MIT Solve

Solution Overview

Solution Name:

ANTI-PATHOGEN PERSON CLEANER

One-line solution summary:

A quick-to-deploy decontamination and sterilization chamber to help reduce spread of the disease.

Pitch your solution.

We are committed to preventing and slowing the spread of emerging outbreaks by reducing human-borne pathogens. Similar to today’s high flow rate hand dryers, after stepping into our Anti-Pathogen People Cleaner, clean, pressurized air is applied to safely and rapidly dislodge pathogens from people and their clothing. A vacuum system returns the pathogen-laden air to a pressurized tank where it is treated with Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation (UVGI) and HEPA filtered. After the person leaves the Cleaner, another high power UVGI treats the enclosure before the next person enters. The Anti-Pathogen People Cleaner is targets Hospitals, Nursing Homes, Apartment Buildings, Airline Gates, and other dense areas where people can easily spread pathogens. This gives people reassurance that they are less likely to carry pathogens to people who are highly susceptible and helps keep our Health Workers clean and healthy, too!

A Rapidly Deployed Decontamination Unit based on a soccer-mom-tent

Film your elevator pitch.

—

What specific problem are you solving?

The spread of many viruses and bacteria occurs because these pathogens are human-borne; spread from person-to-person or from person-to-object-to-person. In either case, CDC recommendations are for improved individual hygiene; such as hand washing and showering. Our Anti-pathogen People Cleaner provides a high-flow rate air-shower to safely and rapidly dislodge and capture human-borne pathogens to prevent people from carrying these into areas that should be kept clean. 100s of millions to billions of people pass through Hospital and Nursing Home thresholds, Customs, Airline Gates, Schools, Apartment Buildings, and similar allowing people to inadvertently infect the people and surfaces they interact with inside. Coincidently, in the same form factor, many of these places security screen already. Our Anti-Pathogen People Cleaner will protect workers, patients, residents, travelers, students and others by greatly reducing the concentration pathogens inside of protected or otherwise high-risk areas.

What is your solution?

Our Anti-Pathogen People Cleaner uses high-flowrate, pathogen-free air to clean people wearing their garments. The pathogen laden air is immediately collected by a vacuum system, which returns to a compressed air tank. Inside the tank, an ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) source is used to destroy the pathogens. A HEPA filter is located on the high pressure side of the tank, which after expanding the air stream uses diffusion to capture the destroyed pathogens before accelerating the air to the jets manifolds, which sweep the pathogens from the occupant. After cleaning, the person steps out of the Cleaner and another high power UVGI lamp is used to irradiate the chamber, destroying any pathogen that escaped the vacuum system before the next person enters.

UV-C based UVGI is well-known to kill pathogens with maximum efficacy around 265nm, which is also non-ionizing. However, a dose that will kill only ~90% of the pathogen will also give a person sunburn and/or corneal burns. Our solution slows the flow stream to near zero and isolates it in the tank to allow extremely high doses of UVGI to be applied to quickly to target a as high as 99.999% - 99.9999% cell kill.

Who does your solution serve, and in what ways will the solution impact their lives?

The Anti-Pathogen People Cleaner serves Healthcare workers, Airline Crews, Nursing Home workers, Customs workers Patients, Residents, Visitors, Travelers, Students and others by ensuring they can decontaminate before entering places that are prone to becoming “hot areas” due to high human traffic. By cleaning pathogens from these people prior to entering potentially “hot areas” such as Hospitals, Nursing Homes, Commercial Aircraft, Schools, and similar places, not only are those at high-risk to exposure protected, but those who care for them, visit them, and live with them are being protected against bringing the pathogen back.

We Need a Plan to Engage some Early Adopters.

Explain how the problem, your solution, and your solution’s target population relate to the Challenge.

Our Anti-Pathogen People Cleaner directly answers the MIT Solve Challenge by slowing the spread of emerging outbreaks and preventing the spread of people-borne pathogens by improving individual hygiene and providing a cleaning tool that will support protect Healthcare Workers from excess exposure and allow them to rapidly air-shower when warranted. Equally important, this innovation will help all people to reduce the concentration of pathogens they might carry, helping to ensure, even for viruses with a long gestation period, that the health of those are risk will not be inadvertently compromised.

In what city, town, or region is your solution team headquartered?

Kirkland, WA, USA

What is your solution’s stage of development?

Concept: An idea being explored for its feasibility to build a product, service, or business model based on that idea

Who is the primary delegate for your solution?

Haggai Goldfarb