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UNeMed's "Back-o-the-Napkin" Contest Returns

Entries will be evaluated for their novelty, market potential, and possible intellectual property protection. Top entries with the most viable path to commercial success will win additional development and financial support. Entries due Jan. 31.

retro design that read's UNeMed Back-o-the-Napkin Contest

UNeMed, the technology transfer and commercialization office for the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) and the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), will again sponsor a “Back-o-the-Napkin Contest," calling for any inventive UNO or UNMC faculty, staff, or student to submit their ideas for new inventions and better ideas.

Criteria and Judging

A suitable entry could be a simple solution created to solve a clinical or translational research problem, whether it’s a line of software code, a possible new molecule or a medical device.

The deadline for entries is January 31.

All novel entries will be judged by an internal committee, and evaluated for their novelty, market potential, and possible intellectual property protection. Top entries with the most viable path to commercial success will win additional development and financial support.

Entry forms may also be downloaded here. Physical versions of the entry form are available upon request. Designed to resemble actual napkins, entry forms ask that inventors draw and describe their ideas.

All submissions will then be evaluated for the novelty, commercial potential and marketability. The winners will receive additional support for further development.

Previous Winners

Sara Myers, Ph.D., UNO Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Creative Activity, is a previous winner of the contest for her entry on an energy-harvesting exoskeleton.

Other past winners include:

  • Wearable Pinch Ligation Device— Quan Ly, M.D., & Meghana Kashyap, M.D., UNMC College of Medicine, Surgery Division.
  • Single Laser Measurement Device for Jump Testing—Michael Rosenthal, DSc, Elizabeth Wellsandt, DPT, Ph.D., and Michael Wellsandt, DPT, UNMC, College of Allied Health.
  • Beam Helmet—Elizabeth Beam, Ph.D., assistant professor, UNMC College of Nursing
  • Light Pipe Retinal Viewer—Pukraj Rishi, UNMC College of Medicine, Ophthalmology.

Sponsors

Co-sponsors are the Great Plains IDeA-CTR; the James and Karen Linder Maker Studio at UNMC’s McGoogan Library; the UNO Machining and Prototyping Core in the Department of Biomechanics; and The UNeTech Institute.


About UNeMed

UNeMed is the technology transfer and commercialization office for UNO and the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC). The office works with faculty, staff, and students to advance their innovations and discoveries to the marketplace for a better world.