The Problem

Tuberculosis (TB) is an airborne disease and remains one of the world’s leading infectious killers, causing over one million deaths each year. Transmission risk is highest in crowded, poorly ventilated indoor spaces, particularly TB clinics, waiting rooms, and general outpatient departments in low-resource settings.

While masks, early diagnosis, and treatment are essential, environmental infection-prevention measures—especially ventilation and air cleaning—are often inadequate due to cost, infrastructure constraints, or maintenance complexity.

The opportunity

Simple, low-cost airflow and filtration systems can significantly reduce the concentration of airborne infectious particles in indoor spaces when appropriately designed and positioned. Such systems can act as a practical supplementary control, especially where mechanical ventilation or negative-pressure rooms are unavailable.

Evidence & precedent

Independent testing in the United States has demonstrated the effectiveness of simple, community-buildable air-cleaning systems:

“Independent testing conducted with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency showed that simple, low-cost fan-and-filter air-cleaning units removed over 99% of infectious respiratory aerosols from a classroom environment within one hour, achieving performance comparable to much more expensive commercial systems.” — University of Connecticut / EPA SAFE-CT programme

While these trials were conducted in schools, the underlying principle—high airflow combined with effective filtration—is directly relevant to healthcare waiting areas and clinics, including TB service settings.

Proposed approach

This concept proposes an open-source, community-buildable air-cleaning support unit designed for use in TB clinics and similar healthcare spaces.

Design principles
• Room-scale (not personal or wearable)
• High airflow with modest, widely available filtration
• Designed to complement natural ventilation (windows, vents, chimneys)
• Built, repaired, and maintained locally
• Fully open-source and non-commercial

The system is not a medical device and does not replace masks, ventilation, diagnosis, or treatment. It is intended solely as an additional risk-reduction measure within a layered TB infection-control strategy.

For more details click here:

Open Source

Priority use areas

• TB clinic waiting rooms
• Sputum collection areas
• General outpatient departments
• Integrated HIV/TB clinics
• Temporary or overflow health facilities

Why local, open construction matters

Local build and maintenance:
• Reduces cost and dependence on supply chains
• Enables rapid repair and adaptation
• Builds understanding and trust among staff and communities
• Avoids vendor lock-in and licensing barriers

Units can be assembled by:
• Clinic maintenance teams
• Local tradespeople or artisans
• Vocational students
• Community or NGO volunteers