.
Here's how the typical invisible leash works: The child unit transmits a low-power radio signal every few seconds. If the child moves out of range or the unit is turned off, the parent unit no longer detects the signal, triggering an alert. Some models allow you to increase the range (up to 100 feet) to accommodate different circumstances.
Models available from one company combine an out-of-range alert (35 feet) with the "locate" function (up to 200 feet). The parent unit has three buttons: One silences the out-of-range alert; another activates a beeper on the child unit. The third button converts the beeper into an alarm tone. The company plans to introduce a two-child version later this year.
Variations on a theme: One leash system doubles as an audio monitor. It lets you listen to your daughter up to 300 feet away. If she moves out of range or falls into a body of water, the parent unit sounds an alert. Another version adds a call button to the child unit. Last but not least, a start-up company is developing a child alert with a "homing" feature. Details are unavailable, but it sounds interesting!
To receive a list of companies that manufacture child alert systems, please send $1.50 and a self-addressed envelope to David Butler F-604, Department TWN, 14713 Pleasant Hill Road, Charlotte, N.C. 28278-7927. The list includes toll-free phone numbers and a features comparison chart.
LENGTH: Medium: 73 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Some child monitors act like invisible leashes. If aby CNBchild wanders beyond a preset boundary, the parent's unit beeps. The
parent can activate an audible signal on the child's unit so that
the child may be located quickly.