2019 Rothberg Catalyzer Design Studio 2: Rapid Prototyping and Device De-risking

Our Rothberg Catalyzer at Penn workshops, called Design Studios, give you an opportunity to learn from subject matter experts and get an edge on the competition. In Design Studio 2, immerse yourself in the know-how of thoughtful prototyping in a short period of time as well as de-risking your health-tech device.   After conceiving a health-tech device concept, there's genuine excitement to create the first prototype. However, premature prototyping can backfire, committing a team early on to a particular path forward without consideration to other potential solutions to the problem. Before plunging into prototyping, consider asking “What are the reasons that my concept won’t work?” This workshop explores and identifies risk factors in order to optimize your prototyping strategy, as well as mentors and lab coordinators to lead you through available resources and safety.    WORKSHOP LEAD(S)   Dustyn Roberts, PhD Senior Lecturer, Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics Penn School of Engineering and Applied Science     -- Rothberg Catalyzer at Penn Overview   Most people have heard of a hackathon, but the Rothberg Catalyzer at Penn is a makerthon. Instead of the classic hackathon focus on software development, a makerthon is where students compete to build innovative hardware solutions for healthcare problems.  The makerthon portion of the Rothberg Catalyzer at Penn is an immersive two-day event to encourage interdisciplinary student teams to develop a simple prototyping project. Groups come together to address an unmet clinical need by prototyping a hardware solution. At the end of the weekend, projects are presented to a panel of judges and awards are presented. Even if you think that you know nothing about healthcare or innovation, the goal of the makerthon is to create cross-disciplinary teams to build hardware and software solutions. Whether you're trying something new, getting a jumpstart on senior design, or kickstarting your tech startup - you never know what you and your team will come up with!   Apply now! Accepting applications through September 20th. All Penn students are welcome. See our website https://www.catalyzeratpenn.com/ for more details and to apply.