The Pitch Your Prototype challenge is now closed to new entries, but it’s not too late to vote for your favorite submission. Online voting will run until May 18, and the winning individual or team will be announced at MakerCon New York on September 21.
As the clock wound down, the contest received a rash of 11th-hour entries. Here are a few that caught our eye:
- This digital water temperature controller aims to heat up your shower more quickly — and prevent your pipes from freezing in the winter — by draining the hot water pipe while it’s not in use. According to the project’s entry materials, it could save nearly 15 gallons of water per shower by cutting the heating time.
- The Pop-n-Play Arcade Maker Kit is a video game controller meant to encourage STEM learning.
- Maker Carter Hurd’s entry is a wheel, meant for small robots, that’s designed to navigate both rough and smooth surfaces. “This wheel design could expand the capabilities of police and search-and-rescue robots, which must be able to effectively navigate a wide variety of terrains,” Hurd wrote.
- SWOON is a compact ice cream machine that its Makers say can make ice cream or other frozen treats out of room temperature ingredients. Their long game, they say, is to be acquired by Unilever or Nestlé.
- Tim Foldy-Porto’s entry is an exoskeleton arm that he says could one day “punch through walls” or “pick up cinder blocks with ease.” The prototype is made from VexPro BAG motors, 41A speed controllers, an Arduino and 3D printed parts.
- This next-generation input device is meant to control a cursor using ultrasonic sensor modules.
The Pitch Your Prototype challenge is a collaboration between Make: magazine and Cornell University with the goal of digging up promising prototypes from the Maker community. The individual or team that wins the challenge will be awarded $5,000 and have the opportunity appear onstage at MakerCon New York.
Maker Faire Bay Area will be held May 16-17, and Maker Faire New York will take place September 26-27. These flagship events for the Maker Movement combine elements of science fairs, hackathons, and community festivals into something totally new.
To cast your vote, look at the full gallery of submissions or read the rules to the contest, visit this page. Here are some more photos of contestants:
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