Design of a low-cost, portable blower-based breath simulator using 3D printing for respiratory research and education

In contemporary times, as air pollution becomes increasingly severe, the challenge for healthcare in addressing respiratory-related diseases has become more urgent than ever. To assist in researching the domain of medical equipment and education training, this paper aims to create a blower-based breath simulator (BBS) for the physiological processes of spontaneous breathing by using low-cost materials and easy-to-build hardware. Specifically, the BBS focuses on providing a representation of breathing patterns, lung compliance, and airway resistance. Notably, the BBS is built on a portable 3D printable components-based structure designed for fast installation, offering direct control of breathing modes, and can be operated for a long time. Besides, the experimental test is built according to ISO 806601-2-79:2018, with testing on a dual adult training test lung from Michigan Instruments for peak inspiratory pressure, respiratory rate, positive end-expiratory pressure, tidal volume, proximal pressure, lung pressure, and demonstrating repeatability. As a result, the BBS meets initial design criteria, which comprise being lightweight, approximately 1.5 kg for the ventilator unit, and low cost, around $650 per unit, fast production time, approximately 100 continuous hours for 3D printing, and 105 h in total for the complete prototype process.