Real-time data represented in the Hotspot Map comes from the Interactive Map Dashboard maintained by the government. Covid infection risks in different geographical areas, in terms of the abundance of cases, are shown in a colour scheme, ranging from purple for the lowest risk level to red for the highest.

Evolving risk levels of locations visited by infected persons in the past seven days are visible through the dynamic movement of colour patterns on the Map. Users can zoom in or out to browse the risk levels at broader or more specific geographical locations.

The Hotspot Map was co-developed by the team led by Xu Jianliang, Head of the Department of Computer Science at HKBU, the University of Macau and The University of Hong Kong.

Xu said that the Hong Kong COVID-19 Hotspot Map is a helpful tool to monitor the risks of Covid-19 in the community and assist health authorities and citizens in introducing informed, effective measures against the pandemic.

The team is exploring other potential applications of the new computation methods in traffic hotspot detection, crowd control in tourist attractions, property prices visual analysis and real-time weather resources management.