Innovations in IoT — Defending against Novel Coronavirus
Covid-19 and the innovations in IoT
In recent times, the development in the Internet of Things (IoT) has offered unparalleled benefits to the healthcare domain, where it plays an important role in different phases of various infectious diseases primarily with applications in remote monitoring and real-time health systems. At the current pandemic time of novel coronavirus, IoT-based applications are providing vital and sustainable assistance in different phases — diagnosis, quarantine, recovery, and vaccination.
A recent research article published in the Journal of Healthcare Informatics Research explained the applications of IoT technologies in the medical and healthcare field and highlighted the potential.
Let’s go through a few of the many IoT devices and applications including wearables, drones, robots, IoT buttons, and smartphone applications that are deployed in the frontlines to strive against different phases of COVID-19.
Diagnosis
Smart Thermometers
There have been various thermometers developed during this phase. For instance, Kinsa Health has been tracking fevers from its network of millions of smartphone-connected thermometers. Kinsa’s product does not just take your temperature. The app asks you a series of questions about your symptoms and thereby helping to decide if you need to see a doctor.
Smart Helmet
KC N901 Smart Helmet from KC Wearable to help track the spread of COVID-19. The KC N901 is primarily being used for fever detection. The wearable device can screen as many as 200 people per minute, determining each pedestrian’s temperature with 96 percent accuracy. The results are displayed on a visor and can capture everyone within seven meters of the wearer.
Smart Glasses
Hangzhou-based startup Rokid developed a pair of glasses, known as T1, to help screen for symptoms.
Apart from fixed temperature measurement, T1 can provide portable, distant, and prompt temperature checking, which would be a great help. Equipped with an infrared sensor and a camera, the glasses allow the wearer to “see” peoples’ temperatures.
Smartphone Applications
There has been rapid development and advancements in mobile health applications by various healthcare and technology companies.to address the needs of healthcare and public health system including contact tracing, health information dissemination, symptom checking, and providing tools for training healthcare providers.
Quarantine
Wearable bands
Wearable tech is playing a crucial role which is effective at monitoring a number of physical and physiological parameters such as heart rate, body temperature, blood pressure, movement, sleep, and more.
Disinfectant Drone
DJI produced a type of drone with the ability to sanitize and disinfect 100 meters in 1 hour.
Collaboration tools and applications
Asimov Robotics in India designed and developed a three-wheeled robot to help patients in isolated areas with tasks such as preparing food and providing medication and also preventing healthcare workers from being in that area.
Smartphone and Smarthome applications
V-app Social Monitoring, Selfie App, Civitas, Stay safe are a few of the many applications developed for surveillance and monitoring during this phase
Recovery
Easy Band
EasyBand is one of the efficient IoT devices to enable smart social distancing. This wearable device, integrated with the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), senses and captures data from other devices. EasyBand functions within a definite radius and indicates potential risk by its LED lights if individuals are in close proximity.
Instant Trace
Instant-Trace™ developed by Fleetwood Electronics is capable of accurately measuring the proximity between users. It uses Ultra-wideband technology with a proprietary distance measuring protocol and is far more accurate than devices using Bluetooth or Wifi. Unlike other Ultra wideband solutions, Instant-Trace™ doesn’t require daily or regular recharging,
Smartphone Applications
Arogya Setu, TraceTogether, eRouska are some of the many applications developed in defense against the virus. For instance, Aarogya Setu is designed for better communication between health service providers and people. In the application, the user will be asked if he or she has any symptoms of COVID-19 or has recently traveled internationally.
Analyzing the input data from the users along with their tracking information, Aarogya Setu is able to notify the user if he or she has had contact with someone who is already or later becomes a confirmed case.
Vaccination
Temperature Monitoring
IoT devices are deployed to keep track of the temperature in storage facilities and during transportation of Covid vaccines.
IoT is well established to measure quality indicators for medications and other perishable products, the functions are being enhanced by calibrating the devices to act in accordance with vaccine storage and temperature control specifications.
Real-time Analytics
Devices are also being deployed to effectively track and monitor the logistics by integrating the supply with real-time dashboards with the integration software applications.
The Future
Utilizing these tools, and the data that they provide, planning of future deliveries, vaccination drives can be further enhanced for an all-inclusive management plan for the distribution and management. There are many ongoing efforts in the research and industrial communities to utilize different technologies to detect, treat, and trace the virus to mitigate its impacts.
With the constant evolution in IoT and its integration with Artificial Intelligence (AI), big data, and security policies there is much to gain from the use of IoT in healthcare. It’s a steep learning curve, but the rewards could be boundless.
