University ventilator to be used in Africa's Covid battle

A ventilator created by University of Aberdeen scientists is to be used in Africa in the fight against Covid-19.

The university’s planetary sciences group developed the low-cost “ATMO-Vent” device in an effort to help treat coronavirus patients.

Now, the university has signed an agreement with Kigali-based Medical Technology Company, which will assemble the ventilator for use in hospital settings in Rwanda and neighbouring countries.

The Aberdeen team built the user-friendly device by tapping into knowledge accrued developing life-support systems for manned space missions.

Professor Javier Martin-Torres, who heads the planetary sciences group, said: “As a group we are very excited to see that the university has signed this agreement with MTC Ltd to develop the ATMO-Vent in Rwanda.

“We designed the ATMO-Vent in response to worldwide efforts to produce more ventilators for Covid-19 patients, using our experience in developing instruments for Earth and planetary exploration to build a device suited for rapid deployment in healthcare settings worldwide.”

Professor Marion Campbell, vice principal for research, added: “This agreement came about through the active links between the School of Geosciences and the University of Rwanda, which underlines the importance of international scientific collaboration in meeting global challenges.

“Across multiple disciplines, our research community is working as part of a broad effort to harness our world-renowned academic expertise in the fight against Covid-19 and this is a prime example of how our researchers are applying their skills to meet the challenges created by the pandemic.”