The Coronavirus, or COVID-19, which has killed thousands of people worldwide so far, is currently an integral part of the news. Many are concerned about the risk of infection. It is known that the virus survives longer on metal and plastic surfaces. Door handles, therefore, represent a considerable risk.
That is why the designers of Materialise, a Belgium-based 3D printing company, have come up with a hands-free door opener. With this opener, you can open all ordinary doors without touching the handle with your hands and thereby reduce the transmission of the deadly Coronavirus.
The door opener has a paddle-shaped extension that allows people to open and close doors with their covered forearms instead of bare hands. If the door handles are no longer touched, the transmission of the virus can be reduced a little more.
This hands-free 3D-printed door opener is easy to attach to the door handles; it does not require drilling any holes or replacing standard door handles. All you have to do is screw together the 3D printed elements using typical screws over your existing holder. It is a universal model, which should fit on the most common door handle models.
To help more people benefit, Materialise decided to make the design available for free. Anyone with a 3D printer can download a 3D print template and print within hours and also make it available to people. Non-contact door handles can be made all over the world and then assembled in hospitals, factories, nursing homes, apartment blocks, and other public places.
If you don’t have access to a 3D printer, you can order it via the company website. A set with two door openers and screws costs 40 euros (around $44).
