The Invent Oregon Collegiate Challenge concluded its eighth annual year-long competition on June 27, with the top prize going to OHSU’s EaziStep, founded by Joshua Vanderpool and Ildar Fazulyanov. Taking home $10,000 for their innovation is a transforming medical device that provides multiple mobility options as a knee scooter and hands-free crutch for foot and ankle injuries.
The 2024 finals were hosted in Eugene at the University of Oregon campus. 18 teams were welcomed onto the stage at the Lundquist School of Business. Students from colleges across Oregon competed for $30,000 in prizes.
Second place went to the Lift Lite Chair from Willamette University, founded by Logan Heagerty and Jasmine Le. This team also took home one of the top prizes in the TiEU Challenge earlier this year. Lift Lite is a mobile mechanical chair lift that uses kinetics and leverage to assist the user into a standing or seated position.
Coming from Klamath Community College, Posy Wall clinched third place with their fully adjustable floor-to-ceiling TV mounting system that “poses” as a temporary built-in unit. Posy Wall is led by Gabrielle Martin & Brianne Bagge. They also received the People’s Choice award.
Rounding out the top four was Jensa Wellness from Oregon State University, with a shapewear undergarment delivering targeted heat therapy to relieve PMS symptoms. Jensa Wellnes is lead by Jennelle Andersen, Sierra Sotela, Nikki Gramm, and Tara McDonnell.
Representing Rogue Community College, Anclie Systems was awarded Outstanding Community College with thier Automated Field Turncut. Carter Stewart and Emmett Allen graduated from RRC in 2023 and are both pursuing engineering degrees at Oregon Tech.
The final award of the night was the Visionary Award, given to a team innovation, if realized, has the potential to make a lasting impact on the world. Second Life Solar from Oregon Tech, Adama Toure & Jordan Harris-Toovy have created a low-cost fault detection technology that monitors the life of solar panels to identify opportunities for repair and mitigate waste.
Invent Oregon’s website features a complete list of this year's competing teams.
Through the Invent Oregon program, students are empowered through mentorship and education to recognize themselves as innovators, technical problem-solvers and future entrepreneurs. They receive up to $2,000 in development grants to take their invention from an idea to a working prototype while learning about the processes of networking and commercialization.
Organized by the Portland State University’s Center for Entrepreneurship, Invent Oregon, the state’s only college-level prototyping competition is an exciting, equitable and inclusive call to action for Oregon-based college and university students to take their ideas for world-changing inventions from the drawing board to reality.
Invent Oregon sponsors include the Lemelson Foundation, Business Oregon, The Ford Foundation, The Roundhouse Foundation, Oregon Venture Fund, Horan Media Tech, and Stoel Rives.