Designer becomes colleagues' Hearo after taking the pain out of masks

A designer has come to the rescue of colleagues in a Covid-19 think-tank who complained about spending hours wearing masks fixed uncomfortably around their ears.

Lara Timm, who works in the medical devices laboratory at the University of Cape Town, invented the UCT Hearo for the university's Covid-19 research task team.

It is a soft, flexible, oval-shaped device that hugs the crown of the head. Its ear-loop hooks ensure masks sit snugly over the nose and mouth.

Timm, a master's student in biomedical engineering, came up with the device after task team members said ear loops irritated and chafed the skin and often slipped, needing to be adjusted and increasing the risk of self-contamination.

Now Timm hopes to manufacture the devices quickly before turning her attention to ensuring they have a long-term future.

“Surgical masks will remain important in clinical settings long after the pandemic. We are currently in discussion with partners to find a way forward for the Hearo,” she said.

Timm went online after hearing her colleagues' complaints and found several solutions, but wanted to come up with a device that outperformed existing designs.

“I can get lost for hours in the process of iterating and modifying these designs to perfection,” she said. “The tactile nature of building and prototyping these devices really excites me.”

She began by 3D-printing Hearos but has since outsourced production to local companies. “Hopefully we can get a significant number of Hearos out as soon as possible to ensure we make the biggest impact we can,” she said.

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