The James Dyson Award, the international student design and engineering competition run by the James Dyson Foundation, has opened for entries, calling for novel inventions that tackle a pressing real-world problem.
Open to all engineering and design students and recent graduates, the award seeks ambitious designs that address a global issue, from cancer diagnosis to natural disasters. Past winners include an off-road ambulance trailer to rescue the wounded from conflict zones, a paint made from recycled glass that vastly reduces the need for air conditioning and a device to control bleeding from stab wounds.
Established in 2005, the competition has now supported more than 400 young inventors with more than £1million in prize money. More than two-thirds of past global winners have pursued the commercialisation of their ideas. The International Winner and global Sustainability Winner will scoop £30,000 to support their next steps, while £5,000 is offered to each national winner in the 30 markets in which the award is run.
‘The world needs more doers – problem-solvers, not grandstanders, who are ready to take on the problems of our time,’ said Sir James Dyson, founder and chief engineer at Dyson. ‘Every year, the James Dyson Award gives young people a platform for their medical and environmental inventions, and much more besides. It’s their “wrong thinking” that leads to breakthroughs, whether it’s the development of a new sustainable material or the application of clever engineering principles to help improve people’s lives. I look forward to seeing what new inventions this year’s award brings!’
Previous recipients of the Award have gone on to great success thanks to the global media exposure and injection of funds that the prize offers. Past International Winner Yusuf Muhammad entered his invention Automist – a device that tackles domestic fires with an ingenious water misting mechanism that uses ten times less water than a traditional system – in 2009. Today, Yusuf runs a successful company that has installed more than 13,000 systems and is currently securing international certification ahead of a prospective US launch.
‘Winning the James Dyson Award gave me great confidence and a springboard to success,’ Yousef said. ‘It allowed me to start a company, which turned my design concept into a product that protects homes all over the world and has saved lives. As an internationally recognised award, it’s a fantastic vehicle to bring your ideas to life.’
More recently, a group of design engineering students from Hongik University, South Korea, earned the James Dyson Award 2023 International prize with their invention the Golden Capsule, a hands-free intravenous device designed for disaster zones that can be strapped to the patient and doesn’t rely on gravity. Following their win, the team plans to move forward to make prototype improvements and conduct user tests in collaboration with medical experts, ahead of bringing their invention into mass production.
Entries can now be submitted through an online application form via the James Dyson Award website. The deadline to apply is midnight on 17 July 2024.
Entrants should explain what their invention is, how it works and their development process. The best entries solve a real problem, are clearly explained, show iterative development, provide evidence of prototyping and have supporting imagery and a video.
National winners and runners-up will be whittled down to a global Top 20 by a panel of expert Dyson engineers across different disciplines, and finally Sir James Dyson himself will pick the best.
The National Winners will be announced on 11 September, the global Top 20 shortlist on 16 October and Global Winners on 13 November.
Further information and the entry form can be found here.