Admit it or not, the pandemic has already made us revise all aspects of life and continues.
Health-minded lifestyle now runs the world. People try their utmost to rebirth the immune system, just as much as the business. And if no new technologies were helping us with the stuff, who knows, maybe we would slide to the bottom of Maslow’s pyramid of human needs.
Coronavirus inventions and in-hype software we cite below help us struggle with the pandemic in hospitals, make things easier for those working from home, or stuck in quarantine today due to COVID-19.
Gadgets for self-defense against disease
Coronavirus Product Design and 3D Printing Challenge (ended 19 April 2020)
“There is definitely a ton of people with 3D resources very willing to help.”
MacKenzie Brown,
director with Cad Crowd, California, US
Inspired by the belief that their community can prevent the spread of the disease by designing open-source products for public spaces, Cad Crowd launched the challenge. For a month, the contest has gained 137 entries from 85 freelancers. Now, while the buyer selects the winner, the official page presents a hub of anti-COVID ideas. There you’ll find:
- door openers and holders,
- 3D-printed masks and eye shields,
- wearable sanitizers,
- cleaning columns dispensing sanitizer soap in public places,
- pocket sanitizers,
- touchless hangers for grocery baskets,
- light disinfector cash drawers,
- sanitizing chambers for outdoor entry and many more.
Similarly, your most incredible anti-crisis business ideas of any complexity can be realized today: (a) calculate the risks, (b) hire a dedicated team, and (c) reap the benefits.
Immuntouch
“We had the algorithm, we had the software and the hardware. We’ve repurposed it for face-touching. We made 350 devices and a website in one week and now it’s how fast can we ramp up.”
Matthew Toles,
co-owner of Slightly Robot, Seattle, US
The immuntouch is a smart wristband buzzing each time its user tries to touch the face. The innovation aimed at avoiding the spread of the disease through picking of skin, biting of nails, pulling of hair.
Hygienhook
“Everyone has to use their little finger or find the bit of the door that nobody’s touched.”
Steve Brooks,
designer and owner of DDB Ltd., Berkshire, UK
How to open a door without touching the handle? This is the question the office furniture company’s owner was asking himself before creating the hygienhook. This door hook easily fits in a standard jeans back pocket and is made from non-porous material which simplifies the disinfection.
Gadgets for medical assistance
Thermal Scanner
Scylla has re-deployed the AI analytics software to work as a forehead temperature-measuring software sending an alert once it detects fever. The thermal scanner can be used in public places, such as hospitals, airports, railways, shopping malls. It takes images from a thermal camera and analyzes the received data set.
Automate filling of virus test results
UiPath has revealed that manual data entry kills time in a patient diagnostics in the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital in Dublin. Thus, the received data had to be entered into 2 platforms by 20+ data entry specialists. There was no API integration between the platforms. Now the company hopes to replicate the automated filling of virus test results they developed for the hospital in other health organizations and laboratories.
Ventilators
“Many of the most severe COVID-19 infections witnessed in patients have led to severe lung inflammation, where the patient’s status may deteriorate to Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), a situation that requires assisted ventilation and oxygenation in the intensive care unit (ICU).”
Josué Sznitman,
associate professor at the Technion, Israel Institute of Technology
Ventilators are the most in-demand medical device for COVID-19 treatment. Sheba’s respirators are considered to become game-changers because the BiPAP and CPAP devices are less complex in production and, thus, much cheaper. This, in turn, can be a crucial factor, especially for low-funding organizations and countries.
Gadgets for remote working
Self-isolation and lockdown teach us how to reform and work from home. Many business trainers and experienced freelancers assure that you don’t need to have a ton of space to turn your apartment into a home office. However, an attempt to skimp on special gadgets won’t work here as well.
The specials for homework organization go in 2 bigger groups: devices and software.
Devices
Besides the regular office furniture and gadgets like desk chairs and laptops, you’ll need a detached webcam to do presentations for your customers and hold in-house meetings without looking blurry or grainy. Many vendors now offer video collaboration kits that can cover all the needs for work-from-home efficiency.
Also, it’s sobering to remember that your employees’ health now is essential for business maintenance. Therefore, mouse mats with RSI (repetitive strain injury) wrist support; computer glasses; smart humidifiers are welcome.
Software
Those devices are good but nothing without relevant software. The cited below programs are more frequently used now:
- communications, meetups, conferences: Slack, Zoom, Hangouts;
- project/product management: Jira, Trello, Proofhub;
- collaborative work: Confluence, Google Drive, Microsoft Teams.
Move to mobile workplace
We know that some countries in the EU feel relief and see a reduced number of new infections. The quarantine easing testifies to the fact that the time will come to return to offices, however, will the work organization stay the same?
Businesses that can organize their work remotely are designing the switch to a mobile workplace, flexible working, or smart working. Many of them have very little to gain from renting office apartments, as the performance of work-from-home has shown even better results than the in-office for many of them.
However, for many employees, it’s very harsh to engage in work and after that shift to house stuff. Moreover, many of them lack live communication. This is where a mobile workplace is the right solution.
New opportunities for those who stuck in another country or got fired
Applications for face-to-face chats with friends, relatives, and house parties, smart speakers for e-shopping, online pubs, museums virtual tours, online stage performances and concerts, free streaming services, cheaper educational courses on world-known platforms, and, of course, charities are the means that can help you (a) curb the spread of the disease, (b) gain a dream-work, and (c) contribute to the global fight against COVID-19.