Low-cost 3D-printed mechanical ventilators are being designed and built at Simon Fraser University, in answer to the potential need for future resources as the fight against COVID-19 continues.
Low-cost 3D-printed mechanical ventilators are being designed and built at Simon Fraser University, in answer to the potential need for future resources as the fight against COVID-19 continues.
“As an engineer, this is how I can help the community respond to COVID-19,” says Woo Soo Kim, a School of Mechatronic Systems Engineering associate professor, who is leading the project from his lab based at SFU’s Surrey campus.
As we brace for a potential second wave of the pandemic, Kim says a portable ventilator could be a viable solution to support patients. The 3D printed ventilators would cost less than $600 and could be used outside hospital settings, such as long-term care homes.
The portable mechanical ventilator would assist a person’s breathing by contracting a 3D-printed origami tube, instead of compressing a conventional bag-valve mask (BVM). The changes in design allow Kim’s ventilator to be much smaller and portable.
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Image via Simon Fraser University.
