To assist in the ongoing coronavirus pandemic engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena have created a high-pressure ventilator prototype. This machine is specifically designed to provide help to COVID-19 patients, as stated by the agency.

The system is called Ventilator Intervention Technology Accessible Locally, or VITAL, the technology has just passed an important test at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York. In the days ahead, NASA is hoping for a fast-track approval of the ventilator so it can be used to help critical coronavirus patients.

The prototype operates like traditional ventilators, where sedated patients depend on an oxygen tube to help them breathe. The prototype is built to last three to four months, contrary to ventilators in hospitals that were designed to last for years to provide aid for patients with other medical conditions. Engineers of the prototype hope that traditional ventilators can be reserved for patients with severe symptoms from the coronavirus if VITAL is put into place.

The advanced ventilator was also built to provide more oxygen at higher pressures than other models. According to Dr. Levin, who stated some of his patients needed that specific capability from the devices.

The agency stated engineers at JPL designed the ventilator to be easily built using fewer parts, a majority of them available in current supply chains. The purpose of the ventilator is not meant to compete with other exiting supply chains for ventilators. The VITAL machine is also designed to be adaptable with easy maintenance. It can be used in other settings hosting field settings, such as hotels and convention centers.

In addition to building a ventilator to help COVID-19 patients, NASA is also trying to help provide medical equipment in local communities like Antelope Valley, California. Another helpful device is the Aerospace Valley Positive Helmet, which can be used to help treat coronavirus patients experiencing minor symptoms instead of using a ventilator. The helmet functions more like a continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP, a machine more commonly used to treat sleep apnea, according to the agency. The device has already been tested successfully and submitted to the FDA for emergency use authorization, while 500 are currently in production.

The unit is the product of a collaborative partnership between NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in California and Antelope Valley Hospital, the city of Lancaster, Virgin Galactic and The Spaceship Company, Antelope Valley College, and personnel of the Antelope Valley Task Force.

Previously the NASA Glenn Research Center in Ohio teamed up with Emergency Products and Research, based in Ohio, to develop small portable devices that could disinfect ambulances quickly and cost-effectively known as AMBUStat. Both companies are looking to apply to the same methods during this pandemic as well.

From 3D printed masks to protect health care professionals to NASA developing ventilators for COVID-19 patients, companies across the nation are stepping up to provide assistance during the coronavirus pandemic.

Sources: