Convergence Innovation Competition Winners Address Connectedness of Everyday Life

A Google Glass application designed to caption conversations for the deaf or hard of hearing won both the Connected Home and People’s Choice Awards at the Spring Convergence Innovation Competition (CIC) last night.

"We’re totally surprised, especially by the People’s Choice Award," said Rob Solomon, one of the creators of Captioning On Glass. "Everyone was doing such amazing projects at this competition, so to receive an award from your peers is the most meaningful, but of course we’re happy to win Connected Home as well. We hope that this has an impact on people’s lives in the future."

Captioning On Glass is for those who have speech capabilities, but have difficulty hearing every word in a conversation. The app is expected to be available in the Google Glassware store in a couple of months.

Other 2014 CIC winners were selected during a live demonstration and judging event at the Institute for People and Technology (IPaT) in the following categories:

Connected Work:

• CloudPin – An app that quickly shares files on the go

Connected Transportation:

• QuickSOS – A wearable safety device to instantly alert your friends and authorities in an emergency

Connected Communities:

• KeepSeek – An interactive shelving unit for social connectedness

Thirty-four teams submitted projects in the Spring CIC, including four teams from Georgia Tech-Lorraine who presented their projects remotely live via Magic Window. The social network FoodPrint took home the top prize for GT-Lorraine. FoodPrint helps food lovers find and share their favorite dishes from restaurants around the world.

"For us, it’s an exciting moment,” said Sheng Ran of Team FoodPrint. “We’re very proud of our project."

MeetMe, an efficient way for several people to find each other using location services, won the GT-Lorraine People’s Choice Award.

Applications and solutions developed during the CIC solve problems in the connectedness of everyday life. The competition is a unique opportunity for students and industry sponsors to network, collaborate and innovate. Industry sponsors provide mentorship and technology resources exclusive to competitors. The CIC is open to all Georgia Tech undergraduate and graduate students from every major on campus, including those studying abroad. Each finalist finishes the competition with a working prototype and business case in their portfolio. They’re also well positioned to take advantage of commercialization opportunities, such as those available through Georgia Tech’s VentureLab or those provided by industry partners.

AT&T, Code42, Cisco and GM sponsored the Spring 2014 CIC. Organizers hosted open houses, tutorial sessions and industry engagement sessions with sponsors and thought leaders. IPaT and the Georgia Tech Research Network Operations Center (GT-RNOC) produce Fall and Spring editions of the competition each year.

The CIC winners also showed their innovations at the Georgia Tech Innovation Showcase on Wednesday, April 16.