Advancing Indoor Epidemiological Surveillance: Integrating Real-Time Object Detection and Spatial Analysis for Precise Contact Rate Analysis and Enhanced Public Health Strategies

Ali Baligh Jahromi, Koorosh Attarian, Ali Asgary () and Jianhong Wu
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Ali Baligh Jahromi: Laboratory for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (LIAM), York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada
Koorosh Attarian: Advanced Disaster, Emergency and Rapid Response Simulation (ADERSIM), York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada
Ali Asgary: Disaster & Emergency Management, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada
Jianhong Wu: Department of Mathematics and Statistics, York University, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 11, 1-17

Abstract: In response to escalating concerns about the indoor transmission of respiratory diseases, this study introduces a sophisticated software tool engineered to accurately determine contact rates among individuals in enclosed spaces—essential for public health surveillance and disease transmission mitigation. The tool applies YOLOv8, a cutting-edge deep learning model that enables precise individual detection and real-time tracking from video streams. An innovative feature of this system is its dynamic circular buffer zones, coupled with an advanced 2D projective transformation to accurately overlay video data coordinates onto a digital layout of the physical environment. By analyzing the overlap of these buffer zones and incorporating detailed heatmap visualizations, the software provides an in-depth quantification of contact instances and spatial contact patterns, marking an advancement over traditional contact tracing and contact counting methods. These enhancements not only improve the accuracy and speed of data analysis but also furnish public health officials with a comprehensive framework to develop more effective non-pharmaceutical infection control strategies. This research signifies a crucial evolution in epidemiological tools, transitioning from manual, simulation, and survey-based tracking methods to automated, real time, and precision-driven technologies that integrate advanced visual analytics to better understand and manage disease transmission in indoor settings.

Keywords: contact rate analysis; deep learning; public health; real-time surveillance; indoor environment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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