While manufacturers in the United States and around the world are repurposing their resources to develop ventilators for COVID-19 response efforts, a group of schoolgirls has designed one using a car component in Afghanistan.
The Associated Press said the team used an open-source concept provided by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and implemented a Toyota windshield wiper motor. They hope to finish the ventilators and have them ready by the end of May for testing and approval.
Life-saving mission
The members of the robotics team of prize-winning girls in Afghanistan say they're on a life-saving mission - building a ventilator out of recycled car parts and helping their war-stricken nation fight the virus.
"If we even save one life with our device, we will be proud," said Farooqi, 17. She told The New York Post they will "fight and work" for people.
The all-girls robotics team first made international waves in 2017, when the United States initially rejected their visas for a robotics competition to enter the country. Though the original members have graduated, the team has been living on more girls aged in high school, hoping to combat sexism against women through proof of practice. Now, the team has 50 members. Due to the pandemic lockdowns and health problems of the families, the community which developed the ventilators included only six members, ages 14 to 17.
"We were so excited to join the challenge in this pandemic crisis and that the local government believed in our ability and skills to work on such an important project," team member Nahid Rahimi told Fast Company. "And it was essential to us if we could save one life through this effort."
Congratulations to our Afghan Girls Robotics Team for winning the entrepreneur challenge in the biggest Robotics Festival in Europe in Estonia. #ProudAfghans #Robotex17 #AfgDigital pic.twitter.com/nIM6GudIul — Embassy of the I.R. of Afghanistan in London (@AfghanistanInUK) November 26, 2017
How would the components help?
The M.I.T. design focuses on keeping the costs for standard machines to construct a ventilator well below the $30,000. Although the price tag varies depending on material demand fluctuations, the charge is around $400-$500 per unit. The robotics team provided feedback from M.I.T. professors to ensure the system functioned adequately for this design.
The second design comes motivated by a Toyota Corolla's parts. Those pieces of scrap are abundant in the region, and units made with this design can cost as little as $300. To procure the components, the team collaborated with local mechanics.
At the workshop, the team is experimenting with two different designs, including a Massachusetts Institute of Technology open-source blueprint. Components used include a Toyota windshield wiper motor, batteries, and bag valve mask sets, or manual oxygen pumps. A mechanics community is helping them develop a ventilator frame.
The team and their partner, Roya Mahboob, told Fast Company that these types of ventilators are only for emergency use. They might come in handy though if the country's supply of ventilators starts running short. Afghanistan acknowledged that many of its current ventilators are not working, leaving the country with just 400 for a population of over 36.6 million.
M.I.T. professor Daniela Rus has welcomed the initiative of the team to develop the prototype. "That's going to be great to see it tested and produced locally," she said. Once completed, the ventilator model will be sent to the Health Ministry for research, initially on animals, spokesperson Wahid Mayar.
