ResUHUrge: A Low Cost and Fully Functional Ventilator Indicated for Application in COVID-19 Patients

Abstract

Although the cure for the SARS-CoV-2 virus (COVID-19) will come in the form of pharmaceutical solutions and/or a vaccine, one of the only ways to face it at present is to guarantee the best quality of health for patients, so that they can overcome the disease on their own. Therefore, and considering that COVID-19 generally causes damage to the respiratory system (in the form of lung infection), it is essential to ensure the best pulmonary ventilation for the patient. However, depending on the severity of the disease and the health condition of the patient, the situation can become critical when the patient has respiratory distress or becomes unable to breathe on his/her own. In that case, the ventilator becomes the lifeline of the patient. This device must keep patients stable until, on their own or with the help of medications, they manage to overcome the lung infection. However, with thousands or hundreds of thousands of infected patients, no country has enough ventilators. If this situation has become critical in the Global North, it has turned disastrous in developing countries, where ventilators are even more scarce. This article shows the race against time of a multidisciplinary research team at the University of Huelva, UHU, southwest of Spain, to develop an inexpensive, multifunctional, and easy-to-manufacture ventilator, which has been named ResUHUrge. The device meets all medical requirements and is developed with open-source hardware and software.

Keywords: COVID-19; low-cost ventilator; lung infection; mechanical ventilation; non-invasive ventilation.

Figure A1

System pressure PID controller.

Figure A2

(a) Calibration test and artificial lung test; (b) animal test.

Figure A3

Animal test: (a) PaO₂, PaCO₂, and ETCO₂; (b) IPAP, EPAP, and FiO₂.

Figure 1

Flow diagram of the ventilator operating mode.

Figure 2

Example of the trigger and cycling condition in assisted mode.

Figure 3

Architecture of ResUHUrge: (a) general scheme; (b) ResUHUrge interior detail and (c) touch screen detail.

Figure 4

Developed three-way solenoid valve (A) 3D design: (a) main body detail; (b) rotating stem detail and (c) detail of the servo support and air chamber; (B) final appearance.

Figure 5

Venturi: (a) image; (b) FiO₂ as a function of flow.

Figure 6

The amplified analog output of the sensors and model used. (a) Oxygen sensor; (b) pressure sensor; (c) airflow sensor.

Figure 7

Power supply architecture of ResUHUrge.

Figure 8

Remote controller of the developed ventilator. (a) WiFi connection point; (b) mobile app.

Figure 9

GUI of the developed ventilator. (a) Control panel; (b) alarm panel.