COVID-19 is presenting Hong Kong with a range of challenges. In a bid to offset the negative aspects of the change, Hong Kong’s Smart Government Innovation Lab has been putting out a slew of innovations develops by its various incubatees.
Recently, one of its supported firms developed a new temperature measurement solution which is now ready to be acquired by other firms, government agencies and academic institutions.
Solution description
The program is the tech firm’s epidemic prevention product developed for this new coronary pneumonia. According to the research report, the first stage of new coronary pneumonia was low fever, 37.3 degrees.
The tech supports the highest accuracy of ± 0.3 degrees, so it is suitable for detecting human temperature.
Application Areas
The technology can be applied in the areas of Broadcasting, City Management, Climate and Weather, Commerce and Industry, Development, Education, Employment and Labour, Environment, Finance, Food, Health, Housing, Infrastructure, Law and Security, Population, Recreation and Culture, Social Welfare as well as Transport.
Technologies Used
Artificial Intelligence (AI), Data Analytics, Deep Learning, Machine Learning and Video Analytics.
Use case
This epidemic prevention product can identify people whose body temperature exceeds 37.3 degrees, to control them to prevent them from spreading the virus. This product is specially used in public places, hospitals, schools, office buildings, subway stations, high-speed rail stations and so on.
This product has the advantages of stable quality, accurate detection and low cost, which has played a very important role in the recent epidemic prevention.
About the Smart Government Innovation Lab
In 2018, the Government established the Smart Government Innovation Lab to explore hi-tech products such as AI and relevant technologies, including machine learning, big data analytics, cognitive systems and intelligent agent, as well as blockchain and robotics from firms, especially local start-ups.
The Lab is always on the lookout for innovation and technology (I&T) solutions that are conducive to enhancing public services or their operational effectiveness.
I&T suppliers are encouraged to regularly visit the Lab’s website to check on the current business and operational needs in public service delivery and propose innovative solutions or product suggestions to address them.
HK researchers pushing to get ahead of the pandemic
Tech firms are not the only ones pushing hard to get ahead of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to an earlier report by OpenGov Asia, Hong Kong is set to become the world’s first testing ground for the deployment of devices and data analytics tools to remotely monitor COVID-19 virus patients and others under quarantine.
Researchers at the University of Hong Kong (HKU) and a Boston-based health technology start-up are joining forces to start a programme to track the health indicators of 50 confirmed patients and 150 people under quarantine orders.
The volunteer participants will wear a device with built-in sensors on their upper arm 24 hours a day, through which data including their body temperatures, respiratory rates, blood oxygen levels and heart rates will be sent to a digital platform for real-time monitoring and analysis.
The COVID-19 patients often do not show symptoms such as fever or coughing for days after being infected and becoming infectious, so traditional surveillance is not ideal, especially for those under quarantine a cardiology specialist at HKU stated. The platform for COVID-19 monitoring would enable earlier diagnoses.
The effort could grow in significance as the Hong Kong government brings home more than 3,000 of its residents stranded in central Hubei province, the epicentre of the coronavirus outbreak, due to a lockdown in its capital Wuhan and neighbouring cities. More than 400 have been evacuated this week and sent to quarantine centres in the city.
The platform will also collect any other data not currently scientifically linked to the COVID-19 disease, but upon data analysis, some may potentially show correlation.
All parties with the knowledge and resources to help in the fight against COVID-19 are rallying to develop ways of dealing with it.
