Bhubaneswar Researchers Develop Smart App To Track COVID Infected

Bhubaneswar: To stem the rise in COVID-19 cases, researchers are continuing to search for tools to track the infection and stop community transmission.

Two faculty members of Rama Devi Women’s University — Associate Professor Bibudhendu Pati and Assistant Professor Chhabirani Panigrahi — have developed a smart application that would help to track infected persons and trace their contacts.

Head of Computer Science Department Prof Pati told the New Indian Express that the tracker will be a mobile application integrated with Google map and QR code technology. This can be downloaded easily on smartphones, he added.

Claiming that this will the first of its kind in India, he said the COVID-19 tracker will use clinical questionnaires and Google location to track patients. With 502.2 million smartphone users in India, it can cover 70 per cent families, he said.

HOW IT WOULD WORK

Install the app

Register using name, mobile number and Aadhaar number

Fill in details of family members like their name, mobile type and contact number.

The user is required to fill in some clinical questionnaires everyday on the app

The tracker QR code will verify them and change its colour coding accordingly.

COLOUR CODING

Black and Green – indicate safety, 

Pink – alert user about breaking social distancing protocol.

Red – alert the administration about the health condition of user.

GOOGLE LOCATION

Prof Pati said that Aadhaar number and Google location will be used in the app to help ensure social distancing. A green QR code can be used as entry pass to any place, he said.

The Google location will help officials track a person if the QR code turns red, he added.

The University has submitted a proposal to the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, seeking approval for nation-wide use of the application, the news report added.

Government of India’s mobile app Aarogya Setu is already very popular among the people, having registered 50 million downloads in just 13 days.

This app tells if the user is at risk by looking through a database of known cases across India. While the smartphone’s location data is used to determine where exactly the person is, the app uses Bluetooth connectivity to tell the user if he/she has been within 6-feet proximity from an infected person.

Based on this, the app shows if the user is at “high risk” or not. In case a person is in a high risk area, the app advises him/her to go for a test and call the toll-free number 1075 to schedule an appointment at a nearby testing centre.