Inventor wins contest by a nose

Using 3D technology to print off a new nose has won a Wellington inventor the top prize in the New Zealand leg of the fourteenth annual James Dyson Award, a global product design competition to inspire the next generation of design engineers.

Zach Challies created a shock absorbing base for prosthetic noses, after he learned people who had to wear prosthetics faced a second trauma – having their prosthetic accidentally knocked off when playing sports or being jostled in busy spaces.

The 24-year-old Victoria University School of Design masters student says current replacements can cost more than $1000 and can take a while to be made.

His solution was a dynamic, shock-absorbing scaffold fitted under the nose-shaped facade to anchor it against accidental movement. The base connects to three implants in the wearer’s skull via magnets. It can be printed for less than $ 50.

A second component of the design enables the wearer to play sports. Beneath an inexpensive, realistic facade, the wearer would use a f lat, shock absorbing guard that provides more protection while still allowing good air-f low. Together with the facade, it would cost less than $100 and take about two hours to make on a 3D printer.

The international winner will be announced on 6 November 2014. Entries can be viewed on www. jamesdysonaward.org