Singaporeans shortlisted in the International Top 20 list for the James Dyson Award
Updated
The James Dyson Award is organised by the James Dyson Foundation, founded in 2002 to nurture future generations of engineers. This year, the competition runs in 27 countries and regions - where thousands of entries have been submitted by graduate students around the world.
Two graduates from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have earned the title of National Winner this year at the 2020 James Dyson Award. The award aims to celebrate, encourage and inspire the next generation of inventors and design engineers.
In an updated press release (14 October), Kimia has been shortlisted in the International Top 20 list, out of a pool of close to 1,800 entries! The winner of this list will be handpicked by creator and founder James Dyson himself – the International winner will receive S$52,000 and S$8,500 for their university.
Kimia Rehab Kit, invented by Aaron Ramzeen and Ricky Guo, is a wearable device powered by patented flexible sensor technology. It provides a comprehensive solution for remote rehabilitation monitoring– where patients who have undergone total knee replacement surgery may follow guided exercises at home, and have their progress shared and monitored by therapists in real-time.
This allows therapists to keep track of the patient’s rehabilitation journey, and deliver evidence-based personalised prescriptions remotely.
Interestingly, Kimia uses a proprietary flexible sensor which ensures highly accurate and consistent data collection that clinicians can rely on to track their patients’ progress.
Runner-up winner Ascend inventor Kong Shao Ming from the Nanyang Technological University created an affordable and easy-to-assemble accessory that can be retrofitted onto existing manual wheelchairs. This comes after realising wheelchair users face the risk of rolling backwards or tipping over when climbing a ramp, as it can be a very physically strenuous task. Ascend adopts the principles of a ratchet and pawl mechanism to allow for mono-directional motion and is a feasible alternative to navigating inclines without any motorised parts.
Kong wanted to offer this affordable alternative by machining or 3D printing the simple design, which can then be offered at a low cost.
Another worthy invention is a personalised Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) mask that aims to treat those who suffer from moderate-to-severe obstructive sleep apnea.
In their research, runner-up winners Little Dreamer investors noticed that children face immense constant stress during treatments, and this rallied the investors (with backgrounds in Biomedical Engineering, Chemical Engineering and Medicine) from the National University of Singapore to 3D print and customise a mask for children.
