Kochi, June 22: An engineering student in Kochi has invented a device 'AutoTemp Camera Integration' aimed to help health workers prevent COVID-19 by identifying the infected through thermal scanning.

AutoTemp can sense the human temperature through infrared sensors. If the body temperature is higher than normal, the device will take a picture of the person and transfer it to the connected computer server through Wi-Fi.

The device is developed by Divins Mathew, a final year B.Tech computer science student of Rajagiri College of Engineering and Technology Kakkanad at Kochi. He was guided by Dr Sminu Isudheen, head of the department of computer science at the college.

"With the idea of minimizing the human contact involved in checking the body temperature, the device was built within a couple of weeks," Mathew told ANI. The device costs around only Rs 4,000 per device.

Dr Isudheen thought of encouraging the students to build a device that can be a helping hand to the healthcare workers .Health workers can place this battery-operated device anywhere without engaging closely with people. The device also leaves messages like 'see a doctor' and 'you are fine' in accordance with the temperature of a person.