Multiple Patient Ventilator Splitter

thingiverse

This device is a splitter designed to allow one ventilator to serve multiple patients. Two sub-assemblies are required: the splitter itself, which comes in 2-way and 4-way models, and the check valves that prevent exhaled breath from one patient from reaching another patient. The check valves must be configured for inhalation in one direction and exhalation in the other. Each valve consists of a body, a disk, and a cap. When assembled, the disk sits in the round cage within the cap and presses against the face of the tube inside the valve body. A gasket seals the space between the cap and the valve body; I printed this gasket from Ninjaflex, but other materials could be used to create it. Two types of disks are available: one with a round indentation for an o-ring, and another featuring dual extrusion printing, with the bottom layer made from Ninjelfx and the top layer from PLA. The dual-extrusion disk performs better. I do not guarantee that this splitter will safely ventilate multiple patients or endorse venting multiple patients on one ventilator as a standard practice. Research in this area is limited by rigorous standards, but in emergency situations like those during the pandemic, unconventional methods may be necessary. It's up to medical professionals and clinicians to decide whether or not this device should be used based on their expert judgment.