Coronavirus has become a disaster that brought the global economy to a halt. It’s of the main reasons why the role of emerging technologies is increasing and they are being deployed all across the world to help fight the coronavirus outbreak. How do technologies specifically help tackle COVID-19? Let’s look at some of the examples:
1) Robots
According to Business Insider, China, the U.S., Africa, India, and Europe have put robots to work on disinfecting hospitals, preparing meals at clinics, cleaning, and dispensing hand sanitizers. Moreover, at many hospitals, robots already perform diagnostic testing and conduct thermal imaging.
Furthermore, in China, a Shenzhen based company, Multicopter is using robots to carry medical samples to a lab. Postmates delivery robots transport food around Los Angeles. A hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa, is using a UV light robot to disinfect the facility. Sounds like robots are quickly turning into very helpful assistants.
2) Drones
Drones are no exception to this rule. They have come to the rescue by transporting medical equipment, supplies, and patient samples. It is saving time, enhancing the speed of delivery and preventing the risk of samples being contaminated. Drones, powered with the facial recognition function, are also being used to broadcast warnings to the citizens, asking them not to walk out of their homes and wear facemasks.
For example, a Chinese company in Shenzhen, MicroMultiCopter, deployed more than 100 drones to Chinese cities, such as Shanghai, Guangzhou, Zhaoqing, Foshan and other areas so they could patrol areas and observe people in the streets and traffic more efficiently.
3) Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) technology is gaining more and more attention in the last few months too. With the help of data analytics and AI predictive models, medical professionals can learn more about diseases. Also, AI is used to sort scans to spot the infection. By analyzing news reports, social media platforms, and government documents, AI can learn to identify, track and forecast outbreaks.
Measuring the infectious disease risks with the help of AI is exactly what a Canadian startup, BlueDot, does. Additionally, Infervision, an artificial intelligence company, has launched a coronavirus AI solution that helps sites with limited medical resources to immediately screen patients with suspected coronavirus infection for further diagnosis and treatment.
While doctors are working day and night, Infervision AI is helping manage the process efficiently, assisting with pneumonia marking, abnormal and severe case analysis, patient triage, medical resources coordination, prior case comparisons and treatment assessments.
The coronavirus pandemic is here with us and it is more important than ever to explore carefully every technology that can help fight it. Putting some technologies at use can sometimes introduce its own challenges and fuel debates about privacy and public good. However, in the fight against the coronavirus, technology is playing a critical role by offering better treatment, more information, support, food, schooling and even better safety for many.
It will take a lot of hard work, research, and ingenuity to stop the spread of the virus, but these technological advancements and the ability to quickly and reliably share information across the world will hopefully lead to further discoveries and save millions of lives.
