UC Industrial Design Program Wins Recognition in Cincinnati Innovates Contest

The University of Cincinnati's nationally and internationally ranked industrial design program won the Greater Cincinnati Venture Award for Partner Participation in the recent 2011 Cincinnati Innovates contest. The award was presented to the UC design program in recognition of the number and quality of entries from the program since Cincinnati Innovates began in 2009.

In the past three years, over 1,000 entrepreneurs, students and others have entered the

Cincinnati Innovates

contest.

These entrants have earned close to 100,000 votes as the public has selected ideas and advances that hold great appeal. Not to mention that online entries available on the Cincinnati Innovates site have received almost one million pageviews from over 50 countries.

And, of course, entries have won tens of thousands in grants to help further innovation and economic development.

Among the entries to the Cincinnati Innovates contest over the past three years have been numerous submissions by industrial design students from UC's College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning (DAAP), according to Steve Doehler, assistant professor of design.

Because of that and on behalf of the program, Doehler accepted Cincinnati Innovates’ Greater Cincinnati Venture Award for Partner Participation at the recent awards ceremony, receiving $1,000 on behalf of the program.

He said, “We’ll use the funds in the industrial design program to help students pursue entrepreneurism, perhaps to pursue a specific idea, to fund travel to pitch an idea to an industry partner or to obtain materials to further an idea.”

Among the UC industrial design students who have entered and won the Cincinnati Innovates contest are

• Alex Androski was part of a UC team that won a total of $15,000 for a device that pushes the limits on early stroke detection. The team won the Taft Legal/Patent Award ($10,000) and the Northern Kentucky Vision 2015 Award ($5,000).

• Noel Gauthier who developed a prototype ecologically friendly, inexpensive fire extinguisher that can be manufactured for under $1. Gauthier won a $5,000 commercialization award.

• Dan Clifton who developed a pair of handcuffs that allow police to apply the cuffs without the necessity of placing the suspect’s arms behind his/her back. Clifton won a $2,500 patent prize

• Ryan Eder developed the concept for a wheelchair workout fitness system that would better allow those in wheelchairs to work out. Eder received a $2,000 community choice award.

• Patrick Yovanov developed a central line catheter that’s safer and more comfortable than those now on the market. Yovanov won a $1,000 student innovator award.

• Carly Hagins developed a prototype for a composting porta-potty. She won a $1,000 student innovator award.