Student air purifiers at work on the METRO

FluProof is currently on two METRO buses as part of the test for the senior design project, but it is not yet on the market. Skabowski said once FluProof is on the market, if it is cost effective and there are available funds, METRO would be interested in putting it on more buses.

“Anything that’s fiscally reliable and will show traceable benefit, METRO will support it,” Skabowski said.

Furthermore, the group benefitted from being able to test their prototype on actual buses.

“It has been really exciting that METRO has been so supportive and let us test our project on a real bus environment,” Chen said.

Spinella said he enjoyed working with METRO on this project.

“It was amazing to learn what real engineering looks like on the shop floor and to practically install our device on two METRO buses,” Spinella said. “Most of the employees there have worked for more than 20 years and have all sorts of experiences working on buses. They knew a good design from a bad one and were able to give us honest feedback about our solutions.”

Spinella added that he is looking forward to the future of FluProof.

“I am thrilled that the public is excited about this project, and I hope that this idea can move forward to keep people across America safe when they ride on buses and other transit vehicles,” Spinella said.