A parent or child safe at home – without cameras, with respect for their privacy
Most people want to stay in their own home, and their relatives want to know they are all right: did they get up this morning, did they leave the cooker on, did they fall in the bathroom, did they wander out into the street at night? A well-designed system can flag all of this – camera- and microphone-free by default – based on changes in the daily routine and a few targeted sensors, and let you, the carer or a neighbour know. It does not replace human care and it is not a medical device, but it makes things easier for the times when nobody is there with your loved one.
Sound familiar?
- You ring every morning, but if they don’t pick up, you can’t tell whether they are asleep or something is wrong.
- The cooker has already been left on once.
- They got up in the night and tripped in the bathroom – and nobody knew for hours.
- In winter the boiler broke down; it only came to light at the weekend visit that the flat was at thirteen degrees.
- They let a stranger in because he “sounded so nice on the intercom”.
- The carer comes and goes, but you don’t know when they were last there.
Solutions
“Are they feeling all right today?” – inactivity alerts based on the daily routine
The problem The morning phone call doesn’t always get through – if they don’t answer, you don’t know why. After a fall or a sudden illness, hours can pass before anyone notices.
How do we solve it? Presence sensors in the kitchen, the bathroom and the living room – not cameras – learn the daily routine. If there is no movement in the kitchen by the usual time in the morning, if someone stays in the bathroom much longer than usual, or if nothing happens for hours during the day, the system first prompts the resident with a simple signal, and only then alerts you. If you like, you can get an “all fine” message every day.
What you get You know they are up without having to check every day – and if something is wrong, you get an alert when the agreed time window runs out, rather than leaving it to chance.
A panic button that is actually within reach
The problem The mobile is in the other room and the landline can’t be reached from the floor. When something goes wrong, asking for help is precisely the hardest step.
How do we solve it? A wearable, waterproof emergency button as a bracelet or pendant, plus fixed buttons by the bed, the sofa and in the bathroom. One press calls you, the carer and the neighbour – in the order you set – and, if you wish, a 24/7 dispatch service that can send someone out. The battery doesn’t run flat unnoticed either: the system tells you in good time when it needs replacing.
What you get Help is a single movement away, anywhere in the flat – and the call chain keeps moving on until someone picks up the alert.
Going out at night and doors left open
The problem With a relative living with dementia, going out at night is the biggest fear: nobody knows they have left until the flat is found empty in the morning.
How do we solve it? Opening sensors on the front door and the balcony door: if one opens at night, a gentle sound or light signal comes on in the flat first, then you get a notification. If the door is left open, you will know about that too. We can also fit a smart lock to the front door that can always be opened from the inside; when it is opened at night, a sound signal plays and you get a notification.
What you get Quiet nights for both of you: there’s no need to lock them in, yet you will know if the door has been opened.
A fall in the bathroom – without a camera
The problem The bathroom and getting up at night are particularly risky – exactly where a camera doesn’t belong and the emergency button is not always at hand.
How do we solve it? A radar presence and fall sensor that recognises a human figure and a lying position but takes no images – it works in steam and in the dark too. It detects most falls and places a call after a fall or a long period without movement, but it does not replace the wearable emergency button. If they get up at night, dim path lighting switches on from the bedroom to the bathroom, so they don’t have to take the first steps in the dark.
What you get Even the riskiest room is no longer a blind spot, yet privacy remains intact.
“Have they taken their medication?” – monitoring the medicine cabinet
The problem The morning or evening medication gets skipped or doubled. You can’t check this over the phone, and nobody knows until the next check-up with the doctor.
How do we solve it? An opening sensor on the medicine cabinet, the drawer or the weekly pill organiser: if it hasn’t been opened within the agreed time window – for example between seven and ten in the morning – a friendly reminder plays in the flat first, then you get an alert; if it has been opened, you know the routine has happened. This shows that your parent has reached for their medication, not that they have actually swallowed it – and we don’t claim otherwise. Where more is needed, we integrate a timed smart dispenser into the system that only opens the compartment that is due and alerts you if it stays untouched.
What you get No need to ask every day – and you find out about a missed dose the same day, not weeks later.
Cooker, iron, tap – monitoring what’s been “left on”
The problem A cooker left on, a tap left running, an iron left plugged in – each of these problems starts quietly.
How do we solve it? We monitor the power consumption of the electric cooker and selected appliances: if one runs longer than the permitted time, an alert sounds in the kitchen first, then the system notifies you. It can also be set to switch off – on an electric cooker with a contactor installed in the distribution board, not a smart plug. On a gas cooker, a motorised valve actuator fitted to the existing manual gas tap provides similar protection. Water leak sensors go under the sink and the washing machine; a heat detector goes in the kitchen (a smoke detector would give false alarms during cooking), smoke detectors in the hallway and the bedroom, and a carbon monoxide detector in the room with the gas appliance, 1–3 metres from the appliance. These raise the alarm not just in the flat but on your phone too.
What you get An alert about typical household hazards before any damage is done – through warnings, not prohibitions.
A cold flat and broken heating
The problem Older people often don’t feel the cold or don’t mention it; a boiler fault in winter can go unnoticed for days.
How do we solve it? Temperature monitoring in the living room and the bedroom: if the temperature stays below the set value for a sustained period, you get a notification. If the heating can be controlled, you can adjust it remotely – while your parent can still use the familiar thermostat as before. With backup power and alarm reporting over the mobile network, you are also alerted to power cuts, and, if the system is connected to the boiler, to the boiler shutting down.
What you get You don’t find out at the weekend visit that it’s thirteen degrees in the flat.
Who’s at the door? – a video intercom for the family too
The problem “Grandchild” scams (where a caller poses as a relative in trouble) and door-to-door salespeople rely on older people’s trust. Anyone can say over the intercom that they have come to read the gas meter.
How do we solve it? A video intercom whose picture appears both on your parent’s indoor unit and on your phone: you can both see who is ringing – and if necessary, you can talk to them. The carer and the family open the door with their own code or card – in an apartment building, connected to the shared intercom – and for any other visitor a decision has to be made – you can join in on that too.
What you get It is harder for strangers to get in – and you don’t need to be there for that.
The carer and the family: who was there, and when
The problem You have given keys to the carer, the neighbour, your brother or sister – and now you don’t even know who was there when, or who still has a working key.
How do we solve it? A smart lock on the front door: your parent opens it with a key or a simple button just as before; the carer uses their own code or card, and every use is logged; when the carer changes, you can replace it with a single click. In an emergency, you can also open the door remotely for the ambulance crew.
What you get Clear visibility of who comes into the flat – and the paramedics don’t have to break the door down.
When a camera is needed after all: the care camera
To be honest: sometimes sensors are not enough. In those cases the most accurate solution is a camera with built-in artificial intelligence trained specifically on the risks of old age – the care camera.
This is not the usual security camera. It does not record footage and it is not meant for anyone to watch. The camera itself recognises the event, locally – a fall, a person lying down, unsteady wandering at night, a long period without movement, too much time spent in the bathroom or beside the bed – and only passes on the alert: to you, the carer or the on-call service. With the default settings, the person receiving the alert does not see a live image – they only find out what happened, where and when.
When is it justified? At home, when your relative lives alone, is living with dementia or falls frequently – and routine-based alerts are no longer fast enough. In care settings – care homes, nursing homes, day care centres – in corridors, communal areas and on night shifts, when one nurse is watching over many rooms. We work with professional cameras developed for healthcare by European and Japanese manufacturers. We hand over every installation with the required data protection documentation: what the system recognises, what it does not store and who can see what. The decision is made together with your parent or the management of the care facility – the care camera is an option, not standard equipment.
Why MindzenSmart?
- Routine, not cameras. Movement, doors, temperature, power consumption – this is how we know everything is all right, with no images or sound by default. Privacy is not up for negotiation.
- Your parent keeps their familiar devices. Keys, switches and the thermostat work just as before; the smart features run in the background, with nothing new to learn.
- A police-registered security systems installer. The emergency button and the intercom can also be connected to a dispatch service if you want not only the family but also a 24/7 on-call service to keep watch.
Frequently asked questions
Won’t this feel like “surveillance” to my parents?
No. By default there is neither a camera nor a microphone; the system doesn’t watch what they are doing, only whether the usual routine is happening. We only install it with your parent’s consent; the data stays on the hub running in the flat, and only the designated relative receives notifications. We decide on the settings together with your parent: they can also see what the system reports, when and to whom.
Does my parent need internet access or a smartphone?
Your parent needs neither: on their side, the emergency button, the sensors and the alerts work with simple buttons and sounds. The flat does need an internet connection – if there isn’t one, we solve it with a mobile network device – and you receive the notifications on your phone.
Does this replace the carer or medical supervision?
No. It is not a medical device: it doesn’t diagnose and it doesn’t provide care. It covers the time when nobody is there – it raises the alert in time so that someone – you, the carer, the neighbour or an on-call service – can get there.
What happens if my parent presses the button and I can’t be reached?
We set up the call order in advance: if you don’t answer, it moves on to the next person – a brother or sister, a neighbour, the carer – and, if you wish, to a 24/7 dispatch service, which takes action or sends someone out under the terms set out in the contract. Detection errors or connection outages can happen. The system does not replace the ambulance service: if something is wrong, call 112 first.
Can it be installed in a rented or council-owned flat?
Yes. We stick the sensors on or fix them with two screws, and fit the smart lock to the existing cylinder; the key stays. Everything can be removed when you move out.
Does it work for a relative living with dementia?
Yes – in fact, the night-time door alerts, the cooker monitoring and the path lighting were designed for exactly these situations. We adjust the settings to the stage of the illness and the carer’s advice.
