A group of volunteer engineers and doctors, in Spain, have successfully tested a prototype 3D printed ventilator on a pig.
The research, by the Reesistencia Team, at the University of Oviedo, was also filmed and the instructions to produce the 3D-printed ventilators have been made publicly available.
The pig was on the ventilator for four hours without any problems or damage, (see also the story in Spanish).
The next step in its validation will be human trials at Asturias Central University Hospital.
The demand for low-cost scaleable ventilators is due to healthcare systems facing a global shortage for treating the most severe cases of coronavirus.
Other groups at work, and marked on EARA's interactive map, include, the University of Minnesota, USA, which has developed a ventilator that has gone through successful human trials, after being tested on pigs and sheep.
AgResearch, in New Zealand, is currently using a sheep model to validate their ventilator prototype.
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