Meeting Governor Cooper and our Journey continues: Inventing and Advocating!

We have had an exciting month so far! Governor Cooper came to visit us to see our invention at Science House. It was an honor to meet him. We talked to him about our invention and the invention process. We also told him about the Lemelson- MIT Competition and InvenTeams in USA. He was proud we were selected one of the top 15 teams in USA! He learned about why we wanted to make a mat that screens for lameness in cows and help the farmers too. The Team spent time also discussing with Governor Cooper ideas we had to improve STEM Education in North Carolina for students with disabilities so more students can have experiences and opportunities to be successful in learning STEM and in future STEM Careers. He really listened to us which we appreciated so much. He also met some of our Mentors who have helped us learn the skills needed to make our invention. We told him about all the help we get from North Carolina State University staff and students, Biogen Foundation, North Carolina Natural Science Museum, the Farm Bureau and the Science House of course! It is nice having the whole community behind you! We know we will be successful. We also discussed our plan for next year and our continuing work to bring this invention to market too! The Team was so happy he came to spend time with us!

The invention is going well and it is nearly finished. The basic plan of the mat and how the mat works is done, as well as all schematics and blueprints. We tested our Cow Pad to see if it measures the weight correctly and made sure everything was screwed in place. Two PCBs have been soldered almost completely (Even though the actual mat will only use one) and the actual mat is almost ready to be tested. Everyone worked with the soldering iron. The first frame that came was larger than the actual prototype frame is going to be. We have 4 new panels with new dimensions that will be done being welded by this upcoming Saturday. The coding has not been finished completely, but we worked with our mentors on the coding an app design. We know we will get there soon! That’s it from Catalyst InvenTeam as our journey continues inventing and advocating to make the world a better place!