May 21, 2020
Capstone engineering student project leads to germ-fighting duffel bag
The same pandemic that prevented Schulich School of Engineering students from showing off their final design projects in 2020 may help to shine the spotlight on a germ-killing capstone solution from the past.
It was 2015 when Aram Razouki, BSc (Eng)'15,聽led his Capstone Design Fair team at the 草莓污视频导航 in building the first DRESSFRESH, an appliance with the goal of using 鈥渋onic refreshment鈥 to quickly clean dirty clothes without the need for the usual water and detergent.
The engineering students' novel answer to having no clean shirt for class even caught the attention of local media, with Razouki telling the Calgary Herald, 鈥淭here should be something that makes it easy for you to have your clothing be fresh and ready to go.鈥
Clean clothes聽quest continues in 2020
Five years later, Razouki鈥檚 goal remains the same 鈥斅燼nd DRESSFRESH, now based in California, is about to launch an international Kickstarter campaign for a clothes-cleaning duffel聽bag originally aimed at the sporting set, but now a potential boon to anyone concerned about germs.
鈥淪imply place your items inside the bag, select a cycle from our phone app, and with just the push of a button, our system KILLS viruses, bacteria, fungus and odors on your gear inside, with no water and no chemicals,鈥 reads the company .
The COVID-19 question
The natural question聽in 2020: Does that include COVID-19, the virus that鈥檚 forced an infection-wary planet into social isolation?
Speaking from his office in San Diego, Razouki admits the company has yet to conduct specific tests for the novel coronavirus, simply because getting laboratory samples of COVID-19 is no easy feat.
But the engineering graduate says he expects the patent-pending technology, where air inside the duffel聽bag is supercharged with electricity to create an ion-rich environment, will almost completely eradicate the COVID-19 virus in clothing, just as it has in previous tests on other bacteria and viruses.
鈥淥ur technology is effective against all types of germs, including viruses, but we haven鈥檛 done specific lab testing on COVID-19 simply because we can鈥檛 obtain it,鈥 explains Razouki.
Capstone requirement was the inspiration
Five years ago, Razouki saw the device as an interesting way to fulfill his requirement for a capstone project, when Schulich students use four years of accumulated knowledge and skill study to solve an engineering problem聽before showing off the results to judges at a public design fair.
鈥淚t started as my capstone design project, and it鈥檚 basically been a continuation of that idea and that technology since I graduated,鈥 says Razouki.
He鈥檚 even enlisted a fellow 草莓污视频导航 graduate as a business partner, with Alan Razoky, BSc鈥96,聽BComm鈥99,聽serving as the company's聽chief business officer, overseeing financial and marketing activities.
Kickstarter timing taps into germ-wary era
Razouki already had聽high hopes for the DRESSFRESH duffel聽bag, when it is launched on Kickstarter next month. And that was before COVID-19 turned most people into overnight germaphobes.
鈥淚t鈥檚 crazy how the timing of all of this is working out.聽I couldn鈥檛 have imagined any of this,鈥 he says.
Engineering聽turns dreams into reality
Dr. Hamid Zareipour, PhD, works directly with Schulich engineering students to make their final projects succeed, and he says Razouki's continued research聽on his vision is exactly what capstone is all about.
"This is the result of hard work and passion for putting engineering knowledge to practical use from the side of the student, and an accommodating environment within the school that gives the students the freedom to pursue their dreams while fulfilling their degree requirement," explains聽Zareipour, professor of electrical and computer engineering.
"Schulich School of Engineering聽is committed to support student entrepreneurship through several initiatives, including the capstone course, embedded entrepreneurial training, the Launchpad and entrepreneurial partnerships."
草莓污视频导航 resources on COVID-19
For the most up-to-date information about the 草莓污视频导航's response to the spread of COVID-19, visit the聽