Accelerate Spotlight: Q&A with Student Inventor, Justin Buys
Project Invent’s Accelerate program offers young inventors a pathway to bring their products to the next level. Accelerate students are matched with industry professionals who support them in developing business plans, go-to-market strategies, patent applications, and more.
During the 2020-2021 school year, thirteen Project Invent teams enrolled in Accelerate. As the year came to a close, we reached out to student Justin Buys to share some reflections about his Accelerate experience.
Justin and his team from Apex High School presented a prototype of their product, Perch, at our 2019 Demo Day event. Perch is a self-guided, autonomous caddy for wheelchair users to shop freely. For their empathetic and novel design, Team Perch was awarded $1,500 by Demo Day panelists.
Emerging from Demo Day with funding in hand encouraged Justin and his teammates to think about their invention’s potential for impact. Most recently, Justin collaborated with an industry mentor to make Perch more manufacturing-friendly. In the Q&A below, read some of Justin’s reflections on his 3+ year journey as an inventor (so far)!
1. How did your Project Invent journey begin? Why did you decide to join a Project Invent team?
My journey began in my sophomore drafting class. My teacher asked the class if anyone would be interested in joining a Project Invent team. I’ve always enjoyed making stuff and applying new engineering skills, so I was instantly intrigued. But I was also hesitant because of how large-scale it sounded. It was out of my comfort zone, but I decided to go for it anyways—and that’s how it all started.
2. Tell us a little bit about your community partner.
We met our community partner, Dee, at a practice event for a local wheelchair basketball team. As we were brainstorming ideas to inspire our invention project, we narrowed our search to helping out people who use wheelchairs. After discovering the local basketball team, we reached out to see if we could attend a practice game and chat with them. Dee was instantly very friendly and happy to discuss her daily life with us.
One issue that really intrigued us was her struggle with taking groceries in from her car. She told us that she held the bags with her mouth since she needed her hands to drive her wheelchair. This really interested us because it was an issue that none of us had even thought about before, so we decided to focus on that.
3. Describe your invention in one line.
Perch is a self-guided, autonomous caddy that leverages ultrasound technology to assist wheelchair users with their daily needs.
4. After pitching Perch at Demo Day, what motivated you to enroll in the Accelerate program?
Just attending Demo Day really motivated me to move forward. We had spent the year developing our product with our partner, but I still wasn’t sure what other people would think of it. When we got there, everyone at Demo Day was super interested. I had a lot of fun discussing the project with everyone, and seeing what the other teams had come up with. Then getting funded made me even more excited. For our first year after Demo Day, we were not formally collaborating on Perch, and our disorganization took a toll on the project. We didn’t do a great job communicating as a team, and eventually people lost interest. When the 2020 school year began, I knew that I needed new support to re-focus on Perch, and the Accelerate program came at the perfect time!
5. What are some of the key product improvements that you made during Accelerate?
I spent my time during Accelerate really focusing on the construction and appearance of Perch. Going in, I had a prototype, but it was not manufacturing-ready at all. It was made mostly of wood and repurposed parts. With my mentor Nadav’s help, I learned how to use Fusion 360 and created a new model of Perch, using manufacturing-friendly materials like sheet metal and standard parts. I also put together a lot of documentation to make it easier for others to pick up and work on Perch. I ended up with a professional looking product that’s easier for others to contribute to and I couldn’t be happier.
6. AnY favorite Accelerate memories?
At the very start I was pretty lost on what to do with Perch. Between the pandemic and my team members graduating or moving on, Perch had fallen on to me and I didn’t know how to handle it. I had a Zoom meeting with Project Invent to discuss this, and they were incredibly supportive. It was a really special feeling to be reminded that there were people out there who cared about Perch and wanted to see the project go on. Before that meeting, I was doubting doing Accelerate, but they re-inspired me just by being there for me, and I cannot thank them enough for that.
7. Why should FUTURE PROJECT INVENT STUDENTS sign up for Accelerate?
The resources that Accelerate opens up to everyone are invaluable. I’ve done a year with and without Accelerate, and the difference was immense. Accelerate is not commitment heavy, but it provides a good outline to keep you on track with your project, while still giving you room to work on it how you would like. You’ll also get to meet lots of great and interesting people. I recommend Accelerate to every team, regardless of your plans moving forwards!
“Justin made my job easy. He was open minded, creative, and very hard working. In addition to holding down his coursework, an Eagle scout project, and a part-time job, Justin found time every month to work on his Accelerate project. Justin taught me how to listen and trust—he was vocal about his needs and desires, and I could always count on him to do the work that he wanted to do.”