Boston University has risen to the challenges of COVID-19 in exemplary ways. IS&T has been proud to contribute to several key aspects of the Back to BU program.
One such contribution is a new “Campus Density Mapping” service, developed in partnership with Student Health Services and Campus Planning & Operations. The new service provides Student Health, Campus Planning & Operations, and appropriate University leaders and managers with summarized population metrics displayed on an interactive campus map dashboard.
Utilizing wireless network (WiFi) connectivity data from the approximately 8,000 wireless access points across each Boston University campuses (Charles River, BUMC, and Fenway), the connections by cell phones, laptops, tablets, and similar devices provide a reliable approximation of population in a given area. Utilized in conjunction with other campus data, the Campus Density Application displays Boston University on-campus population density and aggregate movement in real time and over time. The data, which is anonymized as collected, contains no identity specifics.
Population metrics can be compared to COVID-19 capacity limits for monitoring of defined areas and information can be parsed to develop a better understanding of the population density by the types of buildings (e.g. academic, residential, public space, etc.), by a specific building and/or floor, or by a defined area such as public space or facility.
Example images of the Campus Density Map’s interactive dashboard reports: