Mobile App for a Smart Ring with a Concealed Panic Button

Nimb

Nimb is a personal security system. It establishes emergency communication with friends and family members, emergency services, or committed people nearby.

The Nimb system comprises a smart ring and a mobile app.

47

countries have smart ring users

$537,000

kickstarter investment

3,000

rings pre-ordered

Business challenge

Nimb founders developed a ring with a concealed panic button to help people in emergency situations instantly send out a distress signal and share their location. For example, if someone got into an accident, collapsed, or was attacked on the street.

Our task was to develop a mobile application and ensure its uninterrupted Bluetooth connection with the ring. The wearable device served only as a panic button, whereas the app bore all the operation logic behind it.

Developed features

Trusted list

A user can create their Trusted list by selecting trusted contacts and sending them invitations. Those who accept the invitation are added to the list, and receive notifications in the event of an emergency.

Safety circles

These are the lists of people and services that receive notifications when the panic button is pushed.

Relatives and friends

The first circle is made up of family members and friends. This is the user’s Trusted list. They receive an emergency signal in four ways: an installed app, email, ring vibration, and SMS. People from the first circle receive an emergency signal in case it is activated by their family member or friend.

Emergency services

The second circle represents emergency services such as ambulance, the police, and fire departments. When activated, Nimb sends the user location to a special call center. From there, the operator contacts an emergency service and reports the user’s details, such as current location, location history, and medical data.

People of the Nimb mutual aid community

The third circle consists of people from the Nimb mutual aid community. They subscribe to tags, and if a user with such a tag sends an emergency signal, community members will see it on a map.

A user can have different notification settings for different circles. For example, if the user leaves for another city, they can turn off notifications for the first circle and keep notifications only for the emergency services and people nearby.

Coordinating help

The app tracks the geolocation of a user and creates a coordination chatroom. The chat includes everyone who has responded to the signal and decided to come to the user’s aid.

The people in chat can view the user and each other on a map, and exchange messages to coordinate their actions. They also hear what goes on at the incident location, as the app records the background audio and broadcasts it to the chatroom.

Medical record and interests in the profile

The Nimb user profile is similar to a social media profile. A user specifies their height, weight, blood type, allergies, and chronic conditions. An emergency response group can check this information and respond appropriately if the user collapses.

Here, the user also details how to get into their home or on their workplace, so that an ambulance or firefighters do not lose time looking for the right entrance.

The app now also has an interest-based tag system, as the founders learned that users more readily help people with similar interests.

Keeping up with the Nimb ring

We were developing the app while the client's team was still working on the ring. The ring had four versions before the release, and we had to follow each version and adapt the app to the new functionalities on the go. It was quite challenging, but in the end we ensured a reliable connection.

In-app Nimb store

Users can choose the ring color and place an order online in the store within the app.

Outcomes

We developed and launched native apps for iOS and Android platforms from scratch. We helped bring to life the idea of a personal security system that allows its users to send notifications to emergency services, come to the aid of those in need, and join a community of committed people.

$537,000

kickstarter investment

47

countries have smart ring users

3,000

rings preordered