On 16 May in Kilkenny, Minister for Research and Innovation, Sean Sherlock presented the winners of this year’s Patents Office Junior Inventor awards with their prizes. The competition which is aimed at primary school children received a vast range of creative and innovative projects this year. Now in the fourth year of the competition, over 2,500 entries were received from 234 schools in 25 different countries.
The overall competition winners were a group of 6th class students from Scoil Naomh Iosaf, in Baltinglass, Co. Wicklow. Their winning invention ‘Cinema Seat Availability’ was a lighting system for cinemas designed to make it easier for patrons to find their seats in the dark. When the seat is not in use and is upright there would be a light on this part of the chair, which would be green to indicate that it is free. If the seat is then in use and the occupant temporarily leaves, the seat wills how red for a period of ten minutes. After this time it would change to green to indicate that the seat is available again.
In the 1st to 3rd class category Eimhin O’Neill from St Anne’s NS, Straffan, Co. Kildare was named winner with ‘The Phone Smoke Alarm’. His project entailed a smoke alarm built into a mobile phone, as most people use mobile phones as alarm clock and most house fires happen at night when people are asleep.
In the 4th to 6th class category Aaron Farrell impressed the judges with his ‘Disabled Parking Sensor.’ The student from Fermoyle NS, Lanesboro, Co. Longford won the category with his project. ‘Disabled Parking Sensor’ would incorporate a chip into disabled parking stickers which would be picked up by a sensor in disabled parking signs in car parks. If a car parked in such a disabled space without the necessary chip and sticker combo then an alarm would sound, notifying that person that they are in a disabled space.
Overall the feedback from teachers and students was very positive which has encouraged the Patents Office to build on this success again next year.
Full details of the winners will be available on the Patents Office Website http://www.patentsoffice.ie/en/junior-inventor-2011.aspx
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