Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi has launched the use of EDE scanners to detect COVID-19 virus infections at malls and airports started from June 28, after a trial of 20,000 people showed ‘a high degree of effectiveness’,local media reported.
The decision comes to strengthen preventive measures using the latest technologies, and to limit the spread of the virus by establishing safe areas that have been subject to a series of precautionary measures.
According to the media reports, if the scanner identifies a person potentially infected with COVID-19, he/she will not be allowed to enter the said places. They must follow the approved protocol and perform a PCR test within 24 hours.
The technology can detect infection by measuring electromagnetic waves, which change when the virus’s RNA particles are present in the body. The results showed a sensitivity of 93.5 per cent, which reflects the accuracy of identifying the infected.
The scanner was developed by the EDE Research Institute in Abu Dhabi, under International Holding Company.
The EDE scanning system will be used at shopping malls, as part of testing in some residential areas, and at land and air entry points, as part of efforts to enhance precautionary measures and curb the spread of COVID-19 by establishing safe zones, the Abu Dhabi media office stated.
How do the scanners work?
- The reader is placed five meters away from the persons to be examined.
- Within seconds, the device analyzes each face and sends a message to the smartphone carried by the operator.
- Green means the person has been tested negative, while a red reading indicates that they have tested positive.
- The EDE scanner is used in conjunction with other devices, including thermal scanners.
“I was stunned by the use of the EDE scanners to detect Covid-19 infections at shopping malls. This is something incredible and would contain the spread of the virus,” Helen Zimmer ( a Finnish expat, who is on a visit to Abu Dhabi to see her husband) told Khaleej Times.