July 25, 2020, Silicon Valley, CA, Inhalio announced today that it has created a new scent formula that has been tested by an independent laboratory and found in multiple tests to reduce surrogate viral pathogens in an air chamber by up to 92.3% over 30 minutes of intermittent diffusions, and by 97.2% within an hour. Additional tests are being planned by the company to determine the efficacy of the Inhalio dry-air diffusion device and the Inhalio V-313485 (Virucide-313485) formula to eliminate or reduce airborne viral pathogens in shorter periods of time, as well as the impact on vehicle cabin surfaces.
“We are very excited that these independent laboratory results have provided us with the data that demonstrates our ability to make rideshare and shared-mobility vehicles safer for both drivers and passengers during the pandemic,” said Keith Kelsen, CEO of Inhalio, Inc. “The Inhalio V-313485 virucide formula is based on natural ‘active ingredients’ that are known to kill airborne pathogens while also being safe to breathe and with a pleasant and clean scent. And while face masks and barriers help reduce in-vehicle transmission, we believe sanitizing the vehicle’s cabin air in-between passenger pickups can deliver a much higher degree of driver and rider safety.”
Tests were conducted mid-July by an ISO 17025 accredited laboratory, Microchem Laboratory located in the greater Austin, TX area, compliant with current GLP (Good Laboratory Practice) regulations as stipulated by the EPA and FDA to determine the antimicrobial efficacy of the Inhalio virucide formula and dry-air diffusion methodology. The MS2 Bacteriophage Virus, ATCC 15597-B1, was used for these tests. According to the laboratory’s scientists, MS2 is an ideal surrogate virus for a number of viruses including Rhinovirus and Picornaviruses, and as a screener virus for Coronaviruses for these tests as MS2 is a non-enveloped virus that is harder to kill than the enveloped Coronavirus.
Laboratory test determined that with the Inhalio dry-air virucide diffusion, active surrogate virus populations were reduced by 92.3%, 97.2% and 99.8% over 30min, 1hour, and 2 hour periods of intermittent diffusion release. As a general rule, the Microchem Laboratory (microchemlab.com) does not run aerosol studies using infectious microorganisms as they are extremely dangerous to scientists and lab technicians. The laboratory, however, routinely runs aerosol tests using virus surrogates and indicator organisms such as the MS2 Bacteriophage Virus.
Inhalio pioneered the concept of a Wellness Ride™ for Rideshare and Autonomous Fleets, and Wellness Life™ infused scents for Ambient and Connected Home markets. Inhalio Wellness Solutions give customers a more enjoyable and healthier experience by eliminating odors, reducing airborne viruses and bacteria, providing fragrant scents, as well as relieving mild-to-moderate cases of motion sickness in rideshare vehicles. By offering a Wellness Ride, rideshare companies can provide a safer and healthier environment, improve customer satisfaction, increase per-ride revenue, create more brand loyalty, and further differentiate their rideshare service from competitors.
Using the Inhalio Digital Scent 3.0 Platform and Mobility Diffuser, rideshare companies can quickly and conveniently deploy dry-air mobile scent diffusers into their fleets. From their smartphone, passengers can select mood-mapped scents to be diffused during their ride directly from the rideshare company’s app, enable the cabin’s air to be sanitized from airborne pathogens, or reduce mild cases of motion sickness. Using the Inhalio rideshare scent reference architecture and APIs, Inhalio gives rideshare and autonomous vehicle companies’ decades of expertise and know-how in deploying in-vehicle scent delivery and management systems with the additional capability of collecting, analyzing and understanding rider trends and gaining business insights.
For those interested in the summary report, please send a corporate email to info@inhalio.com requesting “Anti-Virus Results Report.”
