Mercedes breathing aid device made freely available

Mercedes has confirmed that the breathing aid device that it has produced in partnership with the University College London have been made freely available.

Just over a week ago, Mercedes announced its mission to assist in the global fight against the COVID-19 virus. 

Last week, the UK government ordered 10,000 devices and currently, they are being produced at a rate of up to 1,000 per day at the HPP technology centre in Brixworth following successful patient evaluations at UCLH and sister hospitals in London.

The device is a CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) machine, that helps those with damaged lungs to breathe easier when there is a shortage of available oxygen masks.

The machine work pushes a mix of air-oxygen into the mouth and nose at a stable pressure, which keeps the airways open and increases the amount of oxygen supplied to the bloodstream.

Mercedes says that the Mark II model, which uses 70% less oxygen consumption than Mark I, received approval from the MRHA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency) last week.

Details on how to manufacture the device are available to download and view here.

Mercedes states that “by making this information widely available, this may help the global response to the crisis by enabling healthcare systems around the world to provide respiratory support for patients with COVID-19”.

Mercedes HPP managing director Andy Cowell said: “Since the project was announced, we have received an incredible number of enquiries about the CPAP device from around the world.

“Making the design and manufacturing specifications openly available will allow companies around the world to produce these devices at speed and at scale to support the global response to COVID-19.”

Professor Rebecca Shipley, Director of UCL Institute of Healthcare Engineering, added: “These life-saving devices are relatively simple to manufacture and can be produced quickly.

“We hope that, by making the blueprints publicly available, they can be used to improve the resilience of healthcare systems preparing for the COVID-19 pandemic globally.

“My thanks goes to the brilliant engineers, business managers and team at UCLB who have come together and made this happen at a pace that would be considered unimaginable under normal circumstances.”