Inspiration
Currently, local officials survey COVID 19 patients retroactively, to determine their recent contacts. These records are often imprecise and taken after the patient has already infected dozens of other people. Radiate is a simple, efficient app that not only traces COVID-19 contacts prior to infection but also serves as an immediate response system to notify those in recent contact with a patient.
What it does
The app has three main features: the daily log, contact list, and alert system. After signing up, the user is taken to the daily log where they can begin recording their encounters. A log entry includes a date, map location, and a set of contacts. For example, “Friday 8/22, at Olive Garden, with Sara and Kody”. These logs, which are private and stay on the user’s phone, provide a detailed account for in-app contact tracing. Logs can also be reported to health officials at the user’s discretion.
The “contact list” allows users to view their contacts by favorites and recents. Favorites are certain contacts who will always be alerted, such as family or roommates. The remaining contacts are ordered by who you last created log entry for.
In the event that a user tests positive for COVID 19, the alert system prompts them to send a text message to contacts they have been exposed to within the past 2 weeks, which is determined by the daily log as well as their favorite contacts. The text message informs contacts of their condition and prompts them to self-isolate. Recipients who have an account with Radiate can then use the second option to inform their own contacts that they have been in contact with someone who has tested positive.
How I built it
We used figma to design the app’s UI, and coded it using Swift and Apple libraries like MapKit and Notification Center. Our main color theme is blue which resembles the healthcare industry.
Challenges I ran into
One challenge that we faced was sending a mass text to alert contacts that you or someone that you know has tested positive for COVID-19. Apple does not have the ability to send mass text without adding contacts to a group. The only way to go around this is to individually send a message to each contact or create a group with all contacts and then send a message. Our app went with the latter option.
Accomplishments that I'm proud of
We are proud of the apps UI Interface. We were striving for a clean and simple user friendly look. We are also proud that we were able to implement the three main features: daily logs, contact list, and alert system. Our team was able to produce a fully functional app within a short time frame.
What I learned
Because this hackathon was virtual, my team members and I learned how to efficiently communicate in an online setting. We learned how to create a UI prototype using figma. We also learned how to program new features in swift (Ex. gif, storyboarding, messaging, and location mapping.)
What's next for Radiate
In the future, there are a couple additional features we would like to implement. An automated log feature would automatically create a log for 2 users that are within a certain distance of each other provided that they are in each other’s contacts. The second future feature would be adding exposure probability. This will measure a person’s chances of contracting the virus based on how close you are with a patient.
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