F or fourth-year Engineering student Evan Edwards, a bee sting or insect bite could be fatal. A hint of peanuts in a candy bar or a late-night snack of eggs at IHOP could be traumatic.
Edwards, along with an estimated 43 million Americans, suffers from anaphylaxis, a food and insect bite allergy that is only treatable with a dose of epinephrine, a form of adrenaline that stabilizes victims until they can make it to the hospital.
Currently, epinephrine is injected in an emergency situation by a pen-like apparatus. But the awkward size of this device poses problems for its users to carry around with them at all times.
To solve this problem, Edwards has invented the Epi-Card, a credit card-size, automatic epinephrine injecting system that people with anaphylaxis easily can carry in their wallets when they leave home.
"This invention can directly aid people with life threatening allergies making sure that if an emergency were to occur, help is just seconds away in your pocket, purse or wallet," Edwards said. "The current device out there, a pen-like apparatus, is simply too bulky and inconvenient to carry at all times."
Not only is the Epi-Card easy to carry and not as likely to be left at home like its pen counterpart, the new drug delivery system also encompasses numerous safety advantages.
In a PowerPoint presentation on his invention, Edwards wrote that the Epi-Card has a built-in safety mechanism that "features a spring device which allows the needle to retract after use. No other epinephrine automatic injector device offers this retractable needle feature."
The idea for this invention began when Edwards took the course TCC 315, Invention and Design, with professors Larry G. Richards and Michael E. Gorman during his second year at the University.
"There are many classes within the Engineering School that teach students about creativity, design and innovation," Edwards said.
Courses such as TMP 351, Technology and Product Development Life Cycle, and MAE 692, Creativity and New Product Development, also helped him develop the idea of the Epi-Card.
Without these classes, Edwards said he "would never have been able to successfully come up with this invention, get the funding needed to carry out this project, and the experiences and connections needed for the future creation of this invention."
Edwards already had a plan for his invention when he began taking TCC 351, a class meant to create student inventors and to teach students about the entire invention process, Gorman said.
"Since his idea had great potential, [Gorman and I] encouraged him to pursue it on his own," Richards said. "He has now formed a company with his family and applied for a patent."
Edwards' invention was selected to be on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., as part of the "March Madness for the Mind," an exhibition of student inventors.
For the past six years, the University has been active in "March Madness for the Mind," sponsored by the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance. Yet Edwards is the first student from the University to have received a grant from the NCIIA.
NCIIA Program Manager Phil Weilerstein said he felt Edwards' Epi-Card invention upheld the merits of its organization.
"The NCIIA grants program is intended to provide opportunities for students to create innovative ideas that lead to the creation of products and businesses," Weilerstein said. "The Epi-Card is a good example of a student solving a problem in their own life that has the potential to help many others."
The purpose of the program is that ideas lead to projects in business. Being invited to "March Madness for the Mind," is a good way to form contacts in the industry - a connection that may allow participants to actually do something with their inventions.
"In March, Evan's invention attracted a lot of attention from engineers, medical professionals and the general public," Richards said. "I think Evan made some good contacts that will help take his company to the next level.
For Edwards, it was an experience he said he will never forget.
"It was an honor to display my invention at the Smithsonian," Edwards said. "Obtaining feedback from professors that came from schools all around the nation gave me more confidence in this project."
For his efforts, Edwards received $13,769 from the NCIIA in the fall of 2000. With this grant he was able to hire a patent agent, do a patent search, file for a provisional patent, form a family corporation called Intelliject, Inc., apply for a utility patent, create a conceptual prototype and prepare for the exhibition in Washington, D.C.
Intelliject Inc., always has been Edwards' dream, he said. As a family corporation, he works as co-vice president with his twin brother, Eric, a student at Virginia Commonwealth University who is also at risk of suffering anaphylactic shock.
Richards and Gorman led the Edwards brothers through the patent and design strategy. Their older brothers, Byron and Jeffrey, helped them with the business strategy. Their father, Gary, currently serves as the president of Intelliject, Inc.
"One of the best things about this experience has been working with my twin brother, my family and professors such as Prof. Richards and Prof. Gorman," Edwards said.
Edwards is quick to point out that he feels many other students have the chance to be inventors and do something with their ideas too.
"You would be amazed how many students out there have potentially successful invention ideas," Edwards said. "The fact is, anyone can be an inventor."
Despite Edwards' modesty, Richards said he is exceptional in perseverance and ability.
"What makes Evan unique is that he has good ideas, and he follows through on them," Richards said. "Many people have great ideas and fail to realize them. The talent to carry an idea through to a product, a patent and a company is rare among our students."
Gorman agrees that Edwards has the passion to pursue an idea and carry it out.
"Like most inventors, [Edwards] is obsessed with his idea, and because of his own personal experience, he sees the need clearly," Gorman said. "Like the best inventors, he is eager to improve his design, to get new information about how to market it and also about other applications it might be good for"
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