The initiative has been started by Kamil Deja, doctoral student at the Faculty of Electronics and Information Technology. The idea was welcomed with enthusiasm from his research supervisor, professor Przemysław Rokita, Head of the Department of Computer Graphics at the Faculty of Electronics and Information Technology, specializing in, among other things, 3D printing. Soon they were joined in their search for support by professor Krzysztof Zaremba, Dean of the Faculty. The news about the initiative has spread to other faculties and units at our University.

One of the printers at the Faculty of Electronics and Information Technology while operating; photo from the project team.

At present the following faculties are involved in the production of visors: Faculty of Electronics and Information Technology, Faculty of Building Services, Hydro and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Chemistry, Faculty of Physics, Faculty of Chemical and Process Engineering, the Center for Innovation and Technology Transfer Management and the 3D Print Student Research Group (at the Faculty of Power and Aeronautical Engineering). The group is open for anyone willing to help.

Production of visors requires appropriate equipment, materials (filament and film supplies) and time. Printing one frame takes several hours, depending on the printer. Then the sheets have to be cut (the team uses a laser cutter to this end) and joined with the frames.

One of the printers at the Faculty of Electronics and Information Technology while operating; photo from the project team.

The first visors wholly prepared by the team were sent to the Warsaw hospital at Banacha Street. The second batch was delivered to the employees of the Neurosurgery Department at the Bielany Hospital and one of the hospital clinics. At the end of the week there were 81 visors ready and another couple of dozens waiting to be finished.

“We’ve heard about the initiative of 3D printing protective visors, I’ve found a group of volunteers to which various hospitals from our region reported their needs, in total for 19,000 visors”, explains Kamil Deja, who first came with the idea for the initiative. “I asked professor Rokita whether we had any printers at the Department that could be used for this purpose”. Professor Rokita sent this information to the Dean and thus, with their support, a small idea has grown into an all-university project.

The persons involved in the production receive now first feedback from the visor users.

“Doctors say they are comfortable, one lady even said that those in peach color were beautiful, and that at least made wearing them more enjoyable”, said Kamil Deja.

Visors ready to be distributed; photo from the project team.