SmartGate and One More Life: Enhanced Safety with Walltopia

The use of auto-belays in climbing gyms has been a highly debated topic in the industry for the past decade. While they have significantly improved the customer experience and increased the number of climbers in gyms, they have also been linked to an increase number of accidents, sometimes with tragic consequences. How can we improve climber safety? This is the question that Walltopia, a wall manufacturer, has been asking. Their answer lies in the SmartGate and One More Life mats.

Auto-belays offer undeniable advantages for climbers. They allow individuals to climb independently without the need for a partner. They also provide a convenient way to warm up or cool down. Consequently, most climbing centers offer this service to their customers. Some, like Climbing District, have even dedicated entire areas to this concept, converting old chapels into vertical havens. However, these new forms of climbing have introduced new safety challenges.

Issues related to auto-belays

Indeed, across all networks and worldwide, accidents involving auto-belays are on the rise. This is a troubling trend. In most cases, these falls are due to negligence, such as improper attachment to the device. When these falls occur at the top of the wall, the consequences can be fatal, as evidenced by a recent deadly accident in Lyon.

From an ethical standpoint, gym owners can no longer hide behind disclaimers, mandatory introductory courses, or simple informational signs. It is likely that safety standards will evolve over time. Moreover, insurance companies are increasingly hesitant, if not refusing, to cover gyms that use these automatic belay systems.

Counterintuitively, data shows that these accidents occur among both beginners and experienced climbers. Therefore, a lack of experience is less of a factor than a lack of vigilance. There is an urgent need for solutions to improve climber safety and streamline the management of these spaces that are freely accessible and autonomous. This is exactly what Walltopia has achieved with the SmartGate and One More Life mats.

Enhanced Safety with Walltopia

In an effort to improve safety in climbing gyms, wall manufacturer Walltopia, in partnership with Safety Engineering, has developed innovative solutions to address common concerns. These solutions are designed to make life easier for gym managers and, more importantly, to enhance climber safety, particularly those using auto-belays. The result is the SmartGate system with its sound and visual alarm, as well as the One More Life safety mat, which can prevent injuries or fatalities in falls of up to 17 meters.

SmartGate: An Effective Safety Reminder

The SmartGate is a new safety system capable of detecting if climbers has forgotten to attach themselves to the auto-belay. Specifically, a sound and visual alarm is triggered when the climber reaches a predetermined height without being connected to the auto-belay. This is made possible by two innovative components.

First, the Smart motion sensor technology detects movement via sensors embedded in the climbing wall at a height of approximately 2.5 meters. Second, the safety triangle at the base of the wall, where the belay device carabiner is attached, is also equipped with an orientation detection device. This device continuously monitors whether the triangle is in a vertical position (connected to the auto-belay) or horizontal (on the ground, indicating that the climber is connected).

Therefore, if a climber forgets to attach themselves to the system and exceeds the predetermined height, a sound and visual alarm is activated. Integrated LEDs in the wall flash and a siren sounds, alerting staff to immediately intervene and lower the climber to safety.

SmartGate: The Advantages

In our opinion, the main advantage for users is that the system is fully automated. Unlike other systems on the market, there is no need to attach sensors to your harness (which can be bulky, uncomfortable, and easily forgotten). This is also an advantage for gym managers, as they do not need to equip their customers with additional devices. In short, SmartGate does not impose any additional requirements on end users.

In terms of installation, SmartGate is also very simple and can be adapted to existing walls. It does not require a specialized installer, thanks to its “plug and play” design. The customizable safety triangle is attached to the front of the climbing wall using the provided mounting kit. The sensors are inserted into pre-drilled holes directly on the climbing wall. The only prerequisite for installation is a power source behind the wall to power the main control unit.

SmartGate also performs regular self-checks. It alerts staff if a climbing route is not monitored due to mechanical problems or communication failures. It also signals low battery levels through the integrated visual system. In the event of a failure of the main control system, it will alert staff via a visual or audible signal. The system is very reliable and thus guarantees increased safety.

One More Life: Innovation for Climbing Mats

To minimize risks, Walltopia, in partnership with Climbmat, has also developed One More Life, a special type of mat or floor covering. It has been proven to significantly reduce the risk of serious injury in the event of a fall from heights of up to 17 meters. This innovation allows, in case of human error, to mitigate the severity of accidents thanks to the mat’s crushable components.

The role of One More Life is to absorb a large part of the kinetic energy and to reduce the force of deceleration in case of a fall. This video shows a test conducted with a crash test dummy (an anthropomorphic mannequin used in the automotive industry during crash tests to measure the impact). It’s quite impressive!

In practice, One More Life consists of two parts. First, a low-impact absorption layer, which safely absorbs the energy of falls up to 3 meters. Then, a high-impact energy absorption layer that absorbs the energy of falls from greater heights. This is a sacrificial module that, once crushed, must be replaced. Given that the modular structure allows for partial replacement in case of falls of more than 3 meters.

Although regulations in climbing gyms do not theoretically require more than a 5 to 10 cm thick mat to limit the consequences of a fall before the first bolt (NF P90-312 standard), Walltopia felt a moral obligation to do everything possible to reduce the severity of an accident should it occur. One More Life therefore seems to be a significant advancement in terms of safety!