An Evaluation of the Technologies Used for the Real-Time Monitoring of the Risk of Falling from Height in Construction—Systematic Review

Abstract

The construction industry has the highest number of fatal accidents compared to other industries. However, manual safety compliance monitoring is complex and difficult for safety engineers, and more automated solutions need to be found. The main research objective was to review the state of the art of real-time monitoring technologies used to assess the risk of falling from height in the construction sector. A systematic review is proposed in order to summarise the technologies used for real-time monitoring in the construction sector, following the PRISMA methodology. Only studies that assessed the risk of falling in real time were selected. From an initial set of 1289 articles, 40 were classified as strictly relevant to addressing the research questions. Various technologies that use artificial intelligence have been designed to monitor workers in real time and to send alerts to workers at any time in the event of a risk situation, thus preventing accidents. This study showed that new technologies are being introduced to predict the risk of a fall in real time, changing the approach from reactive to proactive and allowing this monitoring to improve workplace surveillance and safety. Further research is needed to develop effective systems that are easy for people to use without compromising productivity.