CTU Coronavirus Information

A team of experts from the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering of CTU headed by Prof. MUDr. Leoš Navrátil, CSc. MBA, dr. h. c., started to use high-power laser therapy, commonly used in musculoskeletal rehabilitation, to minimize the consequences of covid pneumonias in spring 2021. This type of radiation is proving to be an effective treatment method that can transform scar tissue in the lung back into elastic, functional tissue.

Rector of CTU doc. Vojtěch Petráček sent an open letter today to the Minister of Health of the Czech Republic Adam Vojtěch, in which he strongly protests against the aggressive campaign, using real images of the dying and the dead at COVID to "motivate" them to be vaccinated.

It has been one year since the first patient was successfully connected to the CoroVent pulmonary ventilator which was developed by a team led by Professor Karel Roubik from the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering of the Czech Technical University (FBME) in March 2020 in response to alarming reports from around the world about the rapid increase in the number of COVID-19 virus patients and the shortage of pulmonary ventilators to treat these patients in Italy and other countries around the world. It happened on 31 October 2020 at the Regional Health Masaryk Hospital in Ústí nad Labem.

In its laboratories, the University Centre for Energy Efficient Buildings of CTU (UCEEB) has tested the possibilities of using nanofibres to detect small foreign particles in gas, such as viruses or bacteria in human breath. The tests were commissioned by ProNanoTech, which will use the findings to develop a new product.

Teams from the Czech Technical University in Prague (CTU), University Hospital Hradec Kralove (FN HK), Palacky University Olomouc (UPOL) and University of Defence (UNOB) are collaborating on a unique project called TERESA (TEleREhabilitation Self-training Assistant), which will enable the rehabilitation of patients with persistent effects of COVID-19 in the home environment. At the same time, patients will be able to share data on their physical activity with their doctors through personal wearable devices. Patients with other respiratory diseases could also use the system in the future.

The Faculty of Social Sciences of the Charles University follows up on its project with a successful survey carried out in May 2020 in cooperation with the Institute of Sociology of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. At that time, researchers mapped the life and study situation of students. The study was part of the International COVID Well-being Study (ICSWS). Approximately 7,000 students from 7 larger universities (CULS, MU, UHK, UK, UPOL, TBU, University of Economics, Prague) took part in this study in the Czech Republic.

Up to 500 people a day will be vaccinated with the Covid-19 vaccine at the Děčín Vaccination Center, which has been operating in the building of the Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering in the center of Děčín since Monday 12 April 2021. The faculty provided its large hall for a symbolic CZK 1 per month to the Regional Health Society, which operates the vaccination center. This was prepared for operation by a team of employees of this CTU detached workplace outside Prague.

The VENT-CONNECT project, which enables remote monitoring of lung ventilators and vital signs monitors, especially in patients with COVID-19 connected to artificial lung ventilation, passed the preclinical phase and received a positive opinion from the ethics committee of the Royal Vinohrady University Hospital (FNKV). The technical solution developed by the team of the Czech Technical University in Prague composed of researchers from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC) and the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering in cooperation with the Department of Anaesthesiology and Resuscitation (KAR) streamlines condition monitoring for patients in the infection zone with remote access to ventilator screens and vital signs monitors. This allows physicians to adjust lung ventilator parameters more accurately during treatment, which of course leads to better patient care. The solution is cheap and easy to deploy in other workplaces, be it COVID-19 or others.

Dear colleagues, dear students, Today is a year since the COVID epidemic claimed its first victim in the Czech Republic. Over the past year, almost 25,000 people have succumbed to the epidemic, a memory of which we will commemorate today with a minute's silence at 12 noon. Please also join this silent memory.

The new air purifier concept relies on the filter material, which can be sterilized by electric current and reused. An innovative solution, the development of which was worked on last year by the team of doc. Lukáš Vojtěch and Ing. Marek Neruda from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering (FEE), has all the prerequisites to become an effective means of collective protection against viruses such as COVID-19. It can also be used in air conditioning or ventilation systems of buildings or means of passenger and public transport, including cars, ships or planes.

The ockovani.opendatalab.cz website offers an overview of vacancies for vaccination against COVID-19. The aim of the application is to offer the citizens of the Czech Republic a quick overview of free capacities, which has not been available anywhere before. The application was developed by Marek Sušický and Jan Staněk from the Open Data Laboratory, a joint workplace of the Faculty of Information Technology (FIT ČVUT) and the company Profinit. The newly published open data also helped them to do this.

Dear colleagues, dear students,

The graduation ceremony of the Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering (FNSPE) is traditionally held in the Bethlehem Chapel. In order for students and their loved ones not to be completely deprived of the experience, the faculty decided to prepare an online graduation for all interested parties.

Researchers from the Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC) of the Czech Technical University in Prague have created a unique algorithm that can find the optimal setting of the laboratory system to evaluate as many samples as possible in the shortest possible time. Patients can thus expect the laboratory can evaluate more samples and also that they will obtain test results sooner. In response to the situation surrounding the global COVID-19 pandemic, PREVEDIG medical - a laboratory diagnostic center, Beckman Coulter - a leading supplier of laboratory analyzers and laboratory automation, and CIIRC CTU. Together, they focused on how to process more samples with the laboratory's current capacity. By optimizing and adjusting the settings of the laboratory system, it was possible to increase the number of samples in order of tens of percent.

The CoroVent ventilator, developed at the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering of the Czech Technical University in Prague by a team of prof. Karel Roubík and manufactured by MICo Medical, was delivered to several hospitals throughout the Czech Republic during the autumn. These lung ventilators were paid with money from citizens and companies in a public collection earlier this spring. 106 of these fans will now be delivered to the State Material Reserves Administration.

The Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics of the Czech Technical University in Prague (CIIRC CTU) and TRIX Connections, a start-up and spin-off company at the Czech Technical University in Prague, jointly developed software that recommends a suitable seal size for devices using a smartphone for more comfortable use of the RP95 protective half mask. Customization and connection of end users directly with manufacturers is the essence of distributed production, which research at CIIRC CTU has long been concerned with. The application was launched just a few days after the CIIRC CTU team received an extraordinary award “Česká hlava” from the Council for Research, Development and Innovation for its mask for 3D printing.

Even without the decision of the mayor of the capital city of Prague or the governors of individual regions, two hundred students from the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering of the Czech Technical University currently help on the front line in medical and social facilities, sampling points or rescue services: future paramedics, physiotherapists, laboratory technicians, radiologists assistants, biomedical technicians or students of security programs.

Online tutoring in mathematics and other subjects, consultations for families and school network administrators, provision of workshops and computer equipment - these are specific forms of assistance that volunteers from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering (FEE) provide for schools and their students during the coronavirus outbreak. An innovative LEO device is also available for practical teaching of high school students from home.

The Fitify mobile application was founded by Martin Mazanec and Matouš Skála while studying at the Faculty of Information Technology, CTU. The application offers over 800 exercises, dozens of workouts and a virtual coach. It has already found its users in 180 countries around the world.

CoroVent lung ventilators developed at the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering of the Czech Technical University in Prague and paid for from the collection of citizens and companies are gradually being delivered to Czech hospitals. The first installation took place at the Masaryk Regional Health Hospital in Ústí nad Labem on 31 October, 2020 where the patient was hooked up to the lung ventilator for the first time.

On-line monitoring of hospital bed capacities: a topic that resonates in connection with the growing number of hospitalized with COVID-19 disease. The integration system, developed by the Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC) of the Czech Technical University and the start-up TRIX Connections to help healthcare professionals and crisis management, is able to automatically and securely connect and process online live data directly from hospitals. The system was tested at the University Hospital Ostrava and is ready for use in hospitals.

Air quality is at the top of the World Health Organisation's list of causes of premature death. According to the European Commission, he is responsible, by a rough estimate, for the death of one per mille of the population per year. Over 10,000 in the Czech Republic, less than half a million in Europe. According to a study at Harvard University in the USA, the risk increases by 8% with each extra microgram of particles in a cubic meter of air. In addition, high concentrations of harmful particles in the air may increase health damage during a coronavirus pandemic.

With the participation of an infectologist, epidemiologist and data scientists under the auspices of the Rector of CTU

CoroVent lung ventilators, which were attended by citizens and companies in a public collection this spring, are ready for delivery to Czech hospitals.

'How not to measure Coronavirus' is the title of the first lecture of the autumn run of the seminar Mathematical Problems of Non-Mathematicians, which will take place on Tuesday, 6 October from 17.20.

Dear students, staff and sports friends, Given the current situation and the constraints associated with the current situation, we are more aware than ever of the need to maintain physical condition and common sense. Active movement is one of the ways to maintain a healthy body and spirit. The Department of Physical Education and Sport of the Czech Technical University recommends that students include physical activities and a stay in the fresh air in their daily routine during this non-standard period.

The Ethnographic Museum of the National Museum hosts an exhibition called DIY: From Do It Yourself to DIY from 25 September, 2020 to 17 January, 2021. Here, CTU will also present its innovations, which helped in the fight against COVID-19.

An important part of the NATO 2020 Days in Ostrava and the Air Force Days of the Army of the Czech Republic was the ceremonial awarding of members and employees of the integrated rescue system, security forces and public hygiene stations. Among the winners was also a student of the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering of the Czech Technical University, doctoral study program of Population Protection, Ing. Denisa Charlotte Ralbovská.

Rector's letter to the students considering the current epidemiological situation.

The pulmonary ventilator, which has been developed by a team of experts headed by Prof. Karel Roubík, from the Faculty of Biomedical Englineering of the Czech Technical University in Prague, in collaboration with partners from COVID19CZ and other experts, has received certification from the FDA (the United States Food and Drug Administration). This is a very prestigious award.

The team of doc. Lukáš Vojtěch and Ing. Marek Neruda from the Department of Telecommunication Engineering, Faculty of Electrical Engineering (FEE) has long been engaged in research and development of electrically conductive textile materials. In a record time of 3 months, the team designed and tested a prototype of a textile composite material that can be sterilized by electric current. The prototype composite consists of carbon fabrics, nanotextiles and an electrode system. The filtration concept is registered for patent protection and the team is currently looking for partners for introduction into production.

Yesterday evening, the final evening of the Hack the Crisis Czech Republic hackathon took place in the WeWork coworking space in Prague. With the participation of Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, Minister of Industry and Trade Karel Havlíček and Government Commissioner for IT Vladimír Dzurilla, the expert jury selected eight winning projects, which shared 10 million crowns donated to the competition by Hyundai. The winning project was DIANA Biotechnologies. In second place came the unique solution of pulmonary ventilation CoroVent, designed for the treatment of COVID19, by the team of prof. Karel Roubík from the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering of the Czech Technical University in cooperation with partners. The CoroVent ventilator is currently manufactured by MICo Medical.

On 22 June 2020, a discussion meeting took place in the CTU-CIIRC building within the Global Science Café cycle organized by the Czech Centers entitled Research and Innovation in the Fight against COVID 19. The invitation was accepted by the Rector of the CTU doc. Vojtěch Petráček, student of the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering Šimon Walzel, member and coordinator of the team of engineers in the CoroVent project, David Miklas from the COVID Initiative and Pavel Burget from the Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics . The discussion was moderated by Petr Kaiser, special representative for scientific diplomacy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Dozens of Czech companies, with the support of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, merged, developed and began mass production of the RP95-M mask during the coronavirus pandemic. The respirator, which provides the highest level of protection, was designed at CIIRC CTU for 3D printing. Production data can be downloaded free of charge with a free license, so the mask is already available in more than thirty countries around the world. In physical form, this Czech protective device can now spread even further, as it now has European certification.

Asymbolic check of a special financial collection was organized by the Czech-Israeli Mixed Chamber of Commerce (ČISOK) for the Czech Technical University in Prague (CTU) on 11 June 2020. The collection was announced at the beginning of April and by the end of May, the chamber managed to collect CZK 607,000. The donation will be used for a project of improvised full-face masks for first-line physicians, in which CTU cooperates with the COVID19CZ working group.

The CoroVent pulmonary ventilator was developed in cooperation with the COVID19CZ initiative and other experts by the team of Professor Karel Roubík from the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering. At the end of April, the ventilator was mass-produced by MICo Group company in Třebič under the CTU license. CoroVent is now thriving in Europe as well. It won second place in the EUvsVirus hackathon, the largest pan-European online event of its kind, initiated by the European Commission together with the European Innovation Council. No similar project has emerged in these months in Europe to enter the production and certification phase.

A virtual music festival of 9 bands and musicians took place in the Lucerna Music Bar from 4.30 pm to 11 pm on Wednesday, 13 May, 2020. The event with the motto "Musicians to Scientists: Man Science of Art Tolerance" was accompanied by the Rector of CTU doc. Vojtěch Petráček.

The Faculty of Information Technology of the Czech Technical University in Prague (FIT CTU) ranks first in the ranking of teams of Czech academic institutions that provided their computing power to the Folding @ home project, and thus became the performance leader in the Czech Republic. The project aims to find a solution to COVID-19.

As soon as the number of confirmed COVID-19 infections began to increase in the Czech Republic, all disinfection disappeared from shops and warehouses. Its acute shortage was immediately addressed by the Department of Nuclear Chemistry (KJCH) at the Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering of the Czech Technical University in Prague (FJFI), which practically started the production of AntiCOVID disinfection from day to day.

On behalf of the Rector of CTU doc. Vojtěch Petráček, we would like to invite you to a virtual music festival of 9 bands and musicians who would like to express their warm thanks on behalf of the public to all experts for what they have created and still continue creating for the public at the difficult time of the coronavirus pandemic. The event with the motto "Musicians to Scientists: Man, Science, Art, Tolerance" will take place in Lucerna Music Bar on Wednesday, 13 May 2020 from 16.30 to 23.00.

The CTU in Prague is preparing a virtual concert from the Bethlehem Chapel on 5 May from 19:00 with the motto "Our thanks to all of you". The ensemble SALOME - A reel of Karel Kryl's Songs for singing, Harp, Clarinet and Guitar will perform, presenting Pavel Batěk, Barbora Plachá, Tomáš Kůgel and Petr Šťastný. The concert will be an acknowledgment to all those who help in any way during the crisis caused by COVID-19, especially the experts and teams involved in a number of projects.

At the beginning of April, the doctor of Na Bulovce Hospital, RNDr. Lenka Richterová, Ph.D. contacted a group of CTU researchers who automate testing on Covid-19 using pipetting robots. Researchers and students of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering (FEE) and the Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC) were asked if they could design a tool to facilitate the opening of sample tubes. The current procedure of manual opening is very impractical and ultimately dangerous. It requires inserting a finger into the recess of the lid, turning it and then unfolding it. However, according to Richter, by applying this procedure, laboratory technicians have calluses and painful blisters that burst. In addition, tilting the cap to the side causes bubbles to contaminate the outside of the tube and laboratory gloves. Using more layers of gloves would make it impossible to hold the tube and cap firmly.

The GoDeliver logistics web platform mediates the delivery of food, medicine or veils to people in quarantine. The project works on the principle of involving couriers-volunteers from the public, who distribute the necessary resources to the needy. The platform, which was originally created to help companies deliver shipments, was developed by students of the Faculty of Information Technology and the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the Czech Technical University in Prague.

The University Center for Energy Efficient Buildings of the Czech Technical University has started the production of nanofiber textiles for its instrumentation usable as filter membranes. The material will be offered for further processing to manufacturers or those interested in veils.

An innovative online hackathon will take place from 1 to 3 May. Here, talented students will join forces with experts to help companies cope with the economic consequences of coronavirus. The aim is to invent innovations that will help companies, institutions or organizations to mitigate the effects of the current unfavorable situation. Topics will be, for example, help in Prague, education or stabilization of companies. The event is organized mainly by students and employees of the Faculty of Information Technology CTU in Prague (FIT CTU) with the support of the capital city of Prague or the prg.ai initiative.

The Faculty of Information Technology involved the CloudFIT faculty computing cloud in the Folding @ Home project. The Faculty thus provided computing power of: 500x Intel Xeon @ 3GHz CPU, 1TB RAM, 4x GPGPU Tesla V100, 32GB.

More than sixty organizations that own special HP Multi Jet Fusion 3D printers from 25 countries around the world have already downloaded the CIIRC RP95-3D half mask. The data was made available by the Czech Institute of Computer Science, Robotics and Cybernetics, which is part of CTU in Prague (CIIRC CTU), in cooperation with the CTU TRIX Connections, s.r.o. start-up company, at the end of March. The print files for the production of several variants of the mask sets were and still are accessible after entering the device serial number on a web portal set up for this purpose.

Scientists and students of the Center of Artificial Intelligence of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the Czech Technical University (FEE) have developed a unique application Nebojsa that will help you avoid queues in shops or crowded parks. Based on people's concentration data, it will recommend their users when public places are low-traffic and thus with potentially lower risk of infection. The principle of application is based on the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO) on social distancing and is based on a revolutionary research into artificial intelligence. The application is free to download at nebojsa.app.

Czech Technical University in Prague signed a license to use CoroVent ventilator during crisis on Saturday, 4 April, 2020.

Scientists and students from the Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Electrical Engineering CTU (FEE CTU) in cooperation with the Faculty of Science, Charles University and the Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC) are working on automation of COVID-19 sample testing for the Motol University Hospital. The algorithm currently being developed is designed to allow hospital pipetting robots to handle samples quickly and safely, avoiding cross-contamination. The involvement of the Opentrons and Beckman Biomek 3000 robots will make it possible to use test kits newly developed at the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry AS CR (IOCB AS CR) and can have a major impact on the testing process. If successful, it will replace the work of the laboratory technicians, who will be given room to carry out other activities related to fighting the coronavirus. New software could be deployed during Easter.

The Wowee web application opens the door for human solidarity and allows financial assistance to those who find themselves in a difficult situation at the time of the corona virus infection. The application works on the principle of financial collection, thus becoming contactless help for the ones in need. The project was created in cooperation with students of the Faculty of Information Technology (FIT CTU), originally for the purpose of fulfilling wishes between friends and family.

The idea of using 3D printers for the production of protective equipment at the Faculty of Transportation Technology of the Czech Technical University was born on 30 March and within one week, the faculty tuned both production and distribution. Protective shields and respirators with a replaceable filter are created in the faculty laboratories.

The Na Bulovce laboratory assistants will be assisted by a robotic helper with fine and accurate pipetting to test samples of people suspected of having COVID-19. Researchers of the Czech Institute of Computer Science, Robotics and Cybernetics of the Czech Technical University in Prague (CIIRC CTU) and the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic After the on-site testing, the machine is switched on for live operation. It should relieve exhausted laboratory technicians on heavy-duty work in an infectious environment performing tests on COVID-19.

Laboratories of the Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering of the Czech Technical University in Prague (FNSPE) were transformed into a manufactory in March. Due to the general lack of disinfectants on the market, the Department of Nuclear Chemistry (KJCH) started to produce its own disinfectants for the needs of the university and other institutions.

During the current crisis situation, when hospitals are preparing for increased intake of patients infected with coronavirus, the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering has offered to lend state-of-the-art faculty equipment to the Regional Hospital in Kladno to assist in the fight against coronavirus.

Testing is well underway for the new purely Czech protective mask against coronavirus, developed within one week by the Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics of the Czech Technical University in Prague (CIIRC ČVUT) under the designation CIIRC RP95-3D. This personal protective equipment with a replaceable filter meeting the highest level of protection has undergone further testing in the National Reference Laboratory of the National Institute of Public Health. The permanence of already certified properties after professional sterilization were verified this time. All procedures are consulted with leading experts thanks to the active involvement of the Czech Society of Cardiology.

The lung ventilator for patients with severe COVID-19 disease was developed by experts from the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, in cooperation with experts from the University Hospital Hradec Králové, Thomayer Hospital in Prague, Masaryk Hospital in Ústí nad Labem and the State Institute for Drug Control. Now they are fine-tuning the preparations and, in cooperation with companies, will start the production of the first hundred pieces. The ventilators would help in case of an increase in patients in serious condition.

A team of scientists and students from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, together with volunteers from around the world, are fighting the new coronavirus infection by launching the FreMEn contra COVID project, which aims to develop a unique application. It will recommend users the optimal route and schedule for visiting places based on concentration data. Technology, which has a fundamental potential to help also Czech citizens abroad, is based on community-based anonymous data collection - that's why scientists are now calling for as many people as possible to join.

The first fifteen pieces of the “CIIRC RP95-3D” respirator protector were handed over to the Ministry of Health of the Czech Republic by the Czech Institute of Computer Science, Robotics and Cybernetics, part of the Czech Technical University in Prague (CIIRC CTU). During the weekend, the medical staff of Prague's Na Homolce Hospital tested them directly at work. The Facial mask production on special 3D printers can begin. Today, Minister of Health Adam Vojtěch signed a Memorandum of Cooperation on this occasion. The goal is to get as many pieces as possible to hospitals as soon as possible. The process is coordinated in cooperation with the CzechInvest government agency, which, among other things, helped significantly speed up the certification process of this advanced respirator.

This protection is intended for all who are at high risk of contact with coronavirus COVID19 and who are unable to access the fully functional FFP3 protective device and shield for the time being. These are not only healthcare professionals, pharmacists, but also shop workers who are in contact with a large number of people and are in close contact.

In 2010, classmates Jan Sova and Jan Kovář graduated from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering of the Czech Technical University in Prague. During their last year of study, they founded the now successful start-up, ie Workswell s.r.o., which was soon joined by their third colleague Adam Švestka.

The Faculty of Electrical Engineering acknowledges the complicated situation in which history teachers found themselves after closing schools. Therefore, it supports and participates in the HistoryLab web application .

Rector of CTU in Prague doc. Vojtěch Petráček calls on students, academics and employees to sew masks for all who are currently in key positions, ie doctors, pharmacists, shopkeepers and other currently endangered professions.

Representatives of the Faculty of Biomedical Engineering CTU under the leadership of prof. Karel Roubík in cooperation with experts from the University Hospital Hradec Králové, Thomayer Hospital in Prague, Masaryk Hospital in Ústí nad Labem and the State Institute for Drug Control submit to the Government of the Czech Republic through the Ministry of Health the Czech Republic for approval a plan to develop a CoroVent ventilator equipment in the event of exhaustion of all available ventilators approved for clinical use.

The main component of disinfectants produced at CTU, namely at the Department of Nuclear Chemistry of the Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering, is ethyl alcohol and distilled water. When preparing surface disinfection, isopropyl alcohol and hydrogen peroxide are added. For hand disinfection glycerol, citral and isopropanol are added. Faculties fill the disinfectant into five and ten liter barrels. Disinfection is used in the premises of the university and its parts, such as the Lvíčata university elementary and nursery school.