Link This | Email this | Blog This | Comments (0)

Sean Snyder

NASA’s Design Contest

NASA along with Solidworks has presented the Create the Future Design Contest, a chance for designers, engineers and inventors to throw their ideas at a NASA coated wall and see what sticks.

The inventions and ideas vary quite broadly, but the six main categories of design are:

- Machinery, Equipment, Component Technology

- Consumer Products

- Medical

- Safety and Security

- Transportation, and

- Sustainable Technologies

The ideas are initially judged by viewers; the designs with the most clicks are then further judged by a panel

One little nugget I found under the “Least Viewed Entries” navigation is the Perpetual Tap, which is used in sensor based faucets. Since these sensors require batteries that often drain and need to be replaced, the creator of the perpetual tap hypothesizes using a small propeller and dynamo to turn the water flowing to wash your hands, into electricity, thus charging the sensor battery.

I guess sometimes we take certain aspects of energy production and consumption for granted but a small change in design like the perpetual tap could even potentially lead to other applications… like powering the bathroom night light.

Unfortunately, if any of you interested in entering, you will have to wait till next year, deadlins closed in mid October. But you should get up there and search around and get some of these ideas the clicks they deserve. Also be sure to post in the comments on any particularly interesting ideas.