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Covid-19: Meeting the challenges through Engineering

Jeremy D Watson
I was president of the IET for 2016-17, and have been asked by government to gather practical and innovative ideas from our Engineering communities. So, please enter any ideas you might have in this thread that might help address and mitigate the Covid-19 crisis. Ideas might include digital tracking / monitoring through therapy equipment and beyond. Even ideas outside your usual expertise domain will be welcome. Now’s the time for Engineering to show we can change the world!
  • 0
    Some interesting and, I think, valuable guidance for would be ventilator manufacturers on "Human Factors

    in the Design and Operation of Ventilators for Covid-19" just out from Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors
    https://bit.ly/HFandVentilators

    The purpose of this document is to provide designers and manufacturers of ventilators with

    overarching advice and guidance on the key themes for consideration and specific Human

    Factors and Ergonomic (HFE) issues in a period of “crisis management” requiring rapid design

    and production.

    The authors are mindful that some manufacturers may not have design experience of health care

    or the production of ventilators. Wherever possible we have used plain language and provide

    illustrative examples of issues to be addressed to “nudge thinking” aimed at creating a safe and

    user-friendly product within the current frontline operating context of hospitals



  • 0
    Hi Rob, I have limited know how here. I have 3m FFP3 and elastomer masks and have posted a question on their customer service message board.


    There are dangers of combustion / fire clearly if anything is put in microwave. The FFP3 masks have a metal nose piece/ band which could create high volts / arcing.


    Yes it would indeed be good to get input from viro / biological experts, the motive seems worthwhile.

  • Former Community Member
    0 Former Community Member
    Hi Kenneth,


     Quite, at this point, I would expect the IET to flex it's ample muscles and drag a suitable expert in from a sister professional body to consider the ponderance and enable the discussion. ;)


     However, it must be said... the RF effect may be wavelength related and one of our own Black Magic Experts in RF may be able to answer the question. 

     

    Kenneth Hattersley:


    Yes it would indeed be good to get input from viro / biological experts, the motive seems worthwhile.

     




     

  • Former Community Member
    0 Former Community Member
    Talking to my GP friend, apparently the NHS are very resistant to talk about the sterilisation and reuse of the masks and PPE. Despite many solutions being potentially on offer. In our brief chat we discussed X-Ray, Gamma Radiation Exposure and Microwave.


    X Ray has some pedigree, but I have no idea if a typical hospital machine could deliver enough energy, or whether it's a case of prolonging exposure to compensate.

    https://www.medicaldevice-network.com/projects/x-ray-sterilization/


    It seems the issue may be more political, than practical following our chat. He has some P3 masks himself... He's not allowed to use them as they insist on using single use fabric ones, not due to effectiveness but due to the knowledge they are sterile. Suggestions of sterilisation techniques have apparently fallen on deaf ears. Maybe the IET approaching the Royal College of Surgeons and asking about the problem might encourage engagement.



  • 0
    3M responded quickly. This from 3M site:
    https://multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/1816576O/disinfection-of-disposable-respirators-technical-bulletin.pdf

    And from HSE:
    https://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/priced/hsg53.pdf


    Also ( not read) https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/hcp/ppe-strategy/decontamination-reuse-respirators.html

  • 0
    Amazing, simple face shield design: low cost, few materials, quick to 3D print clips.
    c6bcfc7262c0897d18db089bc89aac15-huge-2020-04-08-17_22_35-covid-shield-revision3.-layout-002.pdf---adobe-acrobat-pro-dc.png


    Please share and help get this out there.


    Support needed to:
    • 3D-print & supply

    • Transition to injection moulding (bulk manufacture, sterile)

    • Fast track NHS approval

    • Conduct official testing

    For info and offers of help, contact Iain Mitchell iain1mm@yahoo.co.uk



  • 0
    Re: COVID-19: Call for rapid sanitising technology for ambulances.

    To sanitise all the internal surfaces of an ambulance in significantly less time than 45min, calls for a gaseous solution, and high-levels of Ozone is the natural choice. Ozone is a naturally occurring oxidising gas, which can easily generated as required by using high voltage electricity. It is hazardous to most life-forms including bacteria and viruses and may be generated quite easily inside a confined room such as an ambulance ... and can be neutralised equally quickly for operator safety. 


    My research quickly lead to this wikipedia page on ozone and this Purozo page discussing the vulnerability of viruses to ozone. And then on to this company Ozone Clean, and its OC1500 Product. And on Sunday this week contacted the MD of the company, who confirmed everything that I hope for about ozone and their product ... including its immediate availability for trials. Ozone Clean is a UK company, the product was designed here and is made in England ... so is potentially readily scaled in production. Further, the MD is prepared to make a machine available immediately for trial. 


       ... Naturally I will pass on the MDs contact details to anybody with serious interest.


    This is equipment more usually used by general room cleaners for removing smells in hotel rooms and other public areas ... Indeed NHS is apparently already in possession of some of these, which it no doubt uses in this general cleaning role. But the potential to use this big machine in a smaller confined space to generate high levels of ozone is being overlooked; and repurposing it for sanitising is a very real and immediate possibility! 


    I realise that this is just a Forum, but I am finding it seriously difficult to talk to anybody about this idea! (I've been working on it for 5 days so far). The IET referred GOV.uk website links to a Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) which is anticipating a Project Proposal; and the timescale associated with such, is not comparable with the Immediate Possibilities presented by this repurposing of existing equipment.


    If any of you could suggest contacts or even champion it I (we) would be most grateful.


    Thanks.ian :-)
  • Former Community Member
    0 Former Community Member
    The MHRA has published guidance here which includes the specification for rapidly manufactured ventilator systems mentioned above; most of the standards quoted are ISO or IEC.

    This page also helpfully advised (last time that I looked) that the British Standards Institution have made their standards on ventilators accessible free of charge.

    If you need guidance on Good Manufacturing Practice for medical devices, the ISPE is the place to look - at www.ispe.org.  

    I can't see a GAMP Guide for embedded systems (such as a controller for a ventilator) so the general GAMP 5 Guide should apply. In cases of difficulty, PM me.

    There's also a guide on Good Engineering Practice in the pharma/medical device space, and one on single use technology. 

    If you have trouble accessing https://ispe.org/publications/guidance-documents  please send a PM.

    Ian CK
  • 0

    Hello Mr Phillips.


    The use of Ozone for sterilization is new to me but of interest - potentially - for the sterilzation of face masks and other materiel - which has been a topic for a couple of us in this forum..


    The premise is  that if paper, plastic masks and eyeshields etc - even a proportion - could be recycled back into usage, this could save resources and help make kit available at this time of vast demand.


    Using ozone would appear to be relatively low cost to generate and set up a sterilizing environment for smaller objects such as face masks, gowns, etc. using the Ozone Clean type equipment - if it works.


    See this and other refs.. Are these trustable though -     https://clinmedjournals.org/articles/jide/journal-of-infectious-diseases-and-epidemiology-jide-6-113.php?jid=jide

    Would it be possible to ask of the MD what credible evidence there could be that Ozone works on fabrics, plastics (and other materials such as eye masks) with COVID-19? e.g are there any authenticated papers perhaps on neutralizing COVID-SARS -02? And if so what are the specifics however for achieving a sterilization environment - time / concentrations - could it be as simple as running the ozone generator in a chamber with the objects to be cleaned? If it works, what could be the downsides?



    Hopefully regards, KenH






    Ian Phillips    :
    Re: COVID-19: Call for rapid sanitising technology for ambulances.

    To sanitise all the internal surfaces of an ambulance in significantly less time than 45min, calls for a gaseous solution, and high-levels of Ozone is the natural choice. Ozone is a naturally occurring oxidising gas, which can easily generated as required by using high voltage electricity. It is hazardous to most life-forms including bacteria and viruses and may be generated quite easily inside a confined room such as an ambulance ... and can be neutralised equally quickly for operator safety. 


    My research quickly lead to this wikipedia page on ozone and this Purozo page discussing the vulnerability of viruses to ozone. And then on to this company Ozone Clean, and its OC1500 Product. And on Sunday this week contacted the MD of the company, who confirmed everything that I hope for about ozone and their product ... including its immediate availability for trials. Ozone Clean is a UK company, the product was designed here and is made in England ... so is potentially readily scaled in production. Further, the MD is prepared to make a machine available immediately for trial. 


       ... Naturally I will pass on the MDs contact details to anybody with serious interest.


    This is equipment more usually used by general room cleaners for removing smells in hotel rooms and other public areas ... Indeed NHS is apparently already in possession of some of these, which it no doubt uses in this general cleaning role. But the potential to use this big machine in a smaller confined space to generate high levels of ozone is being overlooked; and repurposing it for sanitising is a very real and immediate possibility! 


    I realise that this is just a Forum, but I am finding it seriously difficult to talk to anybody about this idea! (I've been working on it for 5 days so far). The IET referred GOV.uk website links to a Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) which is anticipating a Project Proposal; and the timescale associated with such, is not comparable with the Immediate Possibilities presented by this repurposing of existing equipment.


    If any of you could suggest contacts or even champion it I (we) would be most grateful.


    Thanks.ian :-)




     

  • 0
    Kenneth Hattersley: (It would be nice if you included something about yourself) Re the possibility of using ozone to sterilise masks and face guards.


    The ozone generators I illustrate are commercial equipment designed primarily for freshening rooms ... But they are ozone generators, and the OC1500 produces enough to be hazardous to people. These are not medically rated or calibrated, but my belief is that in a closed space these should be capable of producing enough ozone to be effective ... But confirming that would have to be established in a trial including the ambulance and medical people. But by re-purposing off-the-shelf equipment a trial could be done in days, and if successful deployed widely within a couple of weeks ... very much the timescale that COVID-19 needs. Which is why the Ambulance trial is so important, and will remain my focus.


    However, whilst masks, visors and gowns would seem very simple problem by comparison to ambulances, I think this is not the case! The mask/visors/gowns to be processed must be considered to have been contaminated, and thus will have to have been cleaned enough to be guaranteed contamination free when pressed against a healthy person for protracted time. This is a very stringent requirement for once-used materials; though easily met with new materials!


    To use an ozone technique. The used masks/visors/gowns would have to be assessed, folded, batched, loaded into the equipment then subjected to the ozone; then it must be packaged for transport to users, without getting cross-contamination from the untreated material coming in. These are all complex steps and thus slow and expensive. I suggest a more effective approach can be found in the food industry. Food Irradiation Technology (https://www.fda.gov/food/buy-store-serve-safe-food/food-irradiation-what-you-need-know), which has apparently been in use in the food industry for many years. I also understand it is in use in sterilisation of medical equipment. In this approach, masks/visors/gowns could be assessed, assembled in bundles and then shrink-wrapped! Then the complete package would be irradiated, and when the process is complete the shrink-wrap packaging maintains the biological integrity until it reaches the point of use.


    Returning to the Ambulance: The interior only needs to be as clean (or cleaner) than it would be if it were wiped with antiseptic wipes ... good but not perfect. It is an infection control process, managing the levels of viruses to the point at which the risk of a patient catching something is low enough to make the ambulance journey acceptable.


       ... I hope that helps you in your mission. 


    KeepWell.ian

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