Close Menu
The Baylor Lariat
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    Trending
    • Baylor community unites in flash flood relief efforts
    • Baylor rescinds LGBTQIA+ inclusion research grant after backlash
    • Students react to emergency alert following campus lockdown
    • Baylor shelter-in-place lifted following police pursuit of robbery suspects
    • Baylor graduate charged after killing cats with pellet gun, hanging bodies over utility lines
    • Baylor Football’s Alex Foster dies at 18
    • Board of Regents confirms budget, renovations, new leadership in May meeting
    • How facilities responds to storms, flooding in campus buildings
    • About us
      • Spring 2025 Staff Page
      • Copyright Information
    • Contact
      • Contact Information
      • Letters to the Editor
      • Subscribe to The Morning Buzz
      • Department of Student Media
    • Employment
    • PDF Archives
    • RSS Feeds
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    The Baylor LariatThe Baylor Lariat
    Subscribe to the Morning Buzz
    Thursday, July 10
    • News
      • State and National News
        • State
        • National
      • Politics
        • 2025 Inauguration Page
        • Election Page
      • Homecoming Page
      • Baylor News
      • Waco Updates
      • Campus and Waco Crime
    • Arts & Life
      • Wedding Edition 2025
      • What to Do in Waco
      • Campus Culture
      • Indy and Belle
      • Sing 2025
      • Leisure and Travel
        • Leisure
        • Travel
          • Baylor in Ireland
      • Student Spotlight
      • Local Scene
        • Small Businesses
        • Social Media
      • Arts and Entertainment
        • Art
        • Fashion
        • Food
        • Literature
        • Music
        • Film and Television
    • Opinion
      • Editorials
      • Points of View
      • Lariat Letters
    • Sports
      • March Madness 2025
      • Football
      • Basketball
        • Men’s Basketball
        • Women’s Basketball
      • Soccer
      • Baseball
      • Softball
      • Volleyball
      • Equestrian
      • Cross Country and Track & Field
      • Acrobatics & Tumbling
      • Tennis
      • Golf
      • Pro Sports
      • Sports Takes
      • Club Sports
    • Lariat TV News
    • Multimedia
      • Video Features
      • Podcasts
        • Don’t Feed the Bears
      • Slideshows
    • Advertising
    The Baylor Lariat
    Home»News»Baylor News

    New wireless occupancy tracker displayed in Baylor libraries

    Ava DunwoodyBy Ava DunwoodySeptember 28, 2020 Baylor News No Comments3 Mins Read
    The current occupancy screen in Moody is located on the first floor in the hallway between Starbucks and the rest of Moody library. The screen shows each floor and its available seating capacity that changes as seats are taken up. Brittney Matthews | Photo Editor
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    By Ava Dunwoody | Staff Writer

    A new monitor found on the first level of Moody Memorial Library is part of Baylor’s new use of Occuspace, a tracking device that displays capacity levels on each floor. Occuspace uses Bluetooth and Wifi signals to determine the number of people in each area.

    According to their website, Occuspace works by using sensors to scan for online activity, including “laptops, cell phones, wearables, and other connected devices” without using personal information. The system then uses specific algorithms to estimate capacity levels with over 90% accuracy.

    David Burns, associate vice president of library and academic technology services, said that the library worked with Information Technology Services over the summer to install Occuspace.

    “As the university was preparing for fall, we realized this was a tool that could help us keep our numerous study spaces in the Moody and Jones Libraries open safely during the pandemic and provide a valuable service to students,” Burns said.

    Burns said the library is working to add more “digital signage” around the building, but for right now, students can find occupancy information on the first floor monitor, downloading the “Waitz” app or visiting the website.

    Dean of Libraries Jeffry Archer had used Occuspace at a different institution and sparked the idea of using it at Baylor, Burns said. From there, he said it became a part of Baylor’s COVID-19 response expenses and “was a relatively minor cost” compared to other precautions taken by the university.

    “For students, live occupancy data can be helpful in deciding where to study,” Burns said. “As we have reduced the available seating because of social distancing, it can be challenging to find a spot to work. Occuspace lets you see how busy each area of the library is before you even arrive. The app also allows you to see trends in space usage, so students can see when that favorite study spot is historically less crowded.”

    Fort Worth senior Avery Owens, who studies in Moody Memorial Library, said that it may help students during a difficult time to be in public.

    “I think it’s a good recourse for students to be able to know how many students are on each floor,” Owens said. “It’s a safety feature — just an extra precaution that Baylor is enforcing.”

    Not only does it help the students, Burns said, but it also helps the administrative staff monitor occupancy levels. One of the features of Occuspace is an alert system that can send a notification to administrators if a floor has exceeded capacity so that they can enforce social distancing.

    There are now some dining halls around campus that are also making use of Occuspace. Burns said he encourages “any student who could benefit from this tool” to download the “Waitz” app to find more information on this. They plan to use Occuspace in the future as well.

    “Just in the times we are living in,” Owens said, “I think it’s better to know more than to know less. We need as much information as possible so you are able to know exactly how many people are on each floor and you can use that to decide whether or not you want to study on that floor.”

    Ava Dunwoody

    Keep Reading

    Baylor community unites in flash flood relief efforts

    Baylor rescinds LGBTQIA+ inclusion research grant after backlash

    Students react to emergency alert following campus lockdown

    Baylor shelter-in-place lifted following police pursuit of robbery suspects

    Baylor graduate charged after killing cats with pellet gun, hanging bodies over utility lines

    Baylor Football’s Alex Foster dies at 18

    Add A Comment

    Comments are closed.

    Recent Posts
    • Baylor community unites in flash flood relief efforts July 9, 2025
    • Baylor rescinds LGBTQIA+ inclusion research grant after backlash July 9, 2025
    About

    The award-winning student newspaper of Baylor University since 1900.

    Articles, photos, and other works by staff of The Baylor Lariat are Copyright © Baylor® University. All rights reserved.

    Subscribe to the Morning Buzz

    Get the latest Lariat News by just Clicking Subscribe!

    Follow the Live Coverage
    Tweets by @bulariat

    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    • Featured
    • News
    • Sports
    • Opinion
    • Arts and Life
    © 2025 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.