What it does
Obilizer is a smart app-controlled handheld & portable UV sterilizer that disinfects all types of objects and surfaces which we interact with on a daily basis, with UV-C radiation without the use of any acids, liquids, or bleaches.
Your inspiration
After this pandemic started, I was concerned about sterilizing public utilities like a biometric access system, elevator buttons, wash-basins and door handles at my residential building because these are used by hundreds of people every day and negligence in sterilizing these surfaces may result in the spread of the COVID-19. So I searched for UV sterilizers but I found no such sterilizer of a modular design that can sterilize multiple types of objects and surfaces as well as is easy to use for a layman. So then I got the idea to build an all-in-one design and simple to use app-controlled UV sterilizer for today's digital generation.
How it works
The Obitizer device consists of a UV-C lamp and a controller board. When the user sends the switch on command from the mobile app, the controller board controls the UV-C lamp for the set-timer of the UV radiation on the app. The app connects to the Obilizer device via WiFi, through the ESP8266 based NodeMCU board on the Obilizer controller board. Then UV light on/off, and the UV timer instructions are sent via the mobile application to the Obilizer device. Exposure to UV-C germicidal radiation disrupts the genetic material inside the Coronavirus hence in-activating it. It also damages the DNA of most bacteria and viruses thus killing them. Today UV-C radiation is used in hospitals for well for disinfecting patient rooms and also to clean seats in airplanes, and Obilizer aims to bring this advanced technology to the everyday customer.
Design process
A total of 3 prototypes were made for Obilizer, starting in the month of March 2020. From a very basic aluminum body made out of an old robotic kit, today Obilizer is made from glossy Acrylic. Initially, I planned to use UV-C LEDs which are easy to hook up but after conducting the product test with a UV-C spectrometer, I found that UV-C LED's aren't able to deliver the intensity of UV radiation which is required to kill the Coronavirus. So then I moved to Phillips Mercury lamps which have an intensity of 2.6mW/cm2 (at a distance of ~8-10 centimeter from the object), which means that 10 seconds of exposure, the total UV-C radiation delivered to the surface would be 26mJ/cm2 which is recommended to kill the Coronavirus according to the latest researches. Then I started working on converting my prototype to a finished product that the end consumer can use. In around 3 months of time, I was able to build the final version of the Obilizer device, from the initial prototype.
How it is different
Our product design enables users to sterilize a wide range of objects of any size, rather than just a single type of object or surface. It is also very interactive and easy-to-use, compared to other sterilizers in the market which are bulky and complex. Most sterilizers come in a box-shaped design, where only limited types of objects can fit inside. Secondly, the device connects to the smart mobile app which enables users to select objects which they want to sterilize and automatically calculate the estimated sterilization time depending on the object area. A lay-man doesn’t know how much time it will take to sterilize an object, and our app-enabled modular design sterilizer basically solves that problem.
Future plans
Obitizer is currently at the MVP stage, and we’re working constantly improving on the design of the device with our early customer's feedback. We are currently selling the device commercially in the UAE market. We are also in discussions with various government and private entities in Dubai, UAE for implementation of Obilizer's UV disinfection solution in taxis (after each ride, the driver sterilizes the back seat), car rental companies (user sterilizing the shared vehicle before starting each ride), retail stores (for sterilizing goods tried by customers), cleaning companies (office disinfection) and retail stores.
Awards
1. COVID-19 Innovation Challenge by T-Hub (2nd Place) 2. Jaguar Think Tank – Inter University Entrepreneurial Pitch competition (1st Place) 3. Involve Inter University CSR Pitch competition (3rd Place) 4. TiE Dubai Young Entrepreneur University Pitch (top 4 finalists)
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