Coronerds CanVent - March 31 - a group of brains from all over Canada was put together and have been able to put this ventilator together with very limited resources.
This is not an April fool, they created the "impossible"! The device is simple and uses a hospital's supply of pressurized oxygen and medical air along with servo-controlled valves, an off-the-shelf microcontroller, and a PC to ventilate a patient.
With the COVID-19 pandemic, respiratory ventilators are predicted to be in short supply. In fact, this life saving device is already in critical shortage in many countries that have been hit hard by the virus. With this in mind, the Montreal General Hospital Foundation in collaboration with the McGill University Health Center Research Institute launched a global challenge to invite teams to design a low-cost easy-to-manufacture ventilator that could be readily produce to support patients in COVID-19 related critical respiratory condition. Seizing the opportunity, an anesthesiologist from the Montreal Children’s Hospital recruited a colleague and an engineer friend who then recruited a team of masterminds across Canada.
"10 days ago, I randomly asked a friend if he thought he had the skills for this (laughing in my head)."
The Coronerds were born. Working around the clock for 10 days, with extremely limited material and resources, they were able to design a ventilator and to build a working preliminary prototype. They are hoping their ideas can be put to good use to save as many lives as possible.
Young Dr. Erika Nguyen, anesthesiologist at Montréal Children's Hospital
“10 days ago, I randomly asked a friend if he thought he had the skills for this (laughing in my head). Fast forward 10 days, a group of brains from all over Canada was put together and have been able to put this ventilator together with very limited resources. I have never been so impressed by a group of people. So proud of the Coronerds and their performance in the Code Life Ventilator Challenge.”
the "oscar" of BRAVENESS
Dan Savery Engineer
"It's been a busy past 10 days but I couldn’t be more excited to share the final outcome of our COVID-19 Ventilator response design challenge! I have been so lucky to be introduced to an amazing group of professionals from all over the country... and not only have learned so much but have also made a group of great new friends."
Code Life Ventilator Challenge
The Code Life Ventilator Challenge is a 2-week sprint to collect the best ideas from anywhere in the world to create or design life-saving ventilators. It’s a joint initiative between the Montreal General Hospital Foundation and the RI-MUHC. They are calling for teams to design a simple, low-cost, easy-to-manufacture and easy-to-maintain ventilator which could be deployed anywhere needed to save lives.
Follow them on Instagram: @coro.nerds
“It always seems impossible until it's done.”
― Nelson Mandela
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Team and credits: Érika Nguyen Robby Earl Sebastian Chicharito Hdz Dan Savery and more.