As economies emerge from hibernation, employers are rushing to make workplaces safe with rudimentary tools such as hand sanitiser, face masks and the use of stairs rather than lifts. But engineers are developing more radical technologies to keep the virus out of offices.
The big challenges posed by the virus indoors are the collection of particles on surfaces and the flow of air between individuals. “Pandemics like this can provide fertile ground for creative minds to think about how to do things differently,” said Shaun Fitzgerald, visiting professor at the University of Cambridge.
Many of the innovations, however, will not come cheap. Here are some of the emerging options: