The Mask Aid Project
At the beginning of the pandemic, my friend Kalimov asked me to help him with a project that we hoped could help with mask shortage the crisis. He and his colleague Jason invented a way to renew otherwise disposable (K)N95 masks. We researched and found that you need to wash, dry, and sanitize masks within certain parameters to optimize cleaning yet also ensure the masks lasts a long time. We also discovered that these masks need an electrostatic charge in order to be completely renewed. So we designed, tested, and built a prototype that would do all 4 of these tasks in single product and called it the Mask Reborn Box.
We launched a small Facebook campaign and sent some of our devices and a box of 1000 masks to be distributed to small villages in Uganda.
We launched a crowdfunding campaign to start producing them. We first tried Kickstarter, but we were denied because it was a medical device. We also tried Indiegogo. Though we got some funding, we were ultimately unsuccessful and decided to refund our supporters.
One of the major challenges was explaining why the N95 mask needs electrostatic charge. So I made videod explaining it in simple terms.
In order to educate people on the need for electrostatic recharging their cleaned masks, we invented a device to detect static charge. We got a patent for the technology and produced and sold some of them internationally. You can purchase them from our shop.
Though we did make some sales, we ultimately, we decided that the hurdles of entering into medical products were too high. It proved too difficult to create market acceptance, educate the public about electrostatic recharging, and insure against the liability associated with medical devices. So the project has been shelved for now. That said, contact me if you have funding, experience, or the resources to help us restart this project.