Easier travel with the Covid Travel App

Travelling during the pandemic is sometimes a challenge. Finding out what exact measures apply in different countries is like a maze. Each place has its own rules, but also locating them on some government website can be daunting. Early on in the pandemic, student Martin Frenken and his team thought about this; could we make this easier? What if there was an application that brought together all the Covid-19 travel information? Fontys Hogeschool ICT students developed the technology of that app for you.

Projects with impact

Within the Fontys ICT InnovationLab, various minors are tought. Students work on practice-oriented questions from business partners, but there is also room for their own projects, explains Martin. Martin is a student of Software Engineering and developed the Covid-19 Travel app with his fellow students for the minor Data-driven Business Lab: "We started brainstorming with nine students and out of all the ideas, this project came up. That was in January, but we all saw the point of this idea." So the idea is an app that brings all the travel information together. Not just the restrictions, but also what is possible. An app with a positive impact.

Data collection and AI solutions

The students then developed the project from idea to proof of concept, Martin explains: "We started by drawing up a list of requirements. After that, a number of design options were proposed. After making our choices, we started programming." This all seems fairly standard, but in order to get the right information into the app, data also needs to be collected. This is where it gets interesting according to Martin: "The data is automatically retrieved from government websites. Scraped, as it is called. That data is then translated into English and stored in the database. The app then retrieves the information from there." The app runs itself, and thanks to an interval update, the information remains current.

Ease of use through clever categorisation

If you have ever looked at any government's Covid-19 website, you will know what an enormous amount of information is there. Martin and his team were able to solve this problem: "We have chosen to categorise the restrictions, so that the user can find what is relevant. That too is automatic, with a machine-learning model based on natural language processing (NLP). A piece of AI that makes sure information is grouped in the database and appears in the app within themes such as hospitality, home visits and so on. This NLP model learns to recognise where a measure belongs on the basis of cues. Suppose the word 'terrace' appears twice in a description, then the model recognises this as a hospitality measure." The user interface has also been subject to a lot of work to further enhance convenience: "I would say it is slightly more user-friendly than the central government website. The app is called a travel app, but it also makes it easier to find information quickly within the Netherlands when you need it."

Proof of concept for information sharing

The team made scrapers for 15 different countries to demonstrate the workability of their initial concept. The idea also translates to other applications, especially for organisations dealing with international regulations. The self-initiated project has brought the students a lot, says Martin: "I really enjoyed making this and working with students who have a very different background was instructive. That is the benefit of this project, learning from each other. But no one has yet knocked on the door to continue with this idea."

Fontys students work on applied research issues. For example, they find out what opportunities there are in the application of AI. Projects, such as the Covid Travel Tool, are conducted in the Fontys ICT InnovationLab. Would you like to know more about the Fontys ICT InnovationLab? Check out the website here.