Dyson – breathe easy with its new CoVent hospital ventilator

CoVent

CoVent is proof that 5000 Dyson engineers and scientists can develop a COVID-19 compatible ventilator in just ten days and take orders for 10,000 from the UK government. Dyson has done it again.

We don’t know the whole story about the CoVent. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson called Sir James ten days ago to see if he could repurpose something to deliver affordably and quickly (yes we know that is not Sir James style) COVID-19 compatible ventilators.

Boris was after a ventilator that was safe, effective, efficient in conserving oxygen, easy to use, bed-mounted, portable, and not needing a fixed air supply – a tall order.

Dyson teamed up with The Technology Partnership (TTP) – an independent technology company where scientists and engineers collaborate to invent, design and develop new products and technologies.

Enter the CoVent

The CoVent is bed mounted. It is portable and battery operated. It is for different care settings, including field hospitals, and patient transport.

CoVent

The user interface has a clinically led, human factor design, so it is safe for and familiar to use by, health care providers.  

A Dyson Digital Motor (like its Dyson Supersonic motor) powers it – these are available in very high volume. It also conserves oxygen using a rebreathe circuit and Dyson’s air purifier ability to deliver high-quality filtration in high-volume products.

Outside experts from the NHS and Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) are supervising the process.  

Dyson will also donate 5,000 units – 4000 to go to other countries. All that remains now is to fast track regulatory approval.

Below is the email Sir James sent to staff to announce the project

Sir James Dyson
Love those Poter glasses

Dear All

Hospitals are the frontline in the war against Covid-19, where heroic doctors, nurses, and care workers are battling to save lives and help people recover from this terrible virus. As with any battle, there are many challenges to overcome, not least the availability of essential equipment which in this case means ventilators. A ventilator supports a patient who is no longer able to maintain their own airways but sadly there is currently a significant shortage, both in the UK and other countries around the world.

Since I received a call from Boris Johnson ten days ago, we have refocused resources at Dyson, and worked with TTP, The Technology Partnership, to design and build an entirely new ventilator, The CoVent. This new device can be made quickly, efficiently and at volume. It addresses the specific clinical needs of Covid-19 patients, and it is suited to a variety of clinical settings. The core challenge was how to design and deliver a new, sophisticated medical product in volume and in an extremely short space of time. The race is now on to get it into production.

He goes on

The Dyson Digital motor sits at the heart of the new device and the motor’s design optimised to have a very high level of intrinsic safety, making it particularly well-suited for industrial, high volume production. The device achieves a high-quality air supply to ensure its safety and effectiveness, drawing on our air purifier expertise which delivers high-quality filtration in high-volume products.

Ventilators are a regulated product so Dyson and TTP will be working with the MHRA and the Government to ensure that the product and the manufacturing process is approved.  We have received an initial order of 10,000 units from the UK Government which we will supply on an open-book basis. We are also looking at ways of making it available internationally.

I am proud of what Dyson engineers and our partners at TTP have achieved. I am eager to see this new device in production and in hospitals as soon as possible. This is clearly a time of grave international crisis. I will therefore donate 5,000 units to the international effort, 1,000 of which will go to the United Kingdom.

We will keep you updated with our progress.

Best wishes,

James

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