Devices & Diagnostics

3D printed fingers, hearing aids disguised as glasses are the coolest parts of an international student design contest

A student design contest spanning 18 countries drew some fascinating, and some obscure, ideas for new medical technology. The James Dyson Foundation offers a total of $150,000 to finalists in its design contest, which encourages engineering and design university students and recent graduates to “design something that solves a problem.” The international winner will be […]

A student design contest spanning 18 countries drew some fascinating, and some obscure, ideas for new medical technology.

The James Dyson Foundation offers a total of $150,000 to finalists in its design contest, which encourages engineering and design university students and recent graduates to “design something that solves a problem.” The international winner will be selected November 7 and will receive $45,000 and $16,000 for his or her university. These are just some of the most interesting and promising submissions in the healthcare field.

Taking advantage of 3D scanning and printing, students in Singapore wanted to make more affordable prosthesis for people who have lost a finger. The video below is a cool look at how the functional finger prosthetic is made.

A runner-up in the U.S. competition, hearing aid device NuWave mounts bone conduction transducers on discreet prescription or non-prescription glasses. They translate sound waves into vibrations that are carried through the temporal bone to the inner ear. The device was designed by students at Virginia Tech.

ArthroDoc, submitted by a student from Australia, is a self-operated pain relief system for people with arthritis or musculoskeletal pain. It uses low-level laser therapy and extracorporeal shockwave therapy to deliver temporary pain relief at home. It’s controlled with an interactive touch-screen display.

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The Leveraged Freedom Chair, designed by former MIT students, is a rugged wheel chair for disabled people who must travel long distances and on rough terrain in underserved, rural parts of the world. I profiled this group, Global Research Innovation & Technology, back in May.

See all of the finalists here at the James Dyson Award’s page.