2016 Winners of the Lemelson-MIT Student Prize
The Lemelson-MIT Student Program is a nationwide search for the most inventive college students. See 2016’s winners:
Autism Glass: Catalin Voss of Stanford University is developing an emotional learning aid for children with autism based on smart glasses. An individual with autism wearing the glasses automatically recognizes emotions in other people’s faces using an artificial intelligence system.
SignAloud: Thomas Pryor and Navid Azodi of the University of Washington created SignAloud, a pair of glove containing sensors that measure hand position and movement. The gloves send data via Bluetooth for translation from American Sign Language to spoken words instantly.
Nanophotography camera: Achuta Kadambi of MIT has invented the Nanophotography camera, which can capture light in motion faster than the human eye.
Spyce: Kale Rogers, Michael Farid, Braden Knight and Luke Schlueter of MIT have invented Spyce, a completely automated restaurant. Spyce incorporates a refrigerator, dishwasher, stovetop and chef all in one, allowing it to cook fresh meals without humans.
SmartPot (SPOT): Heather Hava of the University of Colorado Boulder has invented SmartPot (SPOT), a smart growth chamber that can be teleoperated to help astronauts grow fruits and vegetables during space exploration.
Clutchless hybrid transmission: Dan Dorsch of MIT has invented the first lightweight clutchless hybrid transmission for cars. Dorsch designed the transmission to be straightforward for automotive manufacturers to adapt and improve efficiency/performance in consumer models.
Highlight: Jason Kang, Katherine Jin and Kevin Tyan of Columbia University have invented Highlight, an additive for disinfectant solutions to make them visible. This allows health care workers to fully cover contaminated areas, eliminating gaps and reducing evaporation rates.
