This scenario is just one of Amazon's' two patents for tracking wristbands. '' These gadgets are not used at any Amazon executive center because Amazon believes the wearable device's message will give rise to concerns about the workplace Monitoring concerns.
Amazon will not say whether the patent-based technology is in development or in manufacturing.They were released on Wednesday, but Amazon first submitted the patents two years ago.
If implemented, this system could further aggravate the deterioration of the company's relationship with workers.
'It can put staff at risk and affect overall morale and working culture,' said Kate Bischoff, owner of tHRive, an employment law and human resources consultancy.
Amazon warehouse staff have been complaining about hard working conditions for years, including: high labor intensity, low pay, short breaks and depressing working conditions. '
In the patent specification, the tracking device is carefully described as a method of collecting inventory data rather than tracking individual employees.
'The speculation about this patent is wrong,' said one Amazon spokeswoman, who told CNN Technologies that if he implemented it in the future, it would improve the way employees work, and through the wearable device their hands and eyes will move from the scanner And liberated from the computer screen.
The system will use ultrasonic pulses, which are not detectable by the human ear, and are used to track the worker's hand by connecting to the inventory module on the box. The vibrations will send information to the wearer, for example, when they put something in the wrong box remind them.
The system simplifies the current warehouse workflow Amazon's 'buyers' stand in front of shelves, drop items into boxes and track them with handheld barcode scanners.
Any wearable device can collect the personal information of a large number of employees, even unconscious, and they can gather detailed information about every move of workers, such as when they go to the bathroom, when to slow down in a day, and when they stop The frequency of rest and so on.
Amazon is constantly trying out new innovations and technologies in its warehouses, and it has succeeded in automating a large number of traditional human tasks with customized robots.
Regardless of whether wearable devices are used or not, the company's warehouse is likely to introduce additional high-tech tools to boost productivity, perhaps using more robots, and whoever does not mind watching.