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DIY Ventilators from Sim Parts

Discussion in 'Off Topic - All other stuff here' started by cgodwin, Mar 27, 2020.

  1. cgodwin

    cgodwin Active Member

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    It seems like this is the perfect group of people to make ventilators for the COVID-19 crisis. Most of us can build just about anything, and a lot of the technology is pretty similar to a motion simulator.

    Hopefully the big manufacturers come through with high volume units and it doesn't come down to the maker community building these one at a time. But just in case I've started working on creating something. One I've been involved with was built by someone else and is already mostly working. Now I'm planning to build one designed around motion sim technology.

    My plan is to drive the ventilator with a wiper motor and a Monster Moto. I already have some cheap MM's floating around. Hook that to an Arduino and I should be able to drive a ventilator with variable pressure, speed, and volume. That would be a usable start and then I can add an oxygen sensor later.

    Anyone else doing something like this?
  2. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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  3. BlazinH

    BlazinH Well-Known Member

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    Sounds even more dangerous than motion simulators to me :eek: . And honestly it's not very reassuring that you say you're using "cheap motor monsters" that are just around. But if you're about to go anyway then what the hell :D.
    Last edited: Mar 27, 2020
  4. cgodwin

    cgodwin Active Member

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    Excellent point on the MM's. I don't even trust them for my sim. I use JRK's on the sim, although I did blow one of those also. My hope was they wouldn't get driven very hard so maybe they would hold up? Also my experience is if something doesn't fail right away it usually it okay. I'll probably start with the MM's since I have them while I look for better options. Maybe a real MM instead of a clone.
  5. MarkusB

    MarkusB Well-Known Member Gold Contributor

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    As an employee of a company that builds medical device software, I recommend that you rephrase the sentence "if something doesn't fail right away it usually is okay" before you send your ventilator to the FDA for clearance.
  6. Gadget999

    Gadget999 Well-Known Member

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    My Motion Simulator:
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    use a water bottle and a simple rotational motion from a gearmotor - so a cam pushes up and down on the waterbottle

    no electronics or motor drivers needed
  7. BlazinH

    BlazinH Well-Known Member

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    Even simpler would be to put a plastic bag over your head and tie it around your neck. No motor or cam is required but the end result is the same :confused:.
  8. cgodwin

    cgodwin Active Member

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    That can work in an extreme emergency, but only as a very last resort when the person will die if you do nothing. Not exceeding a certain pressure is critical. Having something monitoring and responding to pressure is a big plus, as is being able to adjust the volume (tidal volume in medical terms) is helpful. But mechanically my design isn't much more advanced than the cam and water bottle solution you described.

    I have no medical background and certainly I'm not looking to recreate a $5,000 to $60,000 full featured and medically approved ventilator. The goal is to create something that can be used when no other options exist, but to have enough features on it so it will be more likely to help than hurt someone. So a little more advanced than just a fixed pump.
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  9. ferslash

    ferslash Active Member

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    1. like your idea, we could do something
    2. i live in mexico and the "short supply" of ventilator has been calculated to a disaster for sure
    3. the price of a medical real brand ventilator is super expensive in terms of the devaluated mexican currency
    4. in mexico a ventilator cost what a police car cost (and we are also short in police vehicles)
    5. if some one could designt something super chear from easely source materials would be grate and could save lifes
    6. i have not and idea of what a ventilator is
    7. i dont know what could happend if i get to a medical facility and i tell the doctos, i made this ventilator use it... would they?
    8. on the other hand, i remmaind a talk i had with a doctor, he told me he quit his goverment employment as doctor because years ago at his hospital they had only 2 ventilators and at that moment they had 4 children needing the ventilator, the principal of the hospital told him to make a desicion about what child would have more posibilities to live, and then apply the ventilator to those kids... his answer... i am not god... take your job and you make the desicion...

    so... if someone could do something... please...

    (i could do something with arduino and a moto monster that works.... i could program some arduino lines... but... i dont know i the oxigen monitor is a most... i have not axigen monitors at home....) does the ventilator works even with not oxigen sensors?
  10. BlazinH

    BlazinH Well-Known Member

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    For what it's worth president Trump invoked the National Defence Production Act today. Therefore the USA will be making a crap load of ventilators not only for us but to also share with the rest of the world ;).
    • Like Like x 1
    Last edited: Mar 27, 2020
  11. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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    The USA is now the new epicenter of the Covid19 pandemic, and it is yet to be seen how it copes in maintaining critical infrastructure over the coming weeks/months until the numbers peak: https://www.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6

    I suspect that it will likely be China that is able to spin up manufacturing of critical items to meet worldwide demand, South Korea is another possibility, though time will tell as secondary outbreaks are still a risk.
    Last edited: Mar 28, 2020
  12. BlazinH

    BlazinH Well-Known Member

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    Its possible I suppose but here is a list of the top 40 medical device companies in the world by 2018 revenue and none are in South Korea or China.
    https://www.mddionline.com/top-40-medical-device-companies
    Last edited: Mar 28, 2020
  13. titomaky

    titomaky Member Gold Contributor

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  14. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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    Please be aware that you can dual language post but it is part of the Forum Rules that you also include English, doing so via Google Translate is fine: https://www.xsimulator.net/community/threads/forum-rules.9527/
  15. ferslash

    ferslash Active Member

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    my bad translation:

    hey everybodey, in this hard times for human kind... this is an internet site (non profit website), where we create things with our 3d printers to help in the covid 19 crisis...



    https://www.coronavirusmakers.org/index.php/en
    https://www.coronavirusmakers.org/i...irator23-stp-1-conjunto-stp-1-empujador-stp-1
  16. ferslash

    ferslash Active Member

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  17. noorbeast

    noorbeast VR Tassie Devil Staff Member Moderator Race Director

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  18. BlazinH

    BlazinH Well-Known Member

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  19. cgodwin

    cgodwin Active Member

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    Here is my crude ventilator in action. Not nearly as nice as the one @BlazinH shared, but it works and only about $60-$70 USD including the bag valve mask. Doesn't require a 3D printer or laser cutter.
    • Like Like x 1
    Last edited: Apr 7, 2020