🧠 How I Built LungIQ: A Weekend Project to Train Better Respiratory Clinicians

🧠 How I Built LungIQ: A Weekend Project to Train Better Respiratory Clinicians

Posted by @nicholasamsler – Founder, Amsler Labs

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👋 Who Am I?

Combat medic turned AI engineer. I build open-source clinical tools under Amsler Labs that help medics, educators, and clinicians work smarter—not just harder.

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🫁 The Problem

Ventilator waveforms are essential—but hard to teach. Most training methods rely on static slides, confusing animations, or outdated tools. I wanted something fast, interactive, and mobile-friendly that made waveform learning click for medics.

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🚀 The Solution: LungIQ

LungIQ is a free, web-based waveform simulator built in a weekend. It lets users:
• Adjust ventilator parameters (PEEP, PIP, I:E, etc.)
• Visualize real-time changes in flow, pressure, and volume
• Simulate patterns like ARDS, asthma, COPD
• Toggle dark mode (because who wants to blind night-shift medics?)

It’s mobile-optimized and designed for use at bedside, in the classroom, or between calls.

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🧰 The Stack
• Frontend: Next.js + React
• Graphing: Plotly.js (fast + flexible)
• State Management: useState + controlled form inputs
• Hosting: Vercel
• Design Focus: Touch-friendly, simple UI, no login, no clutter

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🧪 Why It Matters

Every paramedic has been handed a ventilator and told, “Watch for shark fins.” But many never actually see what that looks like.

LungIQ bridges that gap with an intuitive interface for hands-on waveform exploration—no ICU or manikin required.

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🛠️ What’s Next
• A challenge mode: “Identify This Pattern”
• Prebuilt case studies (ARDS, asthma, tension pneumo)
• Syncing it with my simulation doc generator (SimCraft)
• Adding waveform overlays for comparison

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👨‍💻 Open Source

Want to fork, contribute, or remix it for your own training program?

🧬 GitHub: Nicholas-Amsler/lung-iq

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💬 Let’s Connect

If you’re building clinical tools, automating workflows, or want to make med education suck less—I’m in.
• 🌐 amslerlabs.com
• 💻 GitHub
• 🧪 @nicholasamsler on Dev.to

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💡 TL;DR: I built a waveform trainer in a weekend. It’s free. It’s fast. And it’s for field clinicians who want to level up. Give it a try:
👉 https://lungiq.amslerlabs.com

Comments

[Parag Nandy Roy]

Huge win for medics and educators alike...

[Nicholas-Amsler]

🫁 My first post on Dev.to — thanks for stopping by! LungIQ was a quick build, but I’ve got more coming (including a tool that auto-generates simulation docs from JSON 😏).

Would love your thoughts, questions, or waveform war stories.

[Dotallio]

Love seeing tools like this that actually make learning practical for clinicians. Did any real-world feedback from medics surprise you or shape what gets built next?

[Nicholas-Amsler]

Actually yes! Being a current clinical manager at Global Medical Response allowed me to engage many Respiratory Therapists, Flight Medics , and Flight Nurses who helped with expanding some of the settings I was initially missing. Specifically, at first my I:E ratio needed expanding (technically still does as I need to add a reverse I:E like 1:3-1:4.)Also, I completely forgot to add pediatric calculations which was a huge oversight. And in doing so I was able to expand the learning pathways. No one has found my Konami code hidden in there to unlock all scenarios…yet ;)