Mason students are turning ideas into inventions
Meet the 'Students Center for Innovations' club
"We created a vision for an innovation center for students... a place for anyone who has an idea for an invention or who would like to gain experience in areas such as design, prototyping, patenting, and marketing". . Read More
"A remote controlled car was modified to simulate
the effect
of the glowing lights on the automated
vehicle on the Knight Rider TV show.
This is an
example of concept to reality." Caption and photo
from the
Student's Center for Innovations web site.
The Patriot Entrepreneur recently visited with the Student's Center
for Innovations, President, Barnabas Mogan:
Why did you start
this club? Where did the idea come from?
The club was started to
bridge the gap between innovators and resources. There were several ideas I had
for inventions and I needed help to develop those ideas. I believed that there
were many resources on campus and in the community that could provide me with
that help so I thought it would be easier if all those resources were in one
place. The idea came from realizing two key points - that there are thousands of
students on campus with ideas for inventions, and that there are plenty of
resources on campus and in the community that could help students bring those
ideas into reality. We simply needed to create a structure that brought the two
together, but instead of a club, we created a vision for an innovation center
for students. This place will bring together the various disciplines needed to
bring ideas from concept to market, allowing students, faculty, and members in
the community to collaborate on various projects in an efficient
manner.
What are your immediate plans for this
organization?
Besides bringing at least one invention from concept
to market, our immediate plans are to create more awareness for the organization
and to establish a permanent location that we can develop into an inventor's
laboratory for design analysis and prototypes. Eventually we would like to
establish an innovation center. We are already collaborating with various
organizations in the community including the Inventors Network of the Capital Area and
Young Inventors International. At
George Mason, we have been working with The Assistive Technology Department,
the Game Analysis Design Interest
Group, the Office of
Technology Transfer, and the Mason
Entrepreneurs. Partnership with the Mason Entrepreneurs is of great
importance due to our inclination to generate and engineer ideas for new
inventions and their knowledge of creating sound business plans to market those
inventions. We see that a properly designed innovation center will provide
greater efficiency in working with other organizations and will encourage
accelerated development in innovations.
“The Student's Center for Innovations is all about ideas and inventions, and more importantly, all about bringing those concepts into reality. The sophistication and quantity of practical, innovative and marketable designs will be a direct measurement of how effective we are as an organization.”
—Student's Center for Innovations web site
Can any student at Mason participate?
Yes, it is open to
any Mason student. We view the organization as a place for students to develop
their inventions or gain experience in various disciplines. As far as membership
goes, anyone interested in the organization who receives news about the club is
considered a member. However, those who are actively participating in projects
or in the development of the organization are considered to be active members.
Either way, students are free to participate according to their needs and as
their schedule allows. Anyone who has an idea for an invention or who would like
to gain experience in areas such as design, prototyping, patenting, and
marketing, among other areas, are encouraged to participate. We welcome all
majors and disciplines and encourage students to participate in any way they
can. We especially welcome those who would like to help establish the innovation
center and inventor's laboratory - this provides an excellent opportunity for
leadership development.
Have you pushed out any ideas for
innovations? Can you share any?
We have several inventions that we
are working on. Each one is in a different stage. One is being written for a
patent application. Some of these inventions are by club members and others are
by members in the community who are seeking assistance in development. Five
projects we are actively working on are a plastic device to make things easier
to carry, a computer input device, an electronic white cane for those who are
visually challenged, modular robots that can reconfigure into various shapes,
and a portable low-cost data entry device. Other projects that we are
considering or are working on to some degree are high-tech sunglasses, a
training device for athletes, an on-campus navigation system for those who are
visually challenged, a compact pharmaceutical machine, and an ergonomic pen.
This is an exciting opportunity for both the George Mason community and the
community beyond. We are looking forward to expanding our partnerships and are
especially excited about innovations on the horizon. We would like to thank all
those involved and we would like to give special thanks to the Patriot
Entrepreneur for providing us an opportunity to highlight the Student's Center
for Innovations.
Where can students find information about your
group?
Students can visit inventors.gmu.edu for more information.