Amid the growing demand for hospital ventilators due to the COVID-19 pandemic, IIT-Roorkee has developed a low-cost portable ventilator in association with AIIMS-Rishikesh, which can be manufactured for just ₹25,000.
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On Friday, the machine was presented to more than 450 companies and several have expressed interest in commercial production, IIT-Roorkee said. Named ‘Prana-Vayu,’ the closed-loop ventilator can deliver the required amount of air to the patient, with an automated process controlling the pressure and flow rates. It also has feedback that can control tidal volume and the number of breaths per minute.
“The ventilator will be useful for a wide degree of congestions in the respiratory tract and is applicable for all age group patients, especially the elderly,” said the statement. “The prototype has been tested successfully for normal and patient-specific breathing conditions. Additionally, it does not require compressed air for functioning and can be especially useful in cases when hospital wards or open areas are converted into ICUs.”
The research began at the Tinkering Laboratory in IIT-Roorkee about a week ago, right after the lockdown began. The team then collaborated with doctors at AIIMS-Rishikesh for patient testing.
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“Today ‘Prana-Vayu’ was presented to more than 450 industries in a webinar organised by CII. I am happy to share that we have received interest from multiple industries for its mass production,” said IIT-Roorkee director Ajit K. Chaturvedi. The commercial product will be approximately 1.5 feet by 1.5 feet for effective portability.
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”We are committed to augmenting the efforts of the government in tackling the pandemic. This low-cost ventilator will be highly useful for COVID-19 patients, especially when there is a shortage of ventilators,” he added.
