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20-year-old Durban entrepreneur designs wristband to help people maintain social distancing

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While the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact the lives of people across the world, a budding 20-year-old entrepreneur from KwaMashu in Durban has designed a wristband to help people maintain social distancing.
Landile Mabele’s novel device vibrates when social distancing is breached. The device also monitors your temperature and deters people from touching their face. Similar devices were used at last year’s London Marathon to keep athletes socially distanced from each other during the race.
Mabele used technology to fight COVID-19 by designing a device to make wearers more aware of their habits. He’s now has turned his bedroom into a workshop, working day and night on his invention.
It requires both people to be wearing the device for it to work. It vibrates when social distancing is breached. It beeps loudly, urging the wearers to move further apart.

Mabele says it can work to reinforce social distancing at schools.

“I saw that children were not adhering to social distancing. They have a tendency to hug each other, touch each other. Then I saw that there must be an intervention, which will help us in terms of keeping safe and keeping others safe.”
He says he wants to study electronics and become an entrepreneur in the technology industry. He is currently waiting for his matric results. He hopes that his invention will make it easier for people to follow COVID-19 protocols.
“They say if you maintain social distancing, you reduce the chances of contracting the virus. So, my bracelet ensures that. If another person is wearing it and I’m wearing it and I come close to you, it will tell us that we are too close and it will notify you that you must social distance. If the distance between you and the other person is greater than 1,5m, it will switch off, which shows that you are in the green zone and also, it takes your temperature. So, if your temperature continues to be too high, the app will notify you and tell you that your temperature is too high. It is possible that can you take a COVID-19 test, to rule out the possibility that you are COVID-19 positive or it is just the normal flu with fever.”
Mabele’s father, Sfiso, is appealing for those already in the technology space to help his son fulfill his dream of seeing more of these wristbands being produced.
“I wish that he gets sponsors for his work because this is his life.”
This is the latest in a series of inventions from this local tech fundie. And Mabele is hoping that others will see its potential to help more South Africans.

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