First prize went to the Keepsafe Personal Bag Security Accessory by Sara Bellini, a student at Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design.
She receives GB pound 1,000 and a placement with Bayer AG, Leverkusen, plus GB pound 500 for her college.
Her entry was for “a personal bag hook designed to promote bag theft awareness and bag responsibility. A suction cap is activated by pulling down the ‘tail’ of the device to secure bags to tables or chairs”. She also presented a second proposal called the Furla.
Second prize in the competition – for which Security Installer was the official media partner – went to Roof Angel, by Daniel Biddle of the University of Huddersfield. He received GB pound 500 and a placement with product innovation consultancy PDD.
Third prize went to Arm Cast by Carl Needham of Northumbria University. He received GB pound 250 and a placement with DuPont Engineering Polymers, Geneva.
Students were asked to consider the key elements of concept, design and production “in a fresh and meaningful way through the appropriate use of plastic materials and to indicate an understanding of sustainability issues in terms of environmental and social impact”.
One hundred and two entries were received from 14 universities. They ranged from biometric entry systems, tagging devices, personal security and communication systems to sports protection and smart mattresses. Richard Brown, chairman of the judging panel, said: “The quality of all presentations was high, but the winner had interpreted the judges’ guidance and delivered not just one product but two, mass and niche market respectively, covering all aspects of the competition brief and ‘thinking outside the box’ to deliver a solution.”
l Liz Williams, an inventor from Denbigshire in North-East Wales, has won the prize for the best entry in Science and Technology category at the European Women Inventors & Innovators Awards in Berlin, with her range of Linkz DNA personal and business security alarms.
The personal safety alarm was developed to offer a better deterrent to attacks, attempted abduction or opportunistic robbery.