Altium Designer and Altium 365: Empowering Global Collaboration for Open Source Ventilator Project

The customer in this case is the Open Source Ventilator Project, a global coalition of engineers, designers, and medical practitioners committed to creating low-cost Field Emergency Ventilators (FEVs) using 3D-printed components. The project began in Ireland in early March 2020 to support COVID-19 patients in emergency settings. It quickly attracted volunteers from around the world, growing to over 3000 members by the end of March. Among the first wave of respondents was Velocity Research, an engineering services start-up based in Michigan, headed up by Founder and CEO, Dugan Karnazes. The project has grown exponentially, producing ventilators around the world and partnering with major companies like Ford, GM, and Boston Scientific to acquire FDA approval.

The global pandemic has put an unprecedented strain on the healthcare industry, particularly on the medical supply chain. One of the most critical needs has been for ventilators, which are expensive and time-consuming to manufacture. The Open Source Ventilator Project, a global coalition of engineers, designers, and medical practitioners, rose to this challenge by creating low-cost Field Emergency Ventilators (FEVs) using 3D-printed components. However, the project faced significant challenges in terms of collaboration and coordination. With over 3000 volunteers from different companies, individual engineers, medical device designers, and programmers from all over the world, the project required a platform that could facilitate seamless collaboration and sharing of PCB designs.

Altium Designer with Altium 365 emerged as the perfect solution for the Open Source Ventilator Project. Altium 365, a cloud-based platform, works seamlessly with Altium Designer to empower design sharing and collaboration with anyone, wherever they are, in whatever time zone, at any company, as designs evolve. This was crucial in bringing together the global team of volunteers. Altium 365 eliminated the need for exporting and sharing PDFs, making the entire process faster and easier. The platform allowed team members with diverse backgrounds to understand different aspects of the project and implement version control easily. Altium 365 also facilitated the rapid development of prototypes, with the team able to pull together four prototypes within mere weeks.

• The use of Altium Designer with Altium 365 has had significant operational benefits for the Open Source Ventilator Project. The platform has facilitated seamless collaboration among a global team of volunteers, eliminating the need for time-consuming processes like exporting and sharing PDFs. This has significantly sped up the design and production process, enabling the team to quickly develop prototypes and move into production. The platform has also made it easy for team members with diverse backgrounds to understand different aspects of the project and implement version control, further enhancing the efficiency of the project. Moreover, the use of Altium 365 has eliminated geographical barriers, enabling the team to work together effectively despite being distributed across different time zones.

• The project was able to pull together four prototypes within mere weeks.

• With the help of manufacturing partners, the project has the capacity to produce 500 ventilators per week for deployment in South America, Africa, and elsewhere.

• Using 3D printing, the project has been able to produce and donate over 30,000 face shields and other essential personal protective equipment (PPE) to healthcare workers worldwide.