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Apr 10, 2020

University of Florida-led ventilator design clears first FDA review, offers hope for coronavirus patients

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, internet

A team of University of Florida engineers developed a cheap and easily sourced ventilator made with PVC, sprinkler valves, and Arduino. The design can be made for around $125 and could help with the demand for ventilators in the COVID-19 pandemic.


A ventilator envisioned by a University of Florida engineer and built with do-it-yourself parts gained first-step FDA authorization this week, offering hope that it could be in use within weeks at hospitals around the world where COVID-19 patients have overwhelmed supplies of traditional medical equipment.

The ventilator, composed of parts readily available for less than $250, can be assembled in less than an hour. UF has made plans and software available free over the internet.

“The testing is obviously important right now because the worst-case scenario is that a patient will need three weeks of ventilator support, so we want to make sure this will run non-stop for three weeks,” said Samsun Lampotang, a professor of anesthesiology in the UF College of Medicine, who led design of the device.

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