Date: 24/04/2012

Winners of ST's OpenWorld design contest announced

STMicroelectronics has announced the successful completion of the OpenWorld design contest that was launched in March 2011. The closing ceremony was held at STMicroelectronics' Grenoble site that acknowledged the goal of facilitating access to public spaces and services for the visually disabled.

Projects from more than 100 individuals around the globe were assessed by a jury, composed of Autonomie consortium members. These projects were built around the EvoPrimer platform integrating STM32 microcontroller and aimed to provide innovative human assistance applications.

The Autonomie consortium who organized this contest consists of international companies, local industry, research institutes and local and regional authorities. It was co-financed by the European Union, via FEDER (European funding for regional development).

The winning projects were:

1. Grand prize: "Intelligent primer nurse" (Czech Republic) is an application that transforms the EvoPrimer platform into a bio-medical monitoring system. Worn at the belt, intelligent primer nurse automatically measures heart rate and blood pressure and transmits a warning if specified levels are exceeded, making everyday life safer for the patient and reassuring their family. Data is transmitted for analysis over a wireless link to a computer.
2. Second prize: AMIWheelChair" (France) is an application that collects data such as wheelchair position, speed and positioning, together with the muscular exertion required by the user, to automatically adjusted the wheelchair accordingly. AMIWheelChair also factually assesses accessibility by observing places which, despite significant efforts, still make it difficult for people in wheelchairs to move around. In addition, the application allows members of the wheelchair community to share information and GPS photos of obstacles and hurdles they encounter via an online map.
3. Third prize: "EvoMouse" (India): this application turns the EvoPrimer platform into a wireless mouse or remote control to communicate with a computer. Designed for uninitiated computer and Internet users, as well as the visually impaired or people with motor disabilities, EvoMouse improves the user interface to make it easier, for example, to open the FireFox browser or run Windows media player simply by pressing a button that your disability makes it hard for you to see.
4. The Grenoble public transport operators' prize: "Travel to City" (France):
Travel to City helps the visually impaired use public transport networks. Journey planning is simplified by making clearer the nearest bus stop and where and how many times the user might have to change buses to reach their final destination. Along the way, bus stop names and details of changes are read out, with voice guidance available in a choice of five languages. In addition, Travel to City features a "panic function," that enables users to send an SMS containing a Google map link showing their location to a friend or family member should they find themselves lost.
5. Honorable mentions were also awarded to "OxyCheck" (Poland), an application built from the EvoPrimer platform that monitors the pulse and oxygenation levels of a patient, providing a valuable diagnostic aid in the event of an emergency.