Finalists named in Code Life Ventilator Challenge

The Montreal General Hospital Foundation and the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre has announced the three finalist teams for the Code Life Ventilator Challenge. Launched on March 19^th, this two-week sprint to design a low-cost, simple, easy-to-use and easy-to-build ventilator that can serve patients suffering from COVID-19, has received more than 2,600 registrations, representing over 1,000 teams from 94 countries. 

Of all the ventilator designs received, nine semi-finalists were selected as the most promising. Over the past three weeks, the semi-finalist teams submitted prototypes that were intensely tested, and then refined prior to a second round of testing and evaluation by critical care physicians, respiratory therapists, mechanical engineers and medical device experts to ensure compliance of the design with the specifications and the vision of the Challenge.

The evaluation committee members were unanimously impressed with the submissions and thanked all participants for their dedication to the cause. “It is truly inspiring to see how these teams have been able to achieve so much in so little time and under so many constraints, including operating under COVID protocols and remotely engaging with team members”, remarked Dr. Reza Farivar, Leader of the Code Life Ventilator Challenge.

Following the tests, three finalist prototypes were chosen based on the extensive deliberation of the expert judges that took into consideration the full design, test results, user experience, manufacturability, and cost.

The three finalists are:

• Haply 
  Behind this prototype is a robotics company, Haply, based in Montreal, Canada. In order to design this ventilator, the team collaborated with physicists and engineers from Montreal, London (Ontario), and Kingwood (Texas).
• IFPR Brazil
  Designed by a team from Paraná, Brazil, the IFPR ventilator uses modern engineering techniques and sophisticated mechanical and electronic components.
• Lung Carburetor
  Created by a team of experienced medical device designers from Montreal and Havre-Saint-Pierre, Quebec, the Lung Carburetor is a low-cost, portable ventilator that can be manufactured locally.

All selected projects are now available for public viewing on the Code Life Ventilator Challenge websitewww.codelifechallenge.com.

Prizes
The three finalists will receive $200,000, $100,000 and $50,000 CAD in compensation for their design and for sharing it with the world in the fight against COVID-19. The level of compensation will be determined by the extent to which the individual designs are used and produced in the next six months (i.e., by Oct. 1^st). The finalist designs and preliminary manufacturing packages will soon be available to qualified manufacturers around the world at no cost, so that the maximal number of ventilators can be produced to help care for COVID-19 patients that need mechanical ventilation.

Next steps
The next steps are all focused on yielding products that will be used to help patients. Interested manufacturers can already connect with us so that we may share the manufacturing packages as soon as they are ready. We are also preparing a second Challenge specifically to expedite refinement, cost-reduction, and regulatory compliance of the final designs. Stay tuned for more!

Launched in March, the Code Life Ventilator Challenge was a response to the Covid-19 pandemic currently afflicting the planet. At a time when a shortage of ventilators was already being felt in some countries hard hit by the virus, the organizers chose to appeal to the innovative spirit of engineers and scientists from around the world by launching a daring challenge: to design a low-cost and easy to reproduce ventilator in two weeks.

Full details of the challenge are available here: www.codelifechallenge.com.