HAMISH LAUNCHES IDEA TO HELP COLOUR BLIND KIDS
THEY say necessity is the mother of invention, and that’s the case for a Grade 4 student recognised as one of the top 12 young inventors in the country.
Ten-year-old Hamish Lane decided he’d had enough of his colour blind brother, Kurt, 6, asking him to explain different colours.
So Hamish invented a watch with an in-built colour detection sensor that can help people understand and identify colours by simply pointing it at objects.
The invention has caught the attention of judges in a national, young inventors’ competition and may win Hamish a trip to NASA.
Proud mum Suzanne, of Merrimac, said Hamish – a keen student at St Vincent’s Primary School at Clear Island Waters – loved facts and research, as well as geography and science.
“His six-year-old brother was always asking him the colour of things and Hamish was getting frustrated with him,” she said. “We have an app on our phones that identifies colours and Hamish thought of putting something like it on a watch.”
Mrs Lane said her son did some research and found that one in every 12 males is colour blind.
“He Googled a lot of things and came up with a colour detection sensor,” she said. “As far as I know, there isn’t a watch like his for children who are colour blind.”
Hamish’s invention has earned him $1000 and he has been chosen as a finalist from 3000 entries in Origin’s littleBIGidea competition.
First prize is a trip to NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre in the US.
The intrepid schoolboy has been to Melbourne for a design workshop with the other young inventors and will next create a prototype and make a final video pitch to the judging panel.
Anna Cain, a judge and Engineers Without Borders Australia volunteer, said it was inspiring to see all the positive ideas submitted.
“It’s exciting to think about how these little ideas could actually come to life and make an impact in the world,” she said.
National winners will be announced next month.
Visit littleBIGidea.com.au for more information.