Optimized Distribution of Living Materials during the COVID-19 Lockdown: A Case Study of Changchun City

During the COVID-19 lockdown, an efficient distribution of living materials is urgently needed, as the stay-home quarantine is adopted to prevent the spread of the epidemic. Exposed individuals will affect the contact rate during the distribution, increasing the risk of COVID-19 transmission. This paper first establishes a time-varying SEIR propagation model of the new coronavirus, especially considering the time-related transition from the susceptible to the exposed state. Based on this, we then build a planning model for warehouses and delivery points to optimize the distribution strategy. Finally, the simulations were performed in Changchun, China. The results show that the timely distribution of living materials can reduce the contact rate by 64%. We also present 27 warehouses to manage 1,122 delivery points. The proposed approach can realize the optimal spatial-temporal distribution of living materials under the lockdown policy.