Formula One Team Mercedes has joined forces with clinicians and university engineers in London and designed a breathing aid in less than a week to keep Covid-19 patients out of intensive care.

The Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) device delivers a steady stream of oxygen and air to patients who are struggling to breathe and can be used on standard wards, unlike ventilation, which requires patients to have an invasive procedure and sedation in an intensive care unit.

Engineers from UCL and doctors at University College London hospital (UCLH) developed the device, which is claimed to be an improvement on existing CPAP systems, with Mercedes Formula One in less than 100 hours from first meeting to first production model. The device has been approved by the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.

CPAP machines help to keep patients’ airways open and increase the amount of oxygen entering the lungs by pushing air and oxygen into the mouth and nose at a continuous rate, unlike ventilation, which requires patients to have an invasive procedure and sedation in an intensive care unit.

These devices will help to save lives by ensuring that ventilators, a limited resource, are used only for the most severely ill.