Applications of digital and smart technologies to control SARS-CoV-2 transmission, rapid diagnosis, and monitoring

Digital and smart technologies have been widely used during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic to control severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 transmission, to perform rapid diagnosis, and for monitoring. Although the pandemic has caused economic, social, and diverse health problems, it has spurred developers of digital and smart technologies to fight the disease. Science and technology sectors constituting mainly of data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence are contributing toward controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. Robots and smart technologies along with IoT (Internet of Things) structures have been digitizing the fight against the pandemic, which has enormous gains in terms of reducing contamination/transmission. This chapter provides a detailed revision about such technologies, describing and discussing their advantages, disadvantages, and limitations. We concluded that some of these innovative solutions, as they require the patient’s personal information, are concerning authorities and researchers about ethical issues, such as data safety and personal privacy. Modern technologies have contributed to improving people’s lives, presenting a significant advantage in helping people to control this infection.