Stockbridge Jr./Sr. High School receives Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam® Grant for Invention Project
On Wednesday, October 23, 2019 the Lemelson-MIT program announced that Stockbridge Jr./Sr. High School has received a Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams ® grant of up to $10,000. Stockbridge High School is one of only 14 high schools in the nation to receive a Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam Grant this year.
The Lemelson-MIT Program awards InvenTeam grants and manages the initiative. The Lemelson-MIT Program is funded by The Lemelson Foundation and is administered by the School of Engineering at MIT. – See more at: http://lemelson.mit.edu/inventeams#sthash.ytIQrAzU.dpuf
Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams ® are teams of high school students, educators, and mentors that receive grants up to $10,000 each to invent technological solutions to real-world problems. InvenTeams research intellectual property, exchange ideas, design parts, build models, and make modifications as they develop their invention prototypes. They learn to move forward through challenges and celebrate “Eureka!” moments, all while cultivating their technical leadership skills. Projects are collaborative efforts, driven by the students. The InvenTeam initiative fosters a “learning-by-doing” environment fueled by inquiry-based thinking.
Stockbridge High School InvenTeam’s proposed invention is the Emperor Micro-Lander, a device used to monitor aquatic life in the National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa. The Emperor Micro Lander is a small, untethered free undersea vehicle for benthic operations. It is hand deployable from small boats. The product we envision will be lightweight, portable and durable. The system will be small enough to be carried onto a commercial aircraft to simplify shipping with no hazardous material. The “Emperor Micro-Lander will carry cameras, lights and a conductivity, depth and temperature (CTD) sensor or other custom sensor packages as needed. It will use a biodegradable sacrificial weight for the anchor that can be locally sourced in any port ‘o call. The micro lander can reach a maximum depth of 100 meters and maintain an upright position regardless of seafloor topography. A locator beacon will help with its self-recovery system. The “Emperor Micro-Lander” can be programmed to remain underwater for up to a week depending upon the needs of the researcher and return to the surface autonomously. The “Emperor Micro-Lander” fills a void in the current marketplace for a low cost, easy to deploy, operate, and recover sensor system that can be used by professional researchers and citizen scientists alike.
The Stockbridge High School InvenTeam members are seniors Baylee Heidrich, Sylvia Whitt and Anna Schlaff, Junior Cameron Brewer, Sophomores Mayzie Wright, Hythem Beydoun, Brooklyn Rochow, and Juliana Rooke, as well as Freshmen Jack Hammerberg and Brianna Polenz. The team’s faculty mentor is Mr. Robert Richards.
Students, teachers, and mentors representing the Stockbridge InvenTeam will travel to Washington D.C.. in June for the Lemelson-MIT Program’s EurekaFest, a multi-day celebration of the inventive spirit. InvenTeams present and showcase their prototypes at EurekaFest’s public exhibit. Teams are inspired by the National Collegiate Student Prize winners, MIT faculty, and one another.
True success for each InvenTeam is students having fun throughout the grant cycle while collaborating to build a useful and unique device that positively impacts the lives of others. – See more at: http://lemelson.mit.edu/inventeams#sthash.ytIQrAzU.dpuf
For more information please contact Mr. Richards at (517) 851-7770 or email at richardr@panthernet.net
