Actions in support of the medical staff, who is facing a huge risk of the SARS-CoV-2 exposure, are taken across Poland. Those in contact with the ill must be extremely careful to take the safety precautions. Gloves and masks will not suffice; eye protection is also essential as the virus can enter the body through the eyes. Special visors offering face protection for the front lines of patient care come in helpful.

Volunteers including students of the Humanoid Student Research Group have joined the efforts to produce such emergency protective systems. They use their own 3D printing equipment and own filament supplies. Working from home, they produce frames for visors (one kilogram of plastic is processed into elements for ca. 20 face shields) and then transfer the frames to people who have special tools for cutting face shield sheets. The last element is a rubber band. Finished protective visors go to hospitals and clinics.

An open-source template which comes from the Czech company Prusa Research is used for frame printing.

As an important note, the Humanoid Student Research Group is running the action #HumanoidChallenge on Facebook. This initiative encourages people to take up creative work during isolation and share information about projects outside the University campus.

Frames printed by Tomasz Łempicki, a member of the Humanoid Student Research Group.

Update

The Humanoid Student Research Group is not the only group to get involved in the production of visors for medical staff. Students of the ADek Student Research Group (who can boast a considerable experience in giving back to the community) have volunteered too and produce frames for protective masks on 3D printers. Visit the Student Research Group on Facebook and see the photos.