A revolutionary improvement in personal protection equipment against COVID-19

由于缺乏有效的个人防护设备（PPE）来阻止通过头部粘膜发生的COVID-19空气传播感染，NHS，护理之家和基本工作人员正在死亡。我们的创新是一种抗病毒的充气头罩（AVAH），它覆盖头部并为佩戴者提供无病毒的空气，从而阻断病毒传播途径。我们的AVAH比目前的医疗PPE或工业用动力空气呼吸防护（PARP）装置更好，因为它更舒适和有效，具有全方位的可视性，安静，有助于沟通，模块化（因此易于清洁），一些组件已经在大规模生产。AVAH由一个个人吸气器组成，该吸气器由一个风扇组成，通过两个过滤阶段吸入空气。初级过滤器捕获雾滴和大的灰尘颗粒。内部高效微粒空气（HEPA）过滤器捕获较小的颗粒。风扇由可充电电池供电，通过消音器和柔性软管将空气输送到发动机罩。引擎盖是由空气的压力膨胀。多余的空气被排出，并通过头罩的可渗透袖口过滤。它还具有简单的控制和警报，以确保用户的安全。我们有两个主要目标，这是：（i）使用改进的工业风扇/过滤器系统结合我们新颖的通风罩设计，启动预生产“现场”试验和市场测试，（ii）设计、测试和认证我们自己的风扇/过滤器单元，该单元专门针对医疗保健用途进行优化，降低成本，更好的可用性和更好的应对供应链问题的能力。我们将继续大规模生产AVAH，目标是每周生产数千台。我们的重点领域是设计，开发和大规模生产AVAH，供国内外使用。我们预计，我们的创新产品的改良版本将有多种额外的应用，包括防止花粉热，以及其他公职人员的使用，例如监狱、警察和边境管制人员，这些工作人员可能会接触到传染病和呼吸道疾病，如肺结核。工作安全设计AVAH是创新的，因为它的设计是模块化的，它解决了与常用口罩相关的许多问题和压力，遮阳板或工业PARP装置。来自临床医生和护理人员的反馈非常积极，因为他们对AVAH的病毒防护能力，轻巧，安静和全方位视野印象深刻。其他信息-我们已经设计、测试和3D打印了预生产AVAH（重命名为“AirHood”），现在使用定制组件构建，旨在克服满足公告机构认证（法律的要求）所需强度和稳健性标准的现成部件（连接器等）的不可用性。为了解决这些问题并提高气泵装置的效率，我们设计了用于制造所需零部件的注塑模具。如果能够为这些额外费用找到资金，这也有效地加快了进入市场的路线。因此，通过Innovate UK的“影响扩展”呼吁获得额外资金的可能性将是获得这些基本资金的理想途径，WorkSafe设计总监将弥补差额。快速进展的另一个限制因素是3D打印的AirHood装置不能用于公告机构认证，因为它们由与注塑工艺不同的材料制成。为了使用模制部件制造成品并能够将AirHood产品提交给公告机构认证，因此，我们首先需要找到额外的资金来支付注塑工具。因此，WorkSafe Design要求为这一“影响扩展”申请提供额外资金，以支付三种注塑工具、垫片工具、一套原型软管、PCB上的一些额外的可编程设计工作（以最终确定其可用于大规模生产）和EMC测试的费用。一旦这个财务和工具问题得到解决，我们就可以迅速着手制造模具，制造AirHood，并通过开发该产品的巨大（全球）市场，开始产生巨大的经济和健康效益。

NHS, care-home and essential workers are dying, due to the lack of effective Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that stops air-borne infection of COVID-19 occurring through the mucous membranes of the head. Our innovation is an anti-virus, air-fed hood (AVAH), that covers the head and provides virus-free air to the wearer, thereby blocking this virus-transmission pathway. Our AVAH is better than current healthcare PPE, or industrial-use Powered Air-Respiratory Protection (PARP) units, because it is more comfortable and effective, has all-round visibility, is quiet to aid communication, modular (therefore easy to clean) and some components are already in large-scale production.The AVAH consists of a personal aspirator that comprises of a fan, which pulls air through two stages of filtration. The primary filter catches mist droplets and large dust particles. The inner high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter catches smaller particles. The fan is powered by a rechargeable battery and delivers air, via a silencer, via a flexible hose to the hood. The hood is inflated by the pressure of the air. Excess air is exhausted and filtered through the hood's permeable cuff. It also has simple controls and alarms to ensure user safety.We have two key objectives, which are to: (i) initiate pre-production 'field' trials and market testing using a modified industrial fan/filter system in conjunction with our novel hood design, (ii) design, test and certify of our own fan/filter unit optimised specifically for healthcare use, reduced cost, better usability and improved resilience against supply chain problems. We shall proceed to mass manufacture of the AVAH, with a goal of producing thousands per week.Our focus areas are the design, development and mass production of our AVAH, for use both here and overseas. We foresee multiple additional applications for modified versions of our innovation, including protection against hay-fever and use by other public servants, e.g. prison, police and border control officers, where staff could be exposed to infectious, respiratory diseases such as tuberculosis.The WorkSafe Design AVAH is innovative, because its design is modular and it solves the numerous problems and stresses associated with commonly used facemasks, visors or industrial PARP units. Feedback from clinicians and care workers has been extremely positive, because they were impressed with the AVAH's virus protection capability, lightness, quietness and all-round field of vision.-ADDITIONAL INFORMATION-We have designed, tested and 3D-printed the pre-production AVAH (renamed the "AirHood"), now built using bespoke components designed to overcome the non-availability of off-the-shelf parts (connectors etc) that met the required strength and robustness criteria, necessary for Notified Body Certification (a legal requirement). To solve these problems and improve the efficiency of the air-pump unit, we designed injection-moulding tools for the manufacture of the required component parts. This also effectively accelerates routes to market, if funding can be found for these additional costs. The potential for additional funding via this “Extension for Impact” call by Innovate UK, therefore, would be an ideal route to obtain these essential funds, with the WorkSafe Design Directors making up the difference.An additional constraint to rapid progress is that the 3D-printed AirHood units cannot be used for Notified Body Certification, because they are made from a different material to that which would result from the injection-moulding process. To make the finished product using moulded-component parts and to be able to submit the AirHood product for Notified Body Certification, therefore, we first need to find additional funds to pay for the injection-moulding tools. WorkSafe Design, therefore, is requesting additional funding on this “Extension for Impact” application, to cover the cost of three injection moulding tools, the Gasket tooling, a set of prototype hoses, some additional subcontract design work on the PCB (to finalise it ready for mass production) and EMC testing. Once this financial and tooling problem is solved, we can proceed rapidly to making the moulding tools, manufacture the AirHood and begin to generate enormous economic and health benefits, by exploiting the huge (global) market for this product.