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What technologies have already been called on to fight against coronavirus?

So, coronavirus is the most relevant topic in recent weeks. We, too, fell into a wave of general panic, purchased with arbidol and canned goods, switched to home schooling and work, handed over air tickets. Therefore, we had more free time, and we collected some interesting solutions and technologies that are used to combat the epidemic (most of the cases are from China).

First, some statistics:


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UFO Care Minute


The pandemic COVID-19, a potentially severe acute respiratory infection caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus (2019-nCoV), has officially been announced in the world. There is a lot of information on Habré on this topic - always remember that it can be both reliable / useful, and vice versa.

We urge you to be critical of any published information.


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Chinese drones, which were previously used to spray pesticides in agriculture, quickly adapted to spray disinfectants in crowded places and in public transport. For these purposes, use drones XAG Technology. On farms, one such device covers 60 hectares per hour.

Drones began to be used for delivery. And while the mail technology in Russia bumps into the customer’s wall at best, the Chinese government, together with JD, worked out a system for delivering goods in just a few days: they designed flight corridors, received permission to use the flight space, and conducted tests.

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Let us recognize that the atmosphere of universal self-isolation and quarantine will affect not only our mental health, but also the automation and development of robotics. Now in China, robots from the Danish company UVD Robots, a device equipped with ultraviolet lamps (the upper part, see photo), are engaged in the disinfection of hospitals. The robot is controlled remotely, while it creates a digital map of the room. A hospital employee notes on the map the points that the robot must process, it takes 10-15 minutes to complete one room. The developers claim that the robot kills 99% of microorganisms within a radius of one meter in a few minutes. And if a person enters the room during disinfection, the device will automatically turn off ultraviolet lamps.

By the way, Youibot, another Chinese manufacturer of robots, promised to create the same sterilization robot in 14 days, but much cheaper (the Danes worked on their own four years). So far, one UVD Robots robot costs hospitals $ 80 to $ 90 thousand.

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Smart apps that decide who to quarantine


The Chinese government, together with Alibaba and Tencent, developed a system for assessing the quarantine status of a person using a color QR code. An additional feature is now built into the Alipay payment application. The user fills out an online form with data on recent trips, health status and movements around the city. After registration, the application issues an individual color QR-code (by the way, in China, almost all payments are made by QR): red, yellow or green. Depending on the color, the user either receives an order to remain in quarantine or permission to appear in public places.

Citizens with a red code must remain in quarantine for 14 days, with yellow - for seven. Green color, respectively, removes all restrictions on movement.
There are control points for checking the QR code in almost all public places (the temperature is also usually checked there). The Chinese government says the system will help PPC staff work on roads and railways. But Hangzhou residents are already reporting that some are being asked to provide QR codes at the entrance to residential complexes and shopping and entertainment centers.

But the residents of the country themselves become the most important element of public control, who regularly inform the city authorities of suspicious neighbors. For example, in Shijiazhuang, local residents are offered a reward of up to 2 thousand yuan (22 thousand rubles) for information about people who traveled to Wuhan and did not report it, or for information about those who violated the prescribed quarantine.

AR Helmets (Mixed Reality) for Police


Police in Shanghai and some other cities in China were given AR helmets, developed by Kuang-Chi Technology. The device allows you to check the temperature of people at a distance of up to 5 meters using infrared cameras in a few seconds. If the helmet detects a person with a fever, an audio alert is turned on. The device is also equipped with a camera with an algorithm for recognizing faces and reading a QR code. Information about the citizen will be displayed on the virtual screen inside the helmet.

Helmets, of course, look very futuristic.

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The Chinese police are doing well in this regard: since 2018, employees of the railway station in Henan have been given smart glasses that resemble Google Glass. The device allows you to take photos, shoot videos in HD-quality and display some elements on the lenses using augmented reality technology. Well, of course, it could not do without the face recognition function (GLXSS glasses - development of a local startup LLVision).

According to the Chinese police, during the month of using smart glasses, police detained 26 passengers with fake passports and seven wanted people.

And finally - big data


China is the world leader in the number of smart video cameras that already help determine the circle of contacts of infected citizens, crowded places, etc. Now there are companies (for example, SenseTime and Hanwang Technology) that claim to have developed a special face recognition technology that can accurately identify a person, even if he is wearing a medical mask.

By the way, Al-Jazeera (an international broadcaster) reported that China Mobile sent text messages to state-owned media agencies, informing them of infected people. Messages included all the details of the travel history of people.

Well, Moscow also does not lag behind world trends: the BBC reported that the police using a smart video surveillance system (180 thousand cameras) identified 200 violators of the self-isolation regime.

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New monitoring and control tools that are actively tested by the authorities of different countries cannot but cause concern. The safety of information, confidential data will always be a headache for society.

Now medical applications require users to register under their name, phone number, and enter data on movements. Chinese hospitals and transport companies are required to provide the authorities with detailed information about their customers. People are worried that authorities can use the health crisis to deploy a global control system: for example, the New York Times reports that the Alipay application may transmit all the data to the Chinese police.

The issue of cybersecurity also remains open. 360 Security officials recently confirmed that hackers used files called COVID-19 for APT attacks on Chinese medical facilities. Attackers attach Excel files to emails that, when opened, install a Backdoor program on the victim’s computer.

And finally, what can you use yourself to protect yourself?


  • Smart air purifiers. There are a lot of them, alas, they are not cheap (from 15 to 150 thousand rubles). Here , for example, you can see a selection of cleaners.
  • Smart bracelet (medical, not sports). Ideal for those who are very panicked - you can distribute to relatives and measure the temperature, pulse and pressure every minute.
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