Get best of the week

You shall not pass! - 3D printers answer to coronavirus



We talk about the participation of makers in the fight against the spread of infection abroad and in Russia.

Content:

  • Examples
  • Do it yourself: how can you personally help in the fight against a pandemic
  • In Russia
  • What 3D companies do during a pandemic
  • Security and regulatory issues
  • Total

Countries around the world have rushed to fight the coronavirus pandemic, and, of course, 3D printer manufacturers and printers cannot stand by, sacrificing their strength, time and printing materials to suppress the spread of the deadly virus. Let's look at a few examples of how 3D printers help the planet get rid of the main plague of 2020.


Source: SeeMeCNC, via Twitter The

ongoing Covid-19 pandemic is slowly but surely affecting all aspects of everyday life. The result of such an all-pervasive influence is deplorable: many countries completely block the borders with neighboring states, social distance is actively promoted, people lose jobs, and visiting places of leisure, culture and recreation is strictly prohibited under pain of administrative and criminal liability.

But the virus caused not only a violation of the usual way of life. There is real chaos in the health services, caused by an increase in the number of infected patients coming to crowded hospitals.

Coronavirus is a pathogen transmitted by contact and respiratory, it causes the disease Covid-19 - a type of pneumonia, the treatment of which involves connecting the patient to a ventilator for life support. Demand for these machines has increased dramatically, in hospitals there is a terrible shortage of ventilation fans, and doctors are forced to use the available devices in the literal sense until they completely break down. In hospitals, there is a shortage not only of equipment to support the livelihoods of patients with Covid-19, but also of basic personal protective equipment (PPE) for medical workers who are in the zone of increased risk of infection.

The caring community of 3D printers and companies has come up with their own methods of fighting the spread of infection.

Examples


Challenge MIT Covid-19



Source: dezeen.com

On April 3-5, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) held a challenge to motivate people to join the development of rescue measures during the Covid-19 crisis.

The 48-hour virtual hackathon, dubbed Beat the Pandemic , aimed to solve two important problems arising from the ongoing pandemic: protecting vulnerable populations and supporting the healthcare system. The creation and gratuitous provision of personal protective equipment to physicians working for wear has become one of the main tasks in this situation.

Hackathon was openedfor all comers, regardless of their level of education and experience. Teams of 5-6 people participated. This is not the first such MIT event - on March 21, the Institute held COVID-19 IDEAthon. At the end of the event, the teams that offered the best ideas got the opportunity to develop and implement their product.

But not only Massachusetts Technological is contributing to the fight against the expansion of the disease, read on for other participants.

SeeMeCNC & AtomicFilaments Protective Injection Masks for #OpShieldsUp



Source: kpcnews.com

Manufacturer of Delta 3D printers SeeMeCNC used Prusa Research's face shield printing technology for healthcare professionals to create advanced personal protective equipment.


Source: twitter.com After

redesigning the original open-source faceplate from Prusa, the SeeMeCNC guys modified it to fit their own injection molding equipment, and the same face shield can also be printed in 3D . This step means that the company can produce thousands of protective masks daily.


Source: twitter.com

Made from PETG, donated by Atomic Filament, face shields are donated to Operation Shields Up , established by California-based R3pkord, a printer and print accessory distributor, to distribute personal protective equipment kits.



Swimming mask as a non-invasive respirator



Source: isinnova

Hospital in Brescia, Italy, one of the most affected coronavirus regions in Europe, worked with great overload, as there were more than 250 patients in one intensive care unit.

Finding the problem, Nunzia Vallini, an Italian journalist and director of Giornale di Brescia magazine, coordinated the hospital’s work with Isinnova, a business research and development company, to fill the oxygen valve deficit.

The part was simulated on site and the first valve prototype was ready within 24 hours, after which clinical trials of the product immediately began. After the initial success, around 70 valves were manufactured with the assistance of engineers from the Lonati Group, an industrial enterprise in Brescia.

After learning about an alternative way to use the oxygen valve, Dr. Renato Favero, a leading doctor at another hospital in Brescia, contacted Isinnova to remake the mask for a real mask.


Isinnova CEO Cristian Fracassi and mechanical engineer Alessandro Romaioli wearing masks with replaceable oxygen valves printed using SLS technology (Source: BBC)

The development is aimed at filling the potential shortage of nasal masks for CPAP therapy (maintaining constant positive airway pressure during mechanical ventilation), which can be used for intensive care of patients suffering from coronavirus. The solution developed by Favero is to connect full-face diving masks to the ventilator and wall-mounted oxygen distributors using the aforementioned oxygen valve.


Source: nspa.nato

Sports equipment and equipment manufacturer Decathlon has provided CAD files for his Easybreath mask concept for the project. Isinnova completed the development with its Charlotte oxygen valve. Suitable for printing on a regular desktop 3D printer, the valve and mask for the ventilator were tested on an Isinnova employee who caught the ill-fated virus and proved their effectiveness.

Given that every such patient needed many hours of mechanical ventilation, the lack of oxygen valves quickly became a huge problem.

On its website, Isinnova manufacturer actively emphasizes that the valve is intended for use only in extreme cases, when there are no other options.

Coronavirus Competition



Source: 3dprintingmedia.network

Need is the engine of progress, and during a pandemic, the needs of mankind have skyrocketed, pushing science and technology forward. Despite the fact that developers working with CAD have already created products such as contactless door handles and other 3D printing-friendly inventions to protect us all from the ubiquitous virus, there is always room for new inventions.

That is why some organizations and companies began to organize real competitions, in every possible way encouraging creative impulses of makers and contributing to the implementation of useful, and often vital, ideas and concepts.

Cad Crowd: product design during the Covid-19 pandemic as a challenge for 3D printing



Source: cadcrowd.com

A product design competition by Cad Crowd encourages CAD users to create product concepts that are “practical, cheap, easy to manufacture, and easy to clean.”

“Examples of such products are contactless door handles, nozzles on door handles and faucets,” the briefing of the contest says, which also states that participants can send product designs in various file formats.

All products will be distributed under a Creative Commons license, so they can be quickly printed in 3D or manufactured using the main components by downloading model files for free.

Prusa Design Competition: Home Furnishings During a Pandemic



Source: prusaprinters

Prusa invites 3D makers to compete in the creation of: essentials, interactive toys and study items. In fact, the purpose of the competition is to awaken a creative mood in people and prevent them from falling into despondency or degradation during social distance. Examples of such products are board games, letters of the alphabet, or items that may end up or get lost during quarantine (for example: clothespins, first aid kits, and handles).

Prusa is not interested in creating any personal protective equipment against coronavirus.

“Untested prints can do more harm than good, and actually help spread the infection, not fight it.” We will ignore such models during the summing up of the competition, ”the

explanatory note emphasizes.

The competition will last a total of 30 days and Prusa will announce a winner every 10 days during this period. The first two winners will receive the original Prusa i3 MK3S kit. In the last round, the winner will receive the same printer, the runner-up will receive three Prusament filament coils, and the third - two Prusament coils, 20 other participants will also receive prizes.

The terms of the contest can be found here .

Do it yourself: how can you personally help in the fight against a pandemic



Source: ults3d.com

If you are engaged in 3D printing, you can also take part in some projects against coronavirus. You can make non-contact door handles for your own home or for charity purposes, as well as share knowledge and personal experience of 3D printing - any help will come in handy in this situation.

Face shields



Prusa Face Shields in Action in Denver (Source: 3D Hubs)

Everyone who has been following the news on social networks and forums, after mobilizing the 3D printing community to provide all possible assistance to congested hospitals and medical staff, probably noticed that the mask wasn’t printed so simple. Questions arise about what kind of cut the mask should be and how to ensure its impermeability, not to mention the ability to breathe through it. There is also the problem of parts printed from FDM, which by its nature is full of microparticles and cracks where pathogens and dirt may lurk, which does not meet safety standards.

And smart people decided that face shields, which can serve as a physical barrier against airborne infections, are the most effective solution that can be created using 3D printing. The idea has gained popularity, and today there are many different faceplates, both completely authentic and original, as well as copied, renamed, but still useful.

We do not aim to convince you that some face shields are better and others are worse - some models have a traceable history of creation, others do not. The choice is yours. Please note that some of these shields are not certified and their use may not be recommended or even prohibited in some jurisdictions. If you want to make face shields for free provision to a hospital or other medical institution, contact the administration in advance and specify whether the use of such means of protection is allowed there, and also observe the hygiene rules in the manufacture of such shields.

Currently, files for the following face shields are available for self-production:


There are many tips on how to best produce face shields without compromising those who will subsequently use them. For example, the Czech Ministry of Health approved Prusa products, so you can safely trust the advice and guidance of this manufacturer if you decide to print personal protective equipment on your own 3D printer.

Prusa Face Shield RC3



Prusa Research's 3D-printed face mask (Source: Prusa Research) It took the

manufacturer Prusa Research just three days to make a significant contribution to the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. The first line of personal protective equipment Release Candidate 1 (RC1) was released recently, but the company has already begun to release the third option - RC3. Having made several amendments to the initial design, the manufacturer reduced printing time and increased the convenience and consumer properties of the flaps. The enhanced design version is also available as a batch model optimized for batch printing.

Simple Arm Door Opener:


Manual door opener. CIM UPC source, through Youmagine

The Barcelona manufacturer CIM UPC has released an ingenious in its simplicity and practicality solution for contactlessly opening door handles, and the good news is that the thing can be made at home with a 3D printer. The product is attached to the door handle using ordinary plastic cable ties. The download file is available through Youmagine .

Share 3D printing knowledge and experience



Source: 3dprintingcenter

In response to the current situation in the Italian city of Brescia, Google launched the Google Sheet project, which aims to bring together 3D makers around the world so that they can share their experience in producing the necessary products, such as an oxygen valve, and communicate their readiness print certain items necessary to counter the coronavirus.

As the Covid-19 crisis worsens, such projects will help healthcare facilities reduce supply chains, as they can receive the necessary protection directly from small-scale manufacturers.

In response to the situation in the Italian city of Brescia, Google launched the Google Sheet project, designed to bring together 3D makers around the world so that they can share their experience in manufacturing the necessary products, such as an oxygen valve, as well as communicate their readiness to print certain items necessary to counter the coronavirus.

As the Covid-19 crisis worsens, such projects will help healthcare facilities reduce supply chains, as they can receive the necessary protection directly from small-scale manufacturers.

Those who are interested in registering in this project can sendapplication for participation. Please note that the data you provide will be in the public domain. Your email address, name and location will be visible to all participants and users of the project, so weigh all the arguments before exposing personal data to the public, or make new ones to participate in the project.

Creating an open source ventilator



Source: 3dnatives.com

In addition to online platforms for exchanging 3D printing experiences and searching for volunteer makers, several projects have also appeared in recent days whose sole purpose is to develop open source ventilation machines that can be made quickly, cheaply and locally. .

In several publications devoted to the development of the concept of open source ventilation machines , the idea that collective ideas appearing during hackathons can find application in areas affected by Covid-19 often flickers.

Brent Jackson from the OpenRespirator project , in his repository on GitHub, compiled a list of proven designs of ventilators available for printing in 3D, such as OpenRespirator,Open Air and Ambu bag (primary care unit) from the Open Lung Low Resource Ambu-Bag Ventilator project .

Contactless door handle from Materialize



Source: materialise.

3D printing studio from Belgium Materialize quickly adapted its production facilities to product design during the Covid-19 crisis, having developed a special nozzle for contactless use of push-pull door handles.

A smart device that eliminates contact with door handles in homes, public places, and even in hospitals. The principle of operation of the contactless handle is based on opening the door with the elbow.

Available for free download, a two-component print requires two long and two short screws, as well as four nuts for fixing to the door handle. It is better to print in 2 pieces, one nozzle for each side of the door.


Visor



The ANYCUBIC visor version of the face shield , for protection against splashes when sneezing and coughing, works equally well for both the wearer and others, covering not only the respiratory system, but also the eyes and face skin.

In Russia


Makers vs COVID-19



Source: 3dtoday.ru

3D-printers of Russia launched the “Makers versus COVID-19” initiative, which was already written about on 3DToday. It began, approximately at the same time, in Moscow, St. Petersburg and Ufa, and then came to other regions.

Participants exchange models for printing, share experiences, raise funds and organize themselves - on the website Makersvscovid.ru , in groups on Telegram and on the board in Trello .

Telegram created separate groups for different regions of the Russian Federation and neighboring countries, where you can participate in the discussion or offer assistance.

  1. Ekaterinburg: @ CovidEKB3d
  2. Bashkiria, Ufa: @ ru_covid_3d
  3. Perm, Perm Territory: @CVPerm
  4. Voronezh: @ covid_3d_36vrn
  5. Podolsk: @ covid19podolsk
  6. Lipetsk and the region: @Lipetsk_VS_Covid
  7. Tver and region: @ help3d_covid19_tver
  8. Murmansk and the region: @ help3d_Murmansk
  9. St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region: @ covid19_3d_spb
  10. Krasnoyarsk and Krasnoyarsk Territory: @ covid_3D_KRSK
  11. Moscow and Moscow Region: @ cvd_msk_3dprint
  12. Samara and the region: @CVD_samara
  13. Tatarstan and Kazan: @ CVD3D_Kzn
  14. Chelyabinsk and the region: @ covid_3d_chel
  15. Tula and the region: @ covid_3d_tula
  16. Tomsk and the region: @ covid_3d_tomsk
  17. Rostov and region: @ Rostov3d_covid
  18. Ivanovo: @ covid_3d_ivanovo
  19. Volgograd: @CVD_Volgograd
  20. Izhevsk and Udmurtia: @ covid19_izhevsk
  21. Vladimir: t.me/VladimirMakers
  22. Kazan: t.me/CVD3D_Kzn
  23. Belarus and Minsk: t.me/HackerspaceMinsk
  24. Ukraine: t.me/UACvdHelp

Telegram project coordinators:
Tver -kolontsov;
Moscow - @superUserName;
Vladimir - @Vvolchek;
Bashkortostan - @ulitiy.

A table with a database of volunteers is also open , in which you can record yourself to participate in the project.

One of the initiators, participants and coordinators of the movement, Alexander Ulitin, agreed to answer our questions.

Alexander Ulitin




Video report:


- How did you get the idea to engage in such activities?

I have been engaged in 3D printing for a long time and, having seen a video on YouTube about how Czech, American and Italian makers help their doctors with the manufacture of protective equipment and consumables for treating patients, I decided to find out how relevant this is for us. I posted ads in Avito and scattered information about my friends that I was ready to make parts on a 3D printer for free to help doctors.



- What is your goal?

One infected doctor is dozens of patients without help. Therefore, I consider it a priority to give doctors the opportunity to protect themselves if there is a shortage of PPE provided to them by the state.



- Where do the models come from, how did they choose?

As for visors, the choice fell on a model that was freely available, was tested and approved by doctors in different countries, but most importantly, it was as fast as possible to manufacture, which is important in order to provide a large number of doctors with visors. Given the demand from doctors, I can say that it was the right decision. We also print adapters tested by Italians to use a swimming mask instead of an oxygen mask, the files are in the public domain.



- What medical facilities do you help or how else do you use printed?

Most often, the initiative comes from below - doctors, department heads and even head doctors contact through Avito, social networks, and sometimes they learn about us from the media.
First of all, we help doctors of the "cobby" hospitals of the Republic of Bashkortostan, but we also spend some of our resources on reserve observers and other budget hospitals.

Doctors from the 8th, 18th, 21st, 22nd hospitals, the Veterans Hospital, the Perinatal Center, as well as private clinics contacted us.



- On what and with what are you printing, why exactly these materials and equipment?

Volunteers have different equipment, depending on the accuracy of its settings and the quality of the results, we give them different tasks. We use various FDM printers, as they allow you to quickly and cheaply produce small batches of plastic parts. A kilogram of plastic costs about 2000 rubles, this is enough to produce about 70 visors or adapters.

Of course, casting or SLS-technology can give a result much better and in larger quantities, but the cost of equipment and consumables for it will be very high.



- Where and how do you print, how much time does it take?

Most volunteers print at home. Someone took the printers from work, so as not to violate the isolation mode. Printers work from 14 to 24 hours every day. Many may not be comfortable running the printer at night, as it makes a lot of noise and smells like melting plastic.



We wish Alexander and the other participants in this wonderful project success.

What 3D companies do during a pandemic


Here's how 3D printing companies use their resources and expertise to tackle the coronavirus pandemic.

Carbon launches face shields and microcrystalline assay swabs



Source: Carbon

Silicon Valley giant Carbon , together with Verily, has developed medical faceplates that can be made on a 3D printer using proprietary Carbon polymers.

Face masks were used at Bay Area hospitals, a San Francisco Bay area. The project demonstrates the company's rich experience in manufacturing geometrical workwear, gained through close partnership with the sports brand Adidas, and experience in the development of special polymers.

The file for three-dimensional printing is available to all Carbon subscribers on the official website of the company. The file is accompanied by instructions and requirements for the manufacture and care of the face shield.

In addition, the company also began working with medical facilities, including Stanford and Beth Israel Medical Centers, to develop assay smears for bacterial inoculation.


Source: Forbes

A smear is a sterile, non-toxic and non-inhibitory microbial growth sampling device and is an important medical product whose deficiency negatively affects the quality and speed of bacteriological tests.

Designed using the proprietary Carbon Lattice Engine software, which was used to develop customized, high-tech sports equipment and the legendary sole for Adidas running shoes, the accelerated design cycle allows you to create up to eight test tubes in one pass at a time.

Unlike Carbon faceplates, which are exempted from government regulation and can be delivered to medical centers immediately, bacteriological tampons require mandatory certification and permission to use before they can be used on patients.

Carbon’s altruistic attempts to solve many problems caused by the Covid-19 pandemic continue to manifest itself in other ways, including the recent opening of access to the Carbon Lattice Engine software to everyone (the request is sent by e-mail), as well as a wireless firmware update for branded printers to speed up the printing of faceplates.

3D Hubs Launches Covid-19 Production Facility



Source: 3dprintingmedia

3D Hubs from the Netherlands, using its network of manufacturing partners, established the Covid-19 Manufacturing Fund to produce parts for civic initiatives and non-profit organizations.

In addition, the company launched a GoFundMe campaign to collect donations from sponsors. The company will donate all its profits from Covid-19 related orders back to the fund.

Those who need manufacturing equipment and financing can contact directly through the 3D Hubs website . Philanthropists can donate to the fund through the GoFundMe campaign page .

Voodoo Manufacturing Launches Sales of Protective Face Shields



Voodoo Manufacturing sells 3D-printed face masks (Source: Voodoo Manufacturing)

Brooklyn concern Voodoo Manufacturing owns two 3D printing mills with over 200 high-power printers, and these production facilities are now entirely dedicated to fighting Covid-19 .

The concern is working on the creation of personal protective equipment, spare parts for ventilators and other necessary devices and organizes the wholesale of protective masks at a price of $ 10 apiece, with a minimum order of 100 units, to hospitals and other organizations that need such goods.

Voodoo Manufacturing says the high price is due to the material and labor costs of manufacturing, plus a “small margin” to help the company stay afloat during the crisis and pay salaries to its employees.
“We are not aiming for superprofits in a pandemic,” the group said, adding that sales were made with the “lowest possible margin” to maintain production and ensure the safety of our employees.

Formlabs develops smears for bacteriological selection



Test-stroke smear prototype (Source: Twitter Formlabs) Formlabs

printers and specialized materials are proving effective in times of crisis - primarily due to the company's ongoing efforts to produce 3D-printed medical smears for samples. A March 22 post on Twitter said the company is partnering with three hospitals in the United States and is currently undergoing clinical evaluation.

Test tubes were printed once on the Form 3 platform in batches of 300 units, each from Surgical Guide Resin, a proprietary polymer. The company also created a community of users willing to voluntarily provide their printers, supplies and personal time to ensure the smooth production of test tubes. This means that local production is ready to work if the products receive approval for use.

Formlabs director of production control, David Lakatos , tweeted that the company is “waiting for a final check to print smears for bacteriological samples”, adding that the company can print about 300 units on one printing platform per session, on 250 printers per Ohio, plus 800 volunteer printers.

Lakatos also added that the company is working on creating cartridges for respiratory masks.

MatterHackers Creates US Focal Point



Source: matterhackers

MatterHackers, a California-based 3D printing supermarket, has opened a focal point on its website that brings together hospitals and government departments with company customers who volunteer to provide equipment and supplies for the local production of personal protective equipment.

Interested medical centers and government agencies can apply for such assistance on the MatterHackers website, as well as volunteers who want to provide their own 3D printers for the needs of hospitals and government organizations, can register there. In addition, there is a general registration form . - for everyone who wants to help, even in the absence of 3D printing equipment.

User Network Ultimaker



Source: ultimaker.com The

Netherlands-based Ultimaker offers its services to healthcare providers and projects.

First of all, the company acts as a link between hospitals in need of 3D printing services and its global network of users who are ready to provide their equipment and materials. Accessible through a special Google Maps filter , the network brings together customers across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and North America.

In addition, the company says it brings together a team of designers and engineers to support the design and creation of scarce essential commodities during a pandemic. The aim of the project is to prevent a possible shortage of personal protective equipment and tools for first aid in times of crisis. The initiative is awaiting the approval of the authorities and passing clinical trials in the hospital before the start of widespread production. A request for participation in the design can be sent through a special survey form created by Ultimaker for its initiative.

Face Mask from Prusa



Prusa face mask in action. In the photo - Prusu Joseph (Josef Prusa) .Istochnik: PrusaPrinters.org

Company Prusa Research has made an enormous contribution to the fight against the pandemic, designed and developed a prototype 3D-printed medical masks to protect the face from coughing and sneezing patients.

The printed version of the RC1 face mask is described in detail in a long but fascinating blog on the Prusa website .

After analyzing the compatibility of 3D-printed parts with sensitive medical equipment, as well as the difficulties in ensuring the correct cut and tightness of printed face masks, the Prusa team decided to develop a fundamentally new face shield suitable for three-dimensional printing.

All the necessary work was done in just three days, including two checks from the Czech Ministry of Health, and now the mask file can be downloaded from the PrusaPrinters website. It is recommended to print the product from PETG.

Prusa's production facilities allow the simultaneous manufacture of thousands of brackets and visors (a separate, laser-cut PET sheet is also needed), from which up to 800 protective masks are then collected per day. Scaling to maximum productivity will allow you to print 4000 shields per day, and the reserve of production capacity will grow taking into account the company's resources and the ability to quickly add new printing equipment.


The first batch of 10,000 face shields was handed over to the Czech Ministry of Health.

Separately, it should be said about sterilization. It is believed that the Covid-19 virus survives on plastic surfaces for up to 90 hours, which means that 3D-printed elements can easily become a hotbed of pathogenic microorganisms and viruses if the surfaces are not treated regularly.

There are no officially approved methods for sterilizing 3D-printed masks, protective face shields and other equipment, however, it is known that a solution of ethyl alcohol with a concentration of above 70% kills the virus instantly, and from 40% within 30 seconds. Surfactants such as those found in laundry detergent are also fatal to the pathogen.

3D-printed essentials are just a short-term solution to the shortage of personal protective equipment. Therefore, all interested manufacturers and printers seeking to help should comply with all necessary sanitary requirements in the manufacture of such products. If the patient uses a product that does not meet all hygiene standards, then his condition may worsen.

The company’s blog says that those who print medical supplies on 3D printers for donation should contact professional healthcare providers and facility managers to coordinate and endorse such initiatives.

Printers can contact Prusa Research by email, to share 3D printable designs in the PrusaPrinters model repository.

3D printing plants in full readiness



Source: 3dnatives.com

Manufacturers join forces to address potential supply problems during the Covid-19 pandemic. Several projects have already been implemented from manufacturers of 3D printers, offering their knowledge, subscriber networks and production facilities to combat the global problem. BCN3D, a

Barcelona- based company, has pledged to provide its powerful 63-printer printing farm for science-based projects. Those who have ideas or plans can contact the company by email.

California-based Airwolf3Dalso provides its technical resources and knowledge to assist in the production of respiratory valves and medical components. Again, requests for cooperation can be sent by email.

Similar efforts have been made by Formlabs , which has created a support system that connects projects with expertise and tools to a large community of volunteers. Volunteers willing to help, as well as projects requiring such assistance, can apply for registration in the system using the same online form .

Capacity building for printing closed safety glasses



Source: 3dadept

Protective gear manufacturer in Jinhua, China, addresses the issue of personal protective equipment (PPE) shortages by providing a farm with more than two hundred 3D Flashforge Guider 2 printers to produce safety glasses for pandemic advanced healthcare personnel.

By instructing its research team to develop a mass-production product suitable for printing in 3D format, the company was able to complete the creation of safety glasses in two weeks, which would make it possible to produce about 2000 glasses daily. According to information published in Business Wire , to date, about 5,000 3D-printed safety glasses have been donated to hospitals in China.

Security and regulatory issues



Source: geekwire

Of course, the question arises: how safe are 3D-printed components compared to their counterparts made by traditional methods? Could legal liability arise for self-manufacturing of vital devices?

Despite the success of projects such as the oxygen valves used in Brescia, and Google’s initiative to attract volunteer printers to help hospitals, the reality is that most 3D printing components are not tested for safety.

Prints made may not correspond to the maximum permissible deviations for the medical equipment with which they will subsequently be used, as well as the standards for the production of medical equipment. The fact that people's lives depend on the reliability of the printed product shows how acute the situation is for a society in the grip of a pandemic.

It is worth considering the legal difficulties of the unofficial serial production of personal protective equipment, for example, who will bear responsibility if such a product harms a patient with weakened immunity.

In the next article, we will talk about the nuances of making filter masks to protect against coronavirus and why most of them are ineffective.

Also, the risk of infection cannot be minimized through the use of 3D-printed components made on FDM printers.

This means that 3D printing solutions are suitable for use as PPE under the condition of high quality printing and periodic disinfection during operation.

Despite this, the critical situation of cities in the midst of a pandemic has inspired manufacturers around the world to devote their time and equipment to fighting dangerous infections. If you want to help, be conscious and responsible when printing such products.

Total


The threat of a pandemic has rallied 3D printing enthusiasts and professionals, showing that many are able to provide free help without assuming personal gain. In this review, we looked at how you can help fight a pandemic.

Print more and, if possible, participate in Makers vs. COVID-19 to help doctors save lives.

More articles:


All Articles