Chinese designer Frank Chou’s Sterilising Lamp looks like a conventional table lamp but it does more than illuminate a space. The light comes with a built-in UV lamp, and a tray at the bottom. Items are placed on the tray, and the light is pushed down to start the sterilisation process. When done, the lamp lifts automatically, and clean items can be taken out. Chou believes that by incorporating sanitising properties into an everyday product, people will remember to use it more often.

Even as cities around the world start to lift their lockdown restrictions, social distancing will still be in place. But how do you tell someone to keep their distance, without having to tell it to their face? Italian design firm SBGA Blengini developed C’entro, a pack of lightweight colourful fibreglass rods that can be connected to form a 2m wide circle. The idea is to place these circles on the ground or floor. A 1.5m long rod connects to each circle and serves as an indication of how far each circle should be from the next.

If you’ve been consistently washing your hands, especially after sanitising an object, Chinese designer Chen Furong has a more efficient solution. The founder of Wuu design firm created disinfectant gloves that look like plastic disposable ones but are made of three layers of thin fibre paper. The outermost layer is coated with 75 per cent alcohol which helps kill germs, while the hand is still protected on the inside. Slip one on, wipe, and dispose, without the need to wash your hands a second time – a convenient and environmentally-friendly option.

The advice to sneeze or cough into our elbows to avoid spreading germs prompted Dutch design firm Raw Color to design the Elbow Sock – a handkerchief for the elbow that anyone can make. Find a sock that is missing its other half, cut the toes off and slide the sock over your elbow. Sneeze or cough into it when needed, and throw it into the wash after that. Raw Color also believes that wearing an Elbow Sock could be seen as a statement to raise awareness about not spreading germs.

Wearing a mask reduces the transmission of viruses and germs, but it also hides facial expressions. Zhang Junjie, founder of Sozen Design Group, imagines his transparent mask Exprask to do its job while letting users show their faces. It would be made of medical grade thermoplastic rubber with two breathable holes by the side. “Hopefully the Exprask will be able to keep people safe, and being able to see smiles on faces will help people forget the stress and tension caused by a global infection,” he says.