IIT Ropar's Innovation Is Keeping Your Favourite IPL Players Safe From Covid-19

Have you ever wondered how world’s most awaited event IPL 2020 (Indian Premier League) that kicked off in Dubai last week is ensuring safety from COVID-19 for cricket players, their teams and IPL staff? A unique Ultraviolet germicidal irradiation (UVGI) based room disinfection device “UV SAFE” developed by IIT Ropar researchers in India has been deployed at Dubai Sports City.

The state-of-the-art design of disinfection device ensures Zero-shadow 360-degree disinfection through its prismatic body and foldable wings. The specially designed wings provide focused exposure to the most frequently touched surfaces such as door knobs, table tops, cupboards, room fixtures, wall corners, work tops, artefacts, furniture tops etc. The trapezoid base houses the control panel of the equipment. A removable handle and magnetic cover has been designed for comfortable storage and transit of the device.

The product was conceptualized and designed at IIT Ropar by Khushboo Rakha an assistant professor of metallurgical and materials engineering along with a team comprising senior scientific officer Naresh Rakha and design consultant Shahriar Reza.

Talking to Outlook, Khushboo says, “The device was developed following a consulting project by Noida-based Momentum India. The company had some specific dimensions and we conceptualized and designed it. The device disinfects 200 square feet of area within six minutes and it kills all active viruses and bacteria including coronavirus up to 99.99%.” She adds that the device costs around Rs 1.5 lakh exclusive of taxes.

Apart from Dubai sports city employing it, the device has also been rented by the IPL team Mumbai Indians for its premises being used overseas. Before being marketed it was tested by National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) — lab run by FICCI Research and Analysis Center.

The products design has been patented. Khushboo says since March when the coronavirus gripped India, she along with her team mates Shahriar Reza and Prof Naresh Rakha have accomplished several innovative solutions, starting with designing and prototyping the UV trunk. Then designing and commercialising UV-C disinfection devices for industrial and household applications; UV disinfection box, a portable document and bank note disinfection device. She has also designed a unique and safe doffing station for health care workers and UV Safe: The in-room UV-C disinfection device.

The team was congratluated for thier innovation by Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, Sanjay Dhotre.