Ambulance vehicles have to be disinfected by hand after each use. This quickly takes an hour, even longer in corona times, because even more care is required. In the future, the work will be done in ten minutes without an employee having to intervene. It simply presses a button, so that light-emitting diodes (LEDs) distributed throughout the vehicle are activated, which emit UV-C light. It has a wavelength of 100 to 280 nanometers, making it shorter-wave than UV-A and UV-B. UV-C light, which is also invisible, is more effective in destroying germs, viruses and bacteria than the longer-wave ultraviolet bands.
LEDs are integrated into the lighting
LED disinfection was developed by researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Optronics, System Technology and Image Analysis (IOSB), part of the Applied System Technology division, and BINZ Ambulance and Environmental Technology, both based in Ilmenau, Thuringia. The system is integrated into the existing lighting and can therefore be retrofitted. The first ambulance with quasi-automatic disinfection is scheduled to go into regular service this year.
Disinfectant solutions based on UV-C light are currently on everyone’s lips. They are available for smartphones, masks that are supposed to protect against infections and many other products that require sterility. However, the technical requirements for a system for ambulance vehicles are higher. It must be ensured that the light sources work reliably. Mercury vapor lamps, which are used frequently, were out of the question because they are easily damaged by vibrations. They are commonplace with such vehicles.
The air in the vehicle is also germ-free
In contrast, LEDs have no moving parts that could be destroyed by vibrations. In addition, they are extremely durable, which massively simplifies maintenance. Each LED is also electronically monitored to ensure that they are all working properly and that they cover all surfaces of the vehicle. The system also disinfects the air in the vehicle, which is not possible in manual mode. Because corona viruses can survive in the air for hours, for example, this is an additional advantage.
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