Congratulations to Our 2024 Grand Prize and First Place Winners!
NETrolyze, a novel immunotherapy for triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), was named the $25,000 grand prize winner at a live finalist round held November 15 in New York. The first-in-class therapeutic injectable gel prevents the spread of TNBC, one of the most aggressive cancer types, enabling patients to avoid toxic chemotherapy and expensive treatments – potentially transforming their lives. Click here for the full list of 2024 winners. Also see the Top 100 highest scoring entries.
Help build a better tomorrow
Since Tech Briefs magazine launched the Create the Future Design contest in 2002 to recognize and reward engineering innovation, over 15,000 design ideas have been submitted by engineers, students, and entrepreneurs in more than 100 countries. Join the innovators who dared to dream big by entering your ideas today.
Read About Past Winners’ Success Stories
Special Report spotlights the eight top entries in 2023 as well as past winners whose ideas are now in the market, making a difference in the world.
Click here to read moreA ‘Create the Future’ Winner Featured on ‘Here’s an Idea’
Spinal cord injury affects 17,000 Americans and 700,000 people worldwide each year. A research team at NeuroPair, Inc. won the Grand Prize in the 2023 Create the Future Design Contest for a revolutionary approach to spinal cord repair. In this Here’s an Idea podcast episode, Dr. Johannes Dapprich, NeuroPair’s CEO and founder, discusses their groundbreaking approach that addresses a critical need in the medical field, offering a fast and minimally invasive solution to a long-standing problem.
Listen nowThank you from our Sponsors
“At COMSOL, we are very excited to recognize innovators and their important work this year. We are grateful for the opportunity to support the Create the Future Design Contest, which is an excellent platform for designers to showcase their ideas and products in front of a worldwide audience. Best of luck to all participants!”
— Bernt Nilsson, Senior Vice President of Marketing, COMSOL, Inc.
“From our beginnings, Mouser has supported engineers, innovators and students. We are proud of our longstanding support for the Create the Future Design Contest and the many innovations it has inspired.”
— Kevin Hess, Senior Vice President of Marketing, Mouser Electronics
contest/pre-2010
PRE-2010
2003
Hideaway Tailgate with Slip Hinge
John H. McDonald III, Hanover, PA
Space-saving design allows a pickup truck’s tailgate to slide in under the truck bed after opening, making it easier to reach items in the bed.
Self-Stabilizing Table
Nicholas Oxley, New York, NY
This table is designed to automatically adjust to unpredictable floor conditions and rest in a perfectly stable state without wobbling.
Enhanced Audio Communications for First Responders
Rick Kaufman, Etrema Products USA and Brian Smith, FeONIC PLC, United Kingdom
This audio system based on a patented sound reproduction device turns a safety helmet into an audio speaker, allowing first responders to more clearly hear any audio message delivered over the radio without earphones.
Eclock Eccentric Locking Fastener
Robert Flesher, Apogee Designs, Baltimore, MD
This invention can be used as a tamperproof fastener or where torque setting is critical. It incorporates a single-use torque-set feature, making tool calibration unnecessary.
Massive Yet Tiny (MYT) Engine
Raphial Morgado, Angel Labs, Acampo, CA
Compared to existing internal combustion engines, the MYT™ Engine promises to achieve 40 times higher power to weight ratio, low parts count, low maintenance, and low pollution.
Grip Handle
Buck Albritton, Gear Max, Ashland, VA
This tool allows the user to carry heavier loads with a better grip, avoiding back injuries.
Air Inversion Fan
Charles Weber, Onalaska, WI
The Air Inversion Fan circulates cool air from the floor and redistributes it at chest level, resulting in a more even temperature and energy savings compared to traditional fans.
Vehicle Undercarriage Search System
Robert H. Frantz, Franklin Grey Patents, Oklahoma City, OK
The rapidly deployable, portable system uses a row of electronic cameras housed in a speed bump to detect explosives, contraband, weapons, and personnel concealed beneath vehicles.
CONSUMER PRODUCTS CATEGORY
LED Cocoon Tent
Stephen Boynton, Orem, UT
A solution to the issues of jammed, snagged, worn out zippers and low visibility inside a tent at night.
MACHINERY/EQUIPMENT CATEGORY
Cargo Management System
Jeremy Connell, Blacksburg, VA
Innovative truck bed design increases functionality while maintaining normal usage.
MEDICAL CATEGORY
3D Ultrasonic Neuronavigation System for Image-Guided Brain Surgery
Ajay Mahajan, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Murphysboro, IL
GPS-like system could help surgeons navigate through the brain to find and remove everything from tumors to bullet fragments easily, cheaply, and with hardly any cutting.
SAFETY & SECURITY CATEGORY
Personnel Beacon/Locator for Mine Workers
Joseph Hollmann, Spectral Biopsy, Kansas City, MO
Using ultrasonics and spread spectrum signaling, the PBL will help locate a trapped miner to within 10 feet.
SUSTAINABLE TECHNOLOGY CATEGORY
LEDTRICITY™
Ted Bristow, Creative Electric, Kailua Kona, HI
Combining unique wiring circuits and state-of-the-art components, the LEDRICITY system enables the use of extremely long, inexpensive wires to illuminate hundreds of thousands of LEDs.
TRANSPORTATION CATEGORY
Internally Radiating Impulse Structure (IRIS) Engine
Corban Tillemann-Dick, Tendix LLC, Denver, CO
The IRIS design overcomes some of the shortcomings of modern engines and dramatically improves fuel efficiency by fundamentally changing the geometry of the combustion chamber.
CONSUMER PRODUCTS CATEGORY
Universal Proprietary Water Purifying/Conditioning Multimedia for Bottled Water
Jim Jablonsky, J&M Associates, Hatfield, PA
Filter paper based on nanotechnology is inserted in the drinking cap of a bottle of water to inexpensively and easily remove heavy metals, arsenic, mercury, bad tastes, and odors.
MACHINERY/EQUIPMENT CATEGORY
Small Area Thin-Film Heat Flux Sensor
Mahmoud Assaad, The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Akron, OH
Novel sensor enables engineers to identify critical high-temperature zones within a tire structure to design safer tires for cars, trucks, and aircraft.
MEDICAL CATEGORY
Pediatric Vision Screener – Mark V
Kristina Irsch, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD
The PVS simultaneously detects proper alignment and focus of infants’ eyes, enabling early detection of amblyopia or “lazy eye” – the leading cause of vision loss in childhood.
SAFETY & SECURITY CATEGORY
Electronic Fog, Frost, and Ice Prevention Technology
Don Skomsky, Integrity Engineering, Inc., West Chester, PA
Tested successfully on Mount Everest (mountain climbers’ goggles), this energy-efficient device predicts and prevents the formation of condensation, frost, and ice on any surface.
SUSTAINABLE TECHNOLOGY CATEGORY
Efficient Air Conditioner
Lindsay Meek, Perth, Australia
Meek’s design reduces power consumption 30% by replacing the traditional reciprocating compressor with a permanent magnet motor coupled to a scroll compressor.
TRANSPORTATION CATEGORY
Movito Electric Scooter
Tai Chiem, Melbourne, Australia
Designed for traveling short distances in and around cities, this sleek, environmentally friendly scooter features an electric in-wheel motor.
