Public safety and government Case study
Silent Beacon: personal safety apps and web portal
silentbeacon.com (opens in a new tab)Android app: Google Play (opens in a new tab)iOS app: App Store (opens in a new tab)Android and iOS apps, a backend and a web portal for the Silent Beacon Bluetooth safety beacon: alerts, live location, subscriptions and business accounts, maintained over eight years.
- Client
- Silent Beacon
- Service
- Mobile apps, Web apps, Integrations
- Years
- 2016–2024 (8 years)
- Stack
- iOS, Android, Firebase, WooCommerce and 5 more
- Platforms
- iOS, Android, Web
Overview
Silent Beacon is a personal safety product: a physical beacon that pairs with an Android or iOS app to send emergency alerts, share location and notify chosen contacts, including emergency services. We worked on both mobile apps, the backend APIs, the web portal and the marketing site for eight years, from early pairing work through to business accounts and subscriptions.
The challenge
Keep two native apps, a Bluetooth device, a backend and a web portal working together while the product kept growing: new firmware to support, paid subscriptions, group and business accounts, more languages, and a data migration to Firebase.
What we built
- Android and iOS apps that pair with the beacon over Bluetooth and handle firmware update screens
- Emergency alerts with real-time location tracking, map integration and customizable alerts
- Backend APIs for map tracking and user management, plus a data migration to Firebase
- Encrypted data handling and secure API communication across both apps and the backend
- Sign-in flows including phone number verification and password management
- Subscription management connected to WooCommerce and payment gateways through cloud functions
- A business module for groups, alerts and user roles, with a web portal for administration
- Push notifications (Urban Airship), analytics (Flurry, Google Analytics), in-app messaging and Zendesk chat support
- Multi-language support in the mobile apps
- Ongoing QA, bug fixing and performance work across all components, plus website speed and on-page SEO for the marketing site
- Real-time messaging between the app and the backend over XMPP
- One-tap calls and messages to emergency numbers, and in-app purchases for premium features
- Offline data through the Firebase real-time database and Firebase Cloud Messaging
How a system like this fits together
- Client side
- Services
- Data stores
- Third parties
In words: The Android and iOS apps pair with the Bluetooth LE beacon and talk to the backend APIs, which also serve the business web portal. The backend side includes XMPP for real-time messaging and cloud functions that connect subscriptions to WooCommerce. Data lives in Firebase (real-time database and Cloud Messaging). Urban Airship delivers push notifications to the apps, and the apps use Zendesk for chat support and Flurry for analytics.
Technology used
| Layer | Choice | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile | Android, iOS | native apps that pair with the beacon |
| Data and sync | Firebase | real-time database, Cloud Messaging and offline data |
| Subscriptions | WooCommerce | subscription management through cloud functions |
| Device link | Bluetooth LE | pairing with the hardware beacon |
| Real-time messaging | XMPP | messaging between the app and the backend |
| Push notifications | Urban Airship | alerts to the apps |
| Analytics | Flurry, Google Analytics | usage analytics |
| Support | Zendesk | chat support in the app |
What happened next
- Delivered
The work described above was delivered to the client.
- Operational facts
- Our work on this project spanned 2016–2024.
- It was maintained and extended over 8 years.
Screens
Could this be your project?
- You are planning an iOS or Android app, or have one that needs a stronger back end behind it. Mobile app development
- You need a web application with user accounts, admin tools and reporting. Website and web app development
- You work in public safety and government and want a team that has built for it before. Public safety and government work
Questions about this project
How long did this project take?
Our work on it ran from 2016 to 2024, with 37,000+ engineering hours logged in total.
What technology was used?
iOS, Android, Firebase, WooCommerce, Bluetooth LE, Urban Airship, Flurry, Zendesk, XMPP.
Was it maintained and extended over time?
Yes. Our work on this project was maintained and extended over 8 years, from 2016 to 2024.
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