For the third time, the Innovatiecluster Drachten organized the Inventor's Competition in Schouwburg De Lawei on Tuesday 16 June. The twelve companies do this in collaboration with the municipality of Smallingerland. The assignment to the students was to invent something that helps children with concentration problems to better absorb the lesson material. 

This year five teams competed for the top prize of €3000. Due to unforeseen circumstances, not all training institutes were able to supply teams. The five participating teams of Hanze University Groningen had come up with special solutions. The jury, consisting of employees of companies in the Innovation Cluster, chose the ASKid of one of the teams of the Hanze University of Applied Sciences. This invention consists of a device that the students have on their table and that is in contact with the teacher. The student can give the ASKid 3 different colors, each of which has its own meaning. This allows the teacher to see what the child needs. In addition, the device provides a daily task overview and can increase motivation by offering a game after tasks have been completed. 

The second prize of €2000 went to the invention Helping Light. This tool improves communication between the student and the teacher through a lighting system. It is aimed at “Snappet Schools”, schools that use tablets. And finally, the third prize went to the students who invented the Vocus. In their research they found that noise in particular is the biggest cause of concentration problems. The Vocus measures, among other things, the sound that each child makes and shows this on a screen on his table. The child is also aware of this. In addition, the Vocus shows the daily schedule. The teacher has contact with all devices and can monitor the progress of each child. 

The annual Utivinders competition is intended to give students inspiration by challenging them to apply new techniques to everyday problems. The collaboration with education is of great importance to Innovatiecluster Drachten, because today's students are the (technical) employees of later. Would you like to know more about the competition or the Innovation Cluster? Visit www.icdrachten.nl or Facebook. 

For an impression of the event in 2015 click here.

Source: Broadout