Coronavirus Inventions - Ways to Deter, Mitigate and Fight COVID 19 and Future Global Diseases

Antiviral and antibacterial solutions for current and future pandemics

March 12, 2020 - Many inventors are now considering ways to help fight the current worldwide outbreak of COVID-19 aka coronavirus. The virus itself is a version of the common cold that presents flu like symptoms. It affects older people and those with compromised immune systems far more than the young and is transmitted primarily from people touching an infected surface with their hands and then touching their face, specifically, eyes, nose and mouth. Many things are still unknown, but it seems that the mortality rate may be around 1-2% which would make it ten to twenty times more lethal than the common flu. It also seems that roughly 80% of confirmed cases are not severe, while up to 20% may require hospitalization. It's the need for hospitalization that's causing the most concern and the primary reason for quarantines and actions like "social distancing." People with severe cases of coronavirus suffer life threatening respiratory problems and need hospitalization so they can breathe and recover. Too many cases occurring at one time overwhelms hospitals and results in problems not only for people ill with the virus but for anyone who needs hospitalization or emergency room care.

Pharmaceutical companies are hard at work, but it may take a year or more before a vaccine becomes widely available.

What can inventors contribute in the meantime? Realistically, it takes about a year to get any new product on the market. But starting now, inventors can help the world be better prepared for both the next pandemic and the common cold.

Non toxic materials and coatings are available today that kill bacteria using nanospikes. Nanospikes are nano scale spears that impale bacteria and kill them. They have not been shown effective with viruses which are smaller. Silver in various forms has been shown to kill viruses, but testing would be needed to confirm the efficacy of the specific form of silver how it is applied.

Beyond creating a solution, is it fair for inventors to profit from a crisis? My answer is that a reasonable profit is always fair and that even a premium might be justified. That said, we hereby offer up the following idea (but not the name) to the public domain. Any company is free to use the concept of a nitrile glove covered with nanospikes without compensating us (although we wouldn't refuse a 1% royalty!). Please note that we have not done a deep search of prior art and make no representation on whether or not the idea might violate the claims of a validly issued and in effect patent. If someone is serious about taking the idea forward and wants help with sourcing, we can almost surely help with that.

Introducing the Gauntlet-AV™:

- Mike Marks