Announcing Our 2024 Finalists

Congratulations to the seven finalists who will be competing for the Grand Prize during a live presentation round in November:

AstroAnt: A Miniature Symbiotic Robotic Serving on the Outside Surfaces of Spacecraft, Rovers, and Landers for Inspection and Diagnostic Tasks

Cosmetic Silica Upcycled from Rice Husk as Natural Alternative to Microplastic Powders

Laser-Generated Anti-Icing and Anti-Fogging Transparent Materials

Multi-Modal Traffic Detection System

NETrolyze: A Novel Immunotherapy for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

RHOBARR Barrier Dispersions Platform

Thin-Film Thermoelectric Cooling Device

Watch this space for more announcements, including the Top 100 entries and Top Ten most popular.

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 more

A ‘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 now

Thank 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

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Kenneth Huening

VP, Automotive and Military - Maxim Integrated Products
Sunnyvale, CA

Kenneth J. Huening
Current Position: Vice President, Maxim Integrated Products
Responsibilities: Automotive Business Group, Strategic Accounts, Customer Service, Samples, Ecommerce, Distribution, Military Business Group
Tenure at Maxim: 28 yrs..employee number 37
Age: 50
Career Highlights
Automotive and Military Business Unit (2002 to Present)

  • Developed the Business Plan for $700M incremental increase in Revenue in Automotive by FY12. Current revenue is $104M/yr for Automotive and $32M/yr for Military.
  • Defined the significant (highest GM) markets to participate in with the intersection of our technologies and application opportunities.
  • Coordinating the other legacy Business Unit offerings ensuring redundancy is limited, and conflicts minimized.
  • Completed TS16949 Quality Certification for Automotive.
  • Developed Strategic Relationships with Automotive Accounts, penetrating the Supplier Barrier.
  • Implemented Logistic Replenishment Systems (VMI, SMI, Consignment, Schedule Sharing)
  • Developed Manufacturing Capacity Reservation Systems for Strategic Accounts.
  • Implemented Prototype Order Replenishment Systems that Deliver >95% to Customer Request +7 days.
  • Helped build the Product Definition Team that distills the ideas to make the FY12 plan, with good return on Design Time and meeting planned margins.
  • Building the Automotive Design Team to focus on specific processes necessary to solve this Markets Application Problems. Current design staff for Automotive is 20. Established Design Centers in US (3) and Europe (2).
  • Helped establish a focused QA group to serve the special needs (PPAP, AECQ100, PSW, FMEA, FA turn time) of the Automotive Market Strategic Accounts (1993 to 2006).
  • Helped create the concept of a specific group to handle Strategic Account Special needs to become their partner. 60% of the companies revenue is drawn from these accounts.
  • Participated in the development of the logistic programs necessary to serve the simple Direct Procurement to more complicated Price Masking/Vendor Managed Inventory/Multiple CM/Multiple Forecast Models.
  • Created Strategic Personal Relationships to help guide our direction and provide real time risk assessments for the supply chain (Customer Upside vs. Inventory Risk).
  • Led the Lead-Free Conversion initiative, which is finally coming to closure.

Quality Assurance (1983 to 2002)

  • Personally started Maxim's Quality, Failure Analysis, Document Control and Reliability Program, as there were only 37 other people in the company.
  • Qualified Maxim to the Mil standards of the day (45208, 9858, 45662 and Mil Para 1.2.1a)
  • Hired a successful QA group. The group now consists of over 400 at 5 manufacturing locations and 2 continents for QFE's.
  • Handed Corporate QA to my cultivated and very capable successor to take on the Automotive Initiative, but kept Automotive QA.
  • Expanded the FA group into the Philippines to provide manufacturing with immediate feedback on out of bounds conditions and serve our Asian customersextremely important for Japan.
  • Wrote the companies Quality Policy (Customers Require Quality and Quality Improves Profitability).
  • Led the team that achieved ISO9000 in November, 1993 (one of the first companies to do so).
  • Wrote the EDN Article of the Month in 1995. (How to survive an ISO Audit).
  • Installed a strong Reliability team which identified many Foundry problems (Phosphorus Contamination, Thin Passivation, Contaminated Metal), when Maxim was fabless. Note: Even the best fabs have problems.
  • Reliability Consisted of Fast Reaction Monitors, and Long Term Monitor Tests.
  • Developed a strong internal and key supplier Auditing team.
  • Initiated the Electronic Document Control system now deployed to all sites.

Management of Information System (MIS)(1997-2000)

  • Implemented a reliable Email and EDI capability. Installed network standard.
  • Hired a cohesive Network team to undertake this effort.
  • Implemented a network and PC help desk as well as a PC standard for Purchasing.
  • Implemented reliable WAN to all remote locations.
  • Established remote office LAN and WAN standards for speed and uptime.
  • Transferred Responsibility to Dallas VP after the 2000 acquisition.

Shipping (1997 to 2002)

  • Managed the implementation of a more fully Automated Inventory Management System (AIM's) that tracks and prioritizes the stock by date codes, customer specials, FIFO, Inventory location, and now terminal finish.
  • Converted from DOS to UNIX.
  • Integrated with Dallas's system in 3 months after acquisition.
  • Reduced cost ($400K/quarter) by transferring it to the Philippines and now Thailand.
  • Managed many end of quarter closures.
  • The group proposed and implemented in-house Tape and Reel capability saving the company $2M/qtr and reduced turn time by 70%.
  • Implemented this packaging technique for RF and high power CMOS and small form factor products.

Chip Scale Packaging (CSP)..(2000-2002)

  • Qualified the process to standard JEDEC tests.passing OEM qualifications (Ericsson and Motorola).
  • Transferred responsibility to FAB VP when the Automotive Initiative Started.

Distribution/Samples/Customer Service (1993 to 2006)

  • Managed the US and Asian Franchised Distribution
  • Implement Maxim/Dallas Direct (Maxim's own competitive Distribution channel).
  • Launched the Ecommerce site, first in 2000 and then just recently after a major revision.

Other Activities

  • Actively participated in the Tektronix and Dallas early assessments and acquisition, then management of their related groups.

Maxim Advancement

  • 1983 Joined as Failure Analysis Engineer.
  • 1985 Promoted to QA Manager
  • 1987 Promoted to QA Director
  • 1990 Promoted to Managing Director, Quality
  • 1993 Promoted to VP Quality, Customer Service and Strategic Accounts

Previous Employment

  • National Semiconductor, Failure Analysis Engineer. Recruited to Mitsubishi
  • Mitsubishi Semiconductor, QA Manager. Recruited to Maxim.

Education

  • BSEET, DeVry Institute of Technology, Arizona. Graduated Tau Alpha Pi
  • Completing MBA at Pepperdine

Patents

  • 2 filed for Side Wettable QFN Packaging methods.