TU Delft Master’s students start initiative for developing ventilators

This week, under the leadership of Director of Studies for Technical Medicine Professor Jaap Harlaar, a group of Master’s students in Technical Medicine launched the OperationAIR initiative with the objective of developing a simple and relatively inexpensive ventilator as quickly as possible. In this way, the students hope to be able to contribute to combatting capacity problems in the event that hospitals in the Netherlands should experience a shortage of ventilators.

The students, all working on this initiative on a voluntary basis, are currently addressing the design requirements of a ventilator that might be produced in a short time. The design will be based on these design requirements. There are still many factors that will determine whether the eventual prototype will be manufactured and implemented in healthcare in the Netherlands. “We are in close contact with intensive care practitioners from LUMC and Erasmus MC regarding the current situation in intensive care units (ICUs). In addition, with help from Eindhoven University of Technology, we are mapping the expected growth in the number of coronavirus patients and the occupation levels of ICUs. We are also working with various businesses and other parties to accelerate the development of a ventilator,” says Jaap Harlaar.

More information, recent updates and contact

Read more about OperationAIR on their website.
We will ensure open-source availability of the design and all further information.