Juniors Ameya Khare, Prem Nair, Nikhil Sathe design touch screen projection device.

Junior Nikhil Sathe and his friends were crowded around a computer last summer when Sathe  had a Eureka moment. They were all attempting to work on a 3D model, but not everyone could see what was on the screen, much less edit it.

“What came to mind was, what if I could make something that would display what’s on my screen and make it larger, and also allow all of us to contribute?” Sathe said.

The product designed by Sathe and juniors Ameya Khare and Prem Nair — Magnitact — will do just that. And Sathe is not the only one who finds the idea appealing: the team has advanced to the finals of the Conrad Spirit of Innovation Challenge. The Challenge, which Khare and Sathe were finalists in last year, is an annual competition that encourages 13- to 18-year-olds to participate in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Winners will be announced at the Innovation Summit at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, scheduled to be held from April 10 to 13. The first place group amongst the five finalist teams in their category will receive $10,000 to develop its product.

Working together

So what exactly does Magnitact do?

“You’re sitting at your desk with your laptop in front of you, and the laptop screen is limited to a certain dimension,” Sathe said. “You sync Magnitact to your computer — or, for that matter, your cell phone — any electronic device that has a screen, and it will project the screen onto any surface. And you can enlarge the screen to however size you want and, basically, it acts as a touch screen, and it allows for multiple collaboration.”

The changes made on the enlarged screen will be relayed back to the original device with the help of infrared beams that analyze where the larger screen is being touched. Don’t like touch screens? Not to worry — Khare, Nair and Sathe have also made plans for a laser pointer keyboard that should work just as well.

“That’s why we say Magnitact actually solves quite a few problems,” Nair said. “Not just the screen size, but also trying to work together.”

Elimination rounds

At first, Magnitact was only one of a whole host of ideas that the three brainstormed. They started not by searching for a product, but rather a problem they could address.

“We sometimes found the problems on the internet, but most of them came from our own experiences,” Khare said.

They considered creating an exhaust energy convertor for cars and a “smart fridge” that would keep track of its own inventory. Eventually, though, the group settled on two more feasible ideas: Magnitact and Technipatch, an insulin patch that would eliminate the need for invasive mechanisms such as needles or pumps.

The group entered the competition at the end of October by answering four questions about what its projects were and how they worked. Khare, Nair and Sathe submitted the entries in two separate categories: Magnitact in the field of Cybertechnology and Security, and Technipatch in Health and Nutrition. Both advanced to the semifinal round.

At that point, the team needed to flesh out its designs further. Khare, Nair and Sathe spent many long nights doing the necessary research to create a technical concept report, business plan, graphic concept representation and team video for each product. They submitted these materials at the end of January.

They heard back on Valentine’s Day: Technipatch had not advanced to the final round. Magnitact had.

Looking forward

The group, which goes by the acronym Ions — Image on Surface — is now in the final stretch of work before the April summit in Houston. There, they will present Magnitact to field professionals such as CEOs and venture capitalists. In preparation, they’ve created a blog, videos and logos.

Winners will be based not only upon the decisions of judges but also partially upon public voting, open from now until March 30.

The $10,000 reward to the first place team is, according to Khare, an enticing prospect.

“Seed money is great because you don’t have to pay it back,” Khare said. “It’s like a grant, almost.”

If they win, Khare, Nair and Sathe will use the money to launch Magnitact. Though Khare and Sathe were finalists last year, they did not win and were unable to pursue their product, Humobot — a watch-like device that would convert human energy to electricity — due to lack of funding.

“The first time was interesting,” Khare said. “But the second time, it’s more like, now we’re here to win.”