Affordable Covid-19 field ventilator developed

A team of manufacturers, engineers and clinicians in the UK has developed a low-cost Covid-19 field ventilator that allows a patient to be first treated with manual Ambu bag ventilation that can be put in the device once the patient is stable and ready to be ventilated automatically. It is manufactured from a windscreen wiper motor, cam and lever system and a standard Ambu Bag, and is designed to treat patients in poor and remote parts of the world as it can be powered by mains, battery, wind turbines or solar panels.

Project lead Brian Back, founder and CEO of Radio Data Networks and the not-for-profit Zero Pollution Network, said: “We are keen to address the needs of the developing world. During the design phase, it has been important to take into consideration factors like the climate, expertise, infrastructure and lack of power. Beyond Covid-19 we believe the system should still have a place for use in a village environment to supplement the manual manipulation of Ambu type bags during more regular procedures such as childbirth and minor surgery.”

Nachi Chockalingam, a Professor of Clinical Biomechanics at Staffordshire University, said: “This is a rapidly escalating situation and there is an urgent need for ventilators in low- and middle-income countries. We know from our work with technical and clinical partners from various regions that there will be a much greater need over the coming weeks and months due to the rapid spread of COVID-19. The Field Ventilator system is designed to be modular, with power management, alarms and monitoring available as an add-on module, should resources not be available locally. Further, as the name implies, it is designed to function and withstand the much harsher environment found outside the average hospital, such as that found in a field hospital or rural community health service.”