From coronavirus-zapping drones to smart masks to disease-predicting wearables, the technology sector is showcasing ways to detect and mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic.
The health crisis which forced this week’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) online has also spawned innovations for fighting the pandemic.
Drone maker Draganfly showcased its camera technology that can be used to produce alerts on social distancing and also detect changes in people’s vital signs, which might be an early indicator of COVID-19 infection.
Draganfly chief executive Cameron Chell said that the “vital intelligence assessment” system can be “deployed from any camera, not just a drone camera,” to measure vital signs such as heart or respiratory rate and blood pressure.
The company has been deploying its drones to spray disinfectant in large public spaces, such as sports stadiums.
“This allows public places to have the opportunity to be opened up again,” Chell told a CES online briefing. “We’re completely overwhelmed with demand.”
In a similar vein to the Draganfly system, Taiwan-based FaceHeart demonstrated software that can be installed in cameras for contactless measurement of vital signs.
FaceHeart said its algorithms scan for signs of severe shortness of breath, high fever, dehydration, elevated heart rate and other symptoms which are early indicators of COVID-19.
One new wearable device being shown at CES from Colorado-based BioIntelliSense is a coin-sized sticker called BioButton, which can detect changes in vital signs that could be linked to the coronavirus.
The patch, to be worn on a person’s chest, can detect skin temperature, heart rate, coughing frequency and more, the company said.
The BioButton, which is paired with mobile apps, “represents a significant advancement in making continuous medical-grade monitoring reliable, effortless and cost-effective,” BioIntelliSense chief executive James Mault said.
“The convenience of the BioButton will support a range of clinical use cases ... and mass market use to enable safe return to work or school,” Mault said.
Start-up AirPop Health unveiled is Active+ Smart Mask, which captures breathing-related data and incorporates a sensor which can tell wearers when to replace the filter.
“This product embodies the AirPop mission — to help people better understand and take control of their respiratory health, through a human-centered approach to design, science and technology,” AirPop Health founder Chris Hosmer said.
Meanwhile, gaming technology firm Razer showcased its Project Hazel mask.
It features rechargeable ventilators and a transparent design “so those around you can view facial cues, such as a smile or laugh, and allow the hard of hearing to lip read what the wearer is saying,” the company said.
Another gadget unveiled was the Ettie video doorbell from smart home start-up Plott, which takes the temperature of a visitor at the front door with an infrared sensor, allowing the homeowner to see if a fever is present.
Taiwan-based electronics company iWavenology introduced its iDistance wearable device, which can be used to prevent infections by sounding an alarm when people fail to respect social distancing guidelines.
The tags are worn around the arm and function in a workplace or outdoor environment.
“The pandemic requires everyone to think about innovative solutions to ensure safety for all employees at the workplace,” iWavenology founder Mao Shau-gang (毛紹綱) said. “That is why iWavenology created a simple device that generates an alarm whenever a person comes too close to another.”
CES, which was forced to move to an online format because of the pandemic, included about 1,800 exhibitors and concluded on Thursday.
Tens of thousands of Filipino Catholics yesterday twirled white cloths and chanted “Viva, viva,” as a centuries-old statue of Jesus Christ was paraded through the streets of Manila in the nation’s biggest annual religious event. The day-long procession began before dawn, with barefoot volunteers pulling the heavy carriage through narrow streets where the devout waited in hopes of touching the icon, believed to hold miraculous powers. Thousands of police were deployed to manage crowds that officials believe could number in the millions by the time the statue reaches its home in central Manila’s Quiapo church around midnight. More than 800 people had sought
DENIAL: Pyongyang said a South Korean drone filmed unspecified areas in a North Korean border town, but Seoul said it did not operate drones on the dates it cited North Korea’s military accused South Korea of flying drones across the border between the nations this week, yesterday warning that the South would face consequences for its “unpardonable hysteria.” Seoul quickly denied the accusation, but the development is likely to further dim prospects for its efforts to restore ties with Pyongyang. North Korean forces used special electronic warfare assets on Sunday to bring down a South Korean drone flying over North Korea’s border town. The drone was equipped with two cameras that filmed unspecified areas, the General Staff of the North Korean People’s Army said in a statement. South Korea infiltrated another drone
COMMUNIST ALIGNMENT: To Lam wants to combine party chief and state presidency roles, with the decision resting on the election of 200 new party delegates next week Communist Party of Vietnam General Secretary To Lam is seeking to combine his party role with the state presidency, officials said, in a move that would align Vietnam’s political structure more closely to China’s, where President Xi Jinping (習近平) heads the party and state. Next week about 1,600 delegates are to gather in Hanoi to commence a week-long communist party congress, held every five years to select new leaders and set policy goals for the single-party state. Lam, 68, bade for both top positions at a party meeting last month, seeking initial party approval ahead of the congress, three people briefed by
Cambodia’s government on Wednesday said that it had arrested and extradited to China a tycoon who has been accused of running a huge online scam operation. The Cambodian Ministry of the Interior said that Prince Holding Group chairman Chen Zhi (陳志) and two other Chinese citizens were arrested and extradited on Tuesday at the request of Chinese authorities. Chen formerly had dual nationality, but his Cambodian citizenship was revoked last month, the ministry said. US prosecutors in October last year brought conspiracy charges against Chen, alleging that he had been the mastermind behind a multinational cyberfraud network, used his other businesses to launder
RSS