Build Change open sources ISAC-SIMO project with the Linux Foundation
Simple mobile app helps communities flag sub-standard housing in danger from natural disasters
According to a CNBC article, “climate change is causing more frequent and intense disasters like storms, heat waves and wildfires, and economic losses are also growing as more people build in disaster-prone areas.” While the impacts of increasing disasters on the economy are alarming, there’s another category gravely affected as well — human lives.
Particularly in poor urban communities where sub-standard construction is unfortunately common, citizens within these areas experience a high rate of collapsing houses, dilapidated schools, and unstable architecture that is hanging on by a thread at the mercy of the next storm. Technology has a role to play in improving housing resilience for those in need, and saving lives around the world.
As part of the 2018 Call for Code Global Challenge, an international group of problem solvers known as Build Change built a solution to bring aid to the communities desperate for an answer to their sub-standard housing issue. The result — a mobile app that harnesses the power of machine learning and image processing to provide feedback on specific construction elements such as masonry walls and reinforced concrete columns. Users can choose a building element check and upload a photo from the site to receive a quick assessment.
Through the help of IBM and the Linux Foundation, the Build Change team has officially open sourced their solution, known as ISAC-SIMO and is looking for your contributions to make the application more expansive for various users.
Read more about the Build Change story, and find out how you can contribute to the ISAC-SIMO project here.
If you want to see your great ideas turned into action, get involved with the Call for Code Global Challenge
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