2016 Master of Design installations at Henry Art Gallery

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Rethinking the Ventilator

Submitted on September 21, 2021 - 1:56pm
WorldVent ventilator

A shortage of ventilators became a worldwide crisis in March 2020 with the arrival of COVID. Within weeks, a volunteer team of clinicians and engineers — many from the UW — committed to developing a low-cost ventilator that could be stockpiled for use in intensive care units but also used in settings with limited resources.

The result is WorldVent, a streamlined ventilator that can be rapidly and easily produced. WorldVent performs the same life-saving function as highly-technical ICU ventilators at a fraction of the cost.

Jason O. Germany, UW Associate Professor of Industrial Design, was recruited to the team early on. The ventilator has received several design awards, including top honors in several major international design competitions.

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