Chambana Sun

A fourth-grader from Bismarck is working to create tools to help health care responders stay comfortable while using their face masks. 

According to the Commercial News, Alan Williams is a student at Bismark-Henning Grade School who has been using a 3-D printer to help create what he calls “ear savers.”

They are made from plastic filament and are comprised of two curved hooks and a heart-shaped center piece. The "ear saver" hooks around the back of the individual’s head, which prevents the elastic loops from cutting into the user's ears. 

Daniel Williams, Alan’s father, explained that the ear saver diverts the elastic straps from N95 masks off of the user’s ears. 

Daniel owns three 3-D printers and was part of the National Institute for Metalworking Skills program at Danville Area Community College.

“I’ve been teaching Alan how to use the machines, and he runs the small printer all by himself,” Daniel said. “He knows how to run that machine front and back.”

Alan began making ear savers after Daniel read about a New York boy who was making them. While the pattern that Daniel found was a rectangular design, there were a number of specification changes made by David Youhas, a Danville resident, who changed the visual design to a heart-shaped layout. 

“David Youhas and I have a mutual friend (who) had shown me David’s design on Facebook, so he asked David for me to obtain the ‘.STL’ file,” Daniel said. “We made contact and have been working together on this project since.

In addition to the shape change, Daniel said that the size has changed slightly. Alan is now able to produce 15 ear savers every 90 minutes and Daniel can make 25 in two hours. 

“Alan wanted to do this for free, so we started a donation page on Facebook to cover the cost of materials and postage costs,” Daniel said.