Combating COVID-19 with IoT Smart Systems – Analytics & AI

In Part 1 and Part 2 we learned about Contact Tracing and Smart Healthcare Systems. This is the final part of the series of blogs on Combating COVID-19 with IoT Smart systems and will focus on how data collection and analytics AI plays a key role in reducing the transmission and spreading of the Corona Virus among the general unsuspecting public.

In any of the modern industrial domains, technology plays an impacting role by assisting the human population in solving complicated problems. The solution to such a complex problem always starts with capturing data and analyzing it to generate meaningful correlation and explanation. As the saying goes all problems can be solved, provided we first understand the exact nature of the issue. In the same lines, the Healthcare industry is an industry that generates a huge amounts of data. It becomes tedious and important to discard unnecessary data and extract useful information to analyze further. Recent advancements in AI and Machine Learning can lift the burden from humans and perform such tasks and provide excellent reports and meaningful insights from the data set.

• The Process of Data collection always starts with the user. Health monitoring applications can use questionnaires or self-assessments to gauge the health of the individual. There have also been virtual assistants where the individual can either get inputs from or get assessed online by a virtual persona capable of conversing in natural language. The data can be stored either in a public or private repository depending on the type of data and the privacy rules.
• The centralized data storage helps in quickly developing solutions and experimental vaccines. Since the data is available to all involved entities, they can focus on using that data to find solutions to their problems. Hospitals can use the data to ensure vacant bed is allotted for the incoming patient and plan the treatment based on the severity of the patient. Pharmaceutical companies can check the severity and understand the nature of the virus if any mutations are present and then quickly start working on the antigens and vaccine to treat any special cases. Public and Govt Authorities can use the data to manage the transfer of patients to hospitals across the city and also keep a tab on the infected and recovered individuals whether in a hospital or home quarantine.
• By utilizing IoT Smart systems, Contact Tracing and Wearables we have been able to generate real-time analytical data to monitor the global impact of the Corona Virus. Public and Private Authorities have made maximum effort to gather data regarding infection, recovery and mortality rate and update the public database with countrywide figures. This helps Analysts, Scientists and Decision-makers across the Globe to take the next step of action specific to each country/state.
• Scientists and Private funded Organizations have also been using AI to simulate the explosion of the COVID-19 outbreak based on the initially gathered infection data to understand how deadly the virus is when it comes to spreading. Different simulations like air-based outbreak, food-based outbreak, contact or proximity-based outbreak have been tested to understand how different countries can have different infection rates. Studies have shown in densely populated areas like China, India the infection spreads quickly due to the inability to social distance. In sparsely populated areas like US, the outbreak was mainly due to fewer lockdown impositions and proximity to infected individuals which in most cases were asymptomatic and has no clue they were infected with the virus.
• Research Scientists have also been using AI to study the virus and have identified it to be a mutated version of the original SARS virus. This helped in developing the initial batch of probable vaccines quickly when the outbreak happened. Researches are still studying the possible mutations and have deduced that the virus can become even stronger as it spreads and is using such simulated mutations to develop vaccines and medications beforehand.

In this three-part series blog, we saw how the Corona outbreak has impacted all industries and the population across the world in unfathomable ways and ways to combat it. In this crucial situation, there came a dire need to develop quick vaccines, ingenious wearables and cutting-edge strategies to combat the outbreak, giving rise to many smaller companies developing isolated niche solutions (SpO2 sensor in wearables & no-contact sanitizer dispenser). Larger companies joined hands to gather data and generate analytics on a global scale. Hopefully, the lessons we have learned shall help in further enhancements in IoT and pharmaceutical industry to win the fight against corona and any such deadly viruses in the future. Don’t forget to wear a mask when you tread outside & wash your hands frequently to keep yourself and everyone around you safe.