Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock () or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock () or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

NIH3D

PanFab Powered Air Purifying Respirator- Custom Blower Unit

Created by
akshay1320
Created:
4/16/21
Submitted:
3/6/23
Published:
3/6/23

Select an image below to view

3DPX-015674

Licensing:

CC-BY-SA
429
15
Version 2

Category

Hardware & Devices
Devices and Hardware

Collection(s)

Approved Use

Prototype
Prototype
Description

Two designs for Powered Air Purifying Respirators (Panfab PAPRs) with modular and interchangeable components were engineered and tested to NIOSH-equivalent standards. Specifically, the following top level components were developed-

  • Custom made Blower Unit (known as Custom Blower Unit, current repository)
  • Custom made Filter (known as Custom Filter, repository titled “PanFab Powered Air Purifying Respirator- Custom Filter”, NIH 3D Print Exchange Model ID: 3DPX-015672)
  • Blower Unit with modified commercially available housing (known as Commercial Blower Unit, repository titled “PanFab Powered Air Purifying Respirator- Commercial Blower Unit”, NIH 3D Print Exchange Model ID: 3DPX-015671)
  • Filter Assembly with modified commercially available HEPA filter (known as Commercial Filter, repository titled “PanFab Powered Air Purifying Respirator- Commercial Filter”, NIH 3D Print Exchange Model ID: 3DPX-015673)

The devices were tested on human subjects including healthcare workers, under a protocol approved by the Partners Healthcare Institutional Review Board. PanFab PAPRs provide superior respiratory protection as compared to N95 masks and avoid the issues with fit common with those masks. These low cost PanFab PAPRs also performed favorably compared to commercially available PAPRs in terms of comfort and sense of security. The associated designs are available under a non-restrictive Creative Commons license. 
This repository provides CAD files of parts pertinent to the Custom Blower Unit, that are to be 3D printed, injection molded, or machined.
For a detailed discussion of design and testing, please read the pre-print found here: https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.03.25.21252076v1

Custom Blower Unit, without filters mounted, in the open configuration
Custom Blower Unit, without filters mounted, in the closed configuration
Custom Blower Unit mounted with Custom Filters, donned on person using waist strap