Introduction of Korea's First NFC-Enabled 'Smart Object Address Plate'
Installed at 111 Locations... Enables Rapid Response by Police and Fire Services
'In an emergency, touch the object address plate with your mobile phone.'
Osan City, Gyeonggi Province, announced on the 27th that it has introduced and started installing the country's first 'Smart Autonomous Object Address Plate' equipped with Near Field Communication (NFC) technology.
Osan City’s electric wheelchair charger (left) and the 'Smart Autonomous Object Address Plate' installed on a mailbox. Equipped with NFC functionality, it can automatically send the exact location to the police or fire department when a mobile phone is tapped in an emergency. [Photo by Osan City]
An object address plate is a guide board that displays numbers or road names in spaces frequently used by citizens to accurately convey their location to the police (112) or fire department (119) in case of an emergency. The smart object address plate installed by the city this time is equipped with NFC functionality, allowing users to transmit their location to the police and fire stations simply by touching it.
The city introduced the smart object address plate to solve the problem of delayed response caused by failure to identify locations during crisis situations. For example, in May, a drunk-driving motorcycle accident occurred at a market in Seoul, and although the police received the report, they were unable to accurately determine the reporter's location, resulting in a delayed response.
A city official expressed expectations that "the newly introduced smart autonomous object address plate can automatically send the reporter's location via text message (SMS), which will help resolve the issue of delayed location identification."
The newly introduced object address plate features a white high-intensity reflective panel, unlike the existing standard blue background plates, enhancing visibility. To improve accessibility for socially vulnerable groups such as the visually impaired and the elderly, it is also equipped with transparent braille plates and object images.
The city is conducting a pilot operation by installing smart object address plates at a total of 111 locations closely related to citizens' daily lives, including ▲heat shelters (57 locations) ▲mailboxes (29 locations) ▲electric wheelchair chargers (14 locations) ▲bicycle racks (2 locations) ▲emergency fire extinguishing devices (9 locations). The city plans to expand the installation of smart object address plates sequentially next year to include national point numbers and building number plates and detailed address plates within Osaek Market, in cooperation with related organizations such as Osan Police Station, Osan Fire Station, and the Osaek Market Merchants Association.
Meanwhile, Mayor Lee Gwon-jae of Osan City has set citizen safety protection as a key direction of the 8th elected administration's policy and is continuously expanding safety facilities, including converting all CCTV systems in the city to intelligent systems.
Mayor Lee said, "The smart autonomous object address plate will be a great help in emergencies where every second counts," and added, "We will actively promote and expand this system going forward."
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