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UVfy
autonomous disinfection device for confined spaces in hospitals
Designed at: dVerse Labs, 2020-22.
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Role: Co-Founder, User Research, Industrial Design, Design Strategy.
Team of 4.
Impact: UVfy has been installed in 15+ hospitals across India and has completed over 10,000 sterilization cycles.
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Recognition: MIT COVID-19 Grant, IIT Madras Incubation, 1 million INR grant from DSIR, ICMR-certified, featured in local news, digit magazine, Harvard GSD Womxn in Design Publication.​​
Origin story
With a shortage of masks, PPE, and a lack of effective disinfection systems in place, the hospitals in India were facing a massive challenge. COVID was rapidly spreading in hospitals, and 14% of all COVID patients were healthcare workers.
When I saw my father, a pulmonologist, go to work every day in such unsafe conditions, I had to do something about it.
Sterilizing high traffic hotspots within hospitals was the need of the hour.
I joined an open-source hardware team, and we developed Sterilo, a fabric-based sterilizer to prevent cross-contamination in isolation wards. This project won the MIT COVID-19 challenge. This gave me the confidence to co-found Dverse Labs, and launch UVfy, an autonomous disinfection system for elevators.
UVfy is an autonomous disinfection system for elevators that uses ultraviolet (UV-C) technology to kill dangerous disease-causing pathogens.
UVFY
DISINFECTS IN 5 MINUTES
AI-BASED CONTROL SYSTEM
IOT REAL TIME MONITORING
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EMERGENCY TURN OFF
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Impact
UVfy has been installed in 15+ hospitals across India and has completed over 10,000 sterilization cycles, protecting over 5000 patients and 500 healthcare workers everyday.
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Design Process
Unlike a conventional double diamond design process, we followed a double helix process with knowledge loops - moving from business direction to the design to technology development and back. The problem and solution co-evolved owing to the dynamic market needs during the pandemic.
User Research
We spoke to over 70 doctors, hospital managers and staff to understand hospital-acquired infections and their needs. We created a Giga map to understand all the elements and interconnections involved in the infection control system of a hospital.
Competitor Analysis​
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Based on our design goal, we went on to generate ideas. We tested out these different configurations with PVC pipes and LED lights. We also carried out UV-C light simulations of the product inside an elevator model with the actual dimensions, and with different wattage. This gave us insights into optimal UV wattage for uniform illumination and minimal shadowing.
We prototyped with 4 different sensors and conducted preliminary tests to optimize the control system for human detection in my apartment elevator before building the alpha prototype.
​​​The pilot studies helped us prototype our business model and validate value propositions across market segments. We found that hospitals prioritized reducing pathogen counts, while hotels focused on creating a visible sense of safety for guests. Since our product turned off when guests were present, hotels suggested keeping the lights on, but this was unsafe. We explored safer alternatives but ultimately shifted focus to hospitals
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UVfy Product System
AI-based Control system
Mount
Emergency button
UV-rails
MCB (Miniature Circuit Breaker)
Ballast module
How it works
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COMMUNICATION DESIGN
Business Model
Our business is a B2B model- our primary customers are managing directors in hospitals. Our key partners include doctors, elevator companies (for approvals in installations), AMC service providers (for maintenance services post-warranty period). We are using evidence-based marketing through microbiological test results and certifications from ICMR impaneled labs. We provide a 1-year warranty and outsource the AMC support.
STRATEGY DESIGN
Go-to-market Strategy
Our product is now at the TRL 8 stage and is functioning in 15+ elevators. We leveraged our current installations to reach out to other customers. We have also established channel partners across South India.
Impact
UVfy has since been installed in 15+ hospitals across India and has completed over 10,000 sterilization cycles, protecting over 5000 patients and 500 healthcare workers everyday.
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Reflection
Reflecting on UVfy, this project taught me to balance user needs, business viability, and technical feasibility. Although we had only 15 customers, the high profit margin per product allowed us to sustain and manage operational expenses. We achieved strong product-market fit during the peak of the pandemic, but demand waned as disinfection became less of a priority for hospitals post-pandemic.
Co-founding this project taught me resilience and the importance of understanding user behavior, predicting market trends, testing assumptions, and being flexible in positioning a product. It reinforced that successful design isn’t just about solving a problem but also about clearly communicating value to the end user.
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