The NYU Prototyping Fund is a collaborative program offered by the Design Lab @ NYU Tandon MakerSpace, the Technology Management and Innovation Department, and New York City Future Manufacturing Collective (NYC-FMC), that awards teams of students up to $500 in the first round of funding and up to $2,000 in the second to be used to build hardware or software prototypes, and connects them with the resources, tools, and mentors they need to bring their ideas to life and move to the next stage of product development, while encouraging multidisciplinary collaboration between students at NYU. This semester, 10 teams were selected to represent 3 NYU schools, totaling to over $4,000 dollars! Schools included College of Arts and Science, Tandon School of Engineering, and Tisch School of the Arts.
Throughout their workshops and sessions, they discussed various prototyping techniques as well as “why” and “how” to prototype. Participating teams worked on projects ranging from sustainable packaging with mycelium to a system that can efficiently convert wind energy into electrical energy in a moving automobile to an alarm clock whose off button is placed far away to force you to get up. While some teams are working on physical prototypes and digital components – the principles of early testing, asking questions, and learning from users apply to all of the projects. We encouraged the teams to use prototypes as a method to fail safely (and cheaply) and ultimately, to begin testing as soon as possible.
On Thursday, April 28th, the cohort showcased their projects in the NYU MakerSpace’s EventSpace. The teams each had to work on their projects, make a poster, and a video explaining their process and designs. Some common themes that popped up were sustainability, gaming, and health. Learn more about the cohort below. We are so proud of how hard the teams worked to build, creatively tested, and received user feedback while using design thinking techniques!
Congratulations to the Teams!
Connetic Energy: A computer application that continuously engages users to
physically exercise with limited hardware. Cassandra Chow (Tandon MS ‘23)
Doctor Clocktopus: An alarm clock whose off button is placed far away to force you to get up. Michael Russo (NYU Tandon BS ‘20, MS ‘22) & Matahari Herwin (NYU Tandon BS ‘21, MS ‘23)
FunGuy: Aims to replace conventional packaging in the wine industry with sustainable material made from mushroom mycelium. The packaging can also be repurposed as manure catering to wine store owners and consumers. Nikareka Muniyasamy (Tandon MS ‘23), Maria Rehan (Tandon MS‘23), & Alisha Mugunthan (Tandon MS‘23)
MS COCO YOLO: Wearables that help user to evade surveillance algorithm. Tracey Shi (Tisch‘22)
Personal Pet Pages: A tiny personal website server that you can own, hold in your
hands, and have picnic with. Jeeyoon Hyun (ITP MPS ‘22)
Potato Drum: An analog to digital MIDI interface with infinite possibilities. This project began with me DIYing an electronic drum kit and proceeded to making any object a playable MIDI instrument. Jerry Jia (CAS CS & Econ 23’)
SCOBYTE: Industrial uses of Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast for Electronics to combat e-waste. Lorena Rodriguez Ostia (ITP ‘23)
The Real Fake Plant: There is a plant lover revolution but not everyone has a green thumb. This project aims to bring plants into the homes of those who cannot cultivate them in an organic and reusable way. Christina Cappelli (ITP MPS ‘23)
WIND ENERGIZER: A system that can efficiently convert wind energy into electrical energy in a moving automobile, thereby creating a much more eco-friendly and sustainable electric vehicle. Aswin George Prasad (Tandon ‘23) & Roshan Balu T M B (Tandon ‘23)
Xtendicare: A reading game for children with ADHD. Ayanna Seals (NYU PhD Human-Centered Technology, Innovation, and Design ‘22), Lucas Wozniak (Tisch ITP, MPS ‘22), Sounak Ghosh (Tandon, MS ‘22), Lilly Lin (Tandon, MS ‘22), Rajshree Saraf (Tisch ITP, MPS ‘22), & Lauren Chun (Tisch ITP, MPS ‘23)
Learn more about the NYU MakerSpace’s funding opportunities.
