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ACIDO Rocket Finalist
Beacon: Marine Search & Rescue
In 2017, there were over 22,400 Maritime Search & Rescue incidents in North America, 90% of which involved providing person-overboard rescue and recovery or basic assistance.
Unfortunately most person-overboard incidents occurring at night or in stormy conditions result in fatal outcomes, with overboard fatalities accounting for 24% of all boating deaths. The success of any rescue is extremely time-sensitive due to the need to locate, and then maintain, a visual of the person overboard before they drift or are visually obscured in rough waters or darkness.
Beacon is a user-worn, compact emergency device that increases the visibility of a person overboard to provide rapid visual location for rescue. Designed for professional or recreational use for anyone at risk on open water, Beacon can be activated manually or set to automatically inflate a visual signal measuring one meter above the water surface, to boost visibility in all conditions.
About the Designer
Brennan Chiu, Carleton University
I am a hands on Industrial Designer who is guided by user based logic, and inspired by creative cross-disciplinary solutions. I believe there is high value in strong simplified design and I push to find detail driven results. I enjoy the challenge of tackling projects in diverse contexts and that versatility drives me to constantly innovate to solve problems and create solutions.