Creative Italian Engineers Turned Snorkeling Masks Into Life-Saving Ventilators

Everywhere in the world where Covid-19 case is spiking, there is a heavy need for both medical gears such as masks and ventilators that help the symptoms of the patients. But as shown in a recent video captured by an ER doctor, they never have enough of them.

In Italy, ISINNOVA engineers teamed up with Decathlon as well as medical experts in converting snorkeling masks into live-saving masks that can be substitutes for ventilator masks.

Former head physician of Gardone Valtrompia Hospital, Dr. Renato Favero, approached two engineers of ISINNOVA, an engineering company. Engineers Cristian Fracassi and Alessandro Romaiol took up the challenge in order to come up with a solution for the dwindling supply for C–PAP masks, the type that is necessary to be hooked up to ventilators to help Covid-19 patients breathe.

Their creative solution has been implemented and is saving lives.

Soon, Decathlon was included in the project to supply the Easybreath snorkeling mask. Decathlon is a sporting goods retailer and ISINNOVA got the CAD designs of the ventilators and 3D-printed the necessary valves.

They have tested the prototype on their colleagues in a hospital as well as on a patient. It appears that this mask passed the test easily and can be soon implemented to hospitals in need.

They have also shared the blueprints to be shared for hospitals to use.

They have also posted a YouTube tutorial video on how to convert these masks into C-PAP qualified ones.

ISINNOVA reminds us that this should only be the last option in case that there is a true emergency need for C-PAP masks. While this solution may have mitigated the need for the masks, it doesn’t eliminate the fact that medical professionals need more ventilators, the machines that actually supply oxygen.

C-PAP masks cost €100 while these full-face snorkeling masks are only at €25 plus the necessary 3D-printed valves.

Check out in this video how it was done!