Haply wins the CODE LiFE Ventilator Challenge

Leveraging its strengths in areas of development surrounding haptic technology and its application to training surgeons and medical professionals in virtual and augmented reality, Montreal Haply Robotics has won the CODE LiFE Ventilator Challenge.

Source: Haply Robotics

The Montreal General Hospital Foundation and the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center (IR-MUHC), in partnership with the McGill Faculty of Engineering, are pleased to announce the winning team of the CODE LiFE Ventilator Challenge: team Haply from Montreal.

The CODE LiFE Ventilator Challenge was officially launched earlier in 2020 with a two-week sprint to design a low-cost, simple, easy-to-use, and easy-to-build ventilator that could serve patients suffering from COVID-19. More than 2,600 registrations were received, representing over 1,000 teams from 94 countries. After extensive testing of their prototypes, three finalists were chosen by a team of world-renowned critical care experts, respiratory therapists, medical device experts, and mechanical ventilator manufacturers.

Cost of production & ease of training

The Haply design was selected as the best of these three on the balance of simplicity in design and operation, as well as cost of production and ease of training. In addition, the judges were impressed by the versatility and anticipated robustness of the design.

“Our experience with the CODE LiFE Ventilator Challenge was incredibly challenging but was one of the most rewarding experiences we have gone through as a team,” says Colin Gallacher, co-founder of Haply Robotics. “We were motivated by the disparities between developed and developing nations in access to essential medical technologies like ventilators which have been highlighted by COVID 19,” he adds.

Next steps for Haply

McGill University’s Faculty of Engineering has raised additional funds, partners, and resources under the banner of the “Made for All” initiative, with the aim of helping get the design through regulatory approval and into production at a cost below $1000, for low- and middle-income countries. Thanks to further support from the Montreal General Hospital Foundation and Joule, $300,000 has been secured, as well as new partners to provide pro-bono specialized support.

The Montreal General Hospital Foundation and the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Center (IR-MUHC), in partnership with the McGill Faculty of Engineering organized the CODE LiFE Ventilator Challenge.