Coronavirus: IIT Kanpur startup develops low-cost ventilator

NEW DELHI: An Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur startup is developing a portable and affordable ventilator as deaths due to the coronavirus climbed to 17 in the country.

NDTV reported that the new ventilator will cost less than 20 percent of current market prices as it uses only indigenous components.

The report quoted an IIT Kanpur professor telling news agency PTI, “While invasive ventilators are available at around R s 4 lakh per unit in the market, this ventilator will be made at a cost of R s 70,000 per unit as all the components have been sourced from India only.”

Prototype for the portable ventilator has been developed by two graduates, Nikhil Kurule and Harshit Rathore at their start-up “Nocca Robotics” incubated at IIT Kanpur. A 9-member team from IIT Kanpur, including doctors from Narayana Institute of Cardiac Sciences (NICS), Bangalore will examine the prototype. If it gets the go ahead, the start-up will ready around 1000 portable ventilators within a month, the report said.

How the portable ventilator works

The prototype is connected to a mobile phone to access critical information.

The NDTV report says that the “prototype developed is an invasive type mechanical ventilator capable of operating in pressure-controlled mode. The ventilator will be permanently connected to a mobile phone which will be used to control the device and display the critical information.”

The report quoted Amitabha Bandhopadhay, In-charge of IIT Kanpur Incubation Centre: “The device will not require any form of medical air and will be capable of operating on its own in ambient air. There will also be a provision for attaching oxygen cylinder, when required.”

The team expects to bring out ready to manufacture ventilators within a month. The team is also seeking help from a crowd sourcing platform, the NDTV report said.

The number of coronavirus cases has climbed to 724 in the country with the death toll at 17, as on March 27.

Also read:

• Coronavirus: CSIR, pvt sector to partner on tests, ventilators, drugs
• IIT Delhi researchers develop low-cost test kits for COVID-19

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