According to the WHO, COVID-19 is transmitted mainly between people through contact, derived from droplets that occur in an individual who manifests respiratory symptoms. These droplets can come from the mucus (mouth and nose) or conjunctiva (eyes), having a diameter between 5 to 10 micrometers. As a consequence of it, there is high contagion rate presented by this virus, making essential that health personnel in contact with these patients wear highly specialized protective equipment, this has led to a shortage of these products worldwide. This paper presents the design, development and validation of a health personnel protection system which consists of a diving mask, an adapter made in 3D printing (additive manufacturing) and a bidirectional High Efficiency Particulate Air filter. Protocols for cleaning, sterilization and management of the device components are also presented. The personal protective equipment was tested in the Intensive Care Unit for COVID-19 patients from the Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Medicas y Nutricion Salvador Zubiran at Mexico City.

Deafblindness is a type of dual disability wherein both visual and auditory capabilities are significantly impaired. Special communication methods have been developed for the deafblind community, yet these methods require that both people involved have prior knowledge and training to successfully communicate; limiting deafblind people’s social interactions, particularly in academic settings. This paper describes the development of a device that enables two-way communication between a severe to profoundly deafblind user and a hearing person with no prior knowledge of Braille and no additional intermediaries. A Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) scheme for speech recognition was designed and implemented along with the development of an algorithm capable of developing both text-to-speech and Finger-Braille-to-text conversion. Lastly, a system integration via 3D modelling and additive manufacturing was carried out to deliver a functional prototype. The resulting device aims to allow deafblind students to send and receive information entirely in finger Braille, using buttons and vibrotactile feedback, while the hearing tutor receives auditory messages and speaks to reply, making the educational experience as familiar as possible for both parties. Users testing the device achieved an average typing accuracy of over 95% and demonstrated understanding of commands transmitted through the device’s components.

One of the primary objectives of higher education (HE) is to produce specialized human resources with the necessary competencies for the challenges encountered in our professional lives and our complex environment. One form of experiential education for biomedical engineering students is to expose them to real situations so that, based on acquired knowledge, they develop highlevel disciplinary competencies that prepare them for a future job with greater expectations. This report analyzes the use of teaching strategies such as challenge-based learning (CBL) for the development of technical skills through the design and manufacture of a walking aid device, the implementation of effective methods for the development of medical devices, and the identification of sustainability in engineering. A tournament skills event evaluated the results by highlighting specific solution proposal points. This study is an illustrative case that provides significant evidence of the effectiveness of CBL and can serve as a model for pedagogically sensitive evaluation of the engineering classroom by integrating blended learning schemes using gamification techniques.