New York University, $5,000

This team is developing a smart indoor air-purifying system called the Aeolian Air Butler. The system consists of sets of sensors that send indoor air pollution data to the user’s phone and allows the user to remotely control the air purifier. The system can also provide the user with a comparison of air quality at nearby places (malls, cinemas, shops, restaurants) and air quality distribution inside public architectures, allowing people to make their outing plans based on real-time air quality ratings.

Pennsylvania State University, $20,000

There are 1.9 million new amputees every year in developing countries and it’s estimated that around 80% of the world’s lower limb amputees do not have access to modern prostheses. Amparo, which means support in Portugese, is working to create simple prosthetics. The team’s technology utilizes a thermoplastic material that enables lower limb sockets to be created in a fraction of the time it takes to create traditional sockets.

Santa Clara University, $5,000

The difficulty of detecting small quantities of arsenic and other contaminants in water threatens the health of millions of people worldwide. Existing technologies can very accurately quantify arsenic levels in water, but their expense, required training, and need for off-site analysis make them infeasible in low-resource settings. AquaSift is an integrated system combining a microfluidic sensor, data acquisition mobile app, and web-based data logging ecosystem that allows for quick, easy, error-proof evaluation of water sources for a variety of contaminants, including arsenic.

Syracuse University, $5,000

This team is developing a basic, ruggedized Automated External Defibrillator (AED) optimized for low-resource settings. The main innovation is the ability to integrate the device with laptops, tablets, smartphones, or other similar devices via USB, offering the potential for expandability.

Each year, over 255 million people are affected by natural disasters, leaving them without access to clean water for days. Current relief efforts cannot provide enough clean water to disaster victims in a timely fashion. DayOne Response developed a family-sized water purification backpack with an integrated filter that allows users to collect, store, treat, and transport clean drinking water in just 30 minutes. The product has been deployed in over 20 countries. The team from California Polytechnic University participated in VentureWell’s E-Team program in 2009. VentureWell invested in the company alongside several angel investors in 2013.

dayoneresponse.com

Johns Hopkins University, $5,000

This team is developing EasySuds, a low-cost device that will automatically release soap (and then water) out of a faucet, with the goal of increasing handwashing in both developed and developing countries.

http://easysuds.com

Stanford University, $20,000

HandHero is an innovative, static progressive hand splint that empowers young burn survivors to rebuild function and rejoin their community.

Columbia University in the City of New York, $25,000

To prevent Ebola infection from improperly decontaminated clothing and other surfaces, this E-Team is developing Highlight,a powdered additive that greatly improves the process of surface decontamination. Highlight colorizes bleach solution, visualizing treated regions to eliminate uncertainty of complete coverage. The pigment gradually loses color over 10-15 minutes so that the bleach dries clear, ensuring that the requisite ten minutes of decontaminant contact time is achieved without permanent staining.

Highlight is used by the Fire Department of New York and is a winner of the USAID Fighting Ebola Grand Challenge. Highlight ensures the safety of our healthcare workers.

Case Western Reserve University, $5,000

LYGENT is developing a novel, easy-to-use ophthalmic screening and diagnostic tool called the iStrab. It will afford providers with a quick, automated assessment of eye misalignment and other vision problems. The iStrab is intended to be an effective aid in clinical treatment and its simplicity and low cost should increase access to appropriate vision care for millions of children across the globe.

Harding University, $5,000

Malnutrition and food scarcity affects millions. The Mother-Administered Nutritive Aid (MANA) Foundation produces a ready-to-eat peanut butter paste that can save the life of a starving child. While it has been proven effective in deployments to over 17 countries, it’s produced in one location in the US and then shipped in large quantities worldwide, which is expensive and ultimately fails to reach many starving children. MANAMaker is a portable, low-cost device that produces the same MANA food paste to the same quality standards but can be produced on-site as demand arises using primarily local products.

Western Michigan University

2015 BMEStart First place winners, winning $10,000

E-Team Stage 1 and 2 grant winners, $25,000

This E-Team is developing a simple, energy efficient, safe, reliable and inexpensive way to provide biphasic positive airway pressure or Nasal Intermittent Positive Pressure Ventilation (NIPPV) for infants with Respiratory Distress Syndrome in hospitals with limited resources. The technology reliably delivers clinically relevant pressure waveforms at an affordable price point.

University of Massachusetts, Lowell, $20,000

A low cost, durable prosthetic for developing countries that can “grow” with a child, decreasing the number of prosthetics s/he requires over time.

http://www.nonspec.org

Johns Hopkins University, $5,000

PranaPulse has created a low-cost, 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) device to bring accurate diagnoses of ischemic heart disease to underserved rural populations. The device connects via USB and through an Android application can collect and transfer ECG data to a cardiologist for diagnosis. The cardiologist can then prescribe an individualized treatment for each patient electronically.

Yale University, $25,000

PremieBreathe is an affordable, mobile breathing aid to provide life-saving respiratory support for premature infants in low-resource settings.

http://www.premiebreathe.com

Operating cold storage spaces for perishable food is challenging and costly in areas with unreliable grid power. Promethean Power Systems designs and manufactures refrigeration systems for cold-storage and milk-chilling applications in off-grid and partially electrified areas of developing countries. To date, the company has sold over 500 units and served over 25,000 farmers in India. The team from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) participated in VentureWell’s E-Team program in 2007. VentureWell invested in the company in 2012.

promethean-power.com

Harvard Medical School, $5,000

Medication dosing errors are among the most pervasive sources of medical errors in the world, especially among junior clinicians. This team is taking advantage of the penetration of cell phones in low-resource settings with RapiDose, an app to help clinicians dose medications more efficiently and with greater accuracy. The app can operate on internationally available, inexpensive mobile phones without the requirement of internet or mobile network connectivity.

University of Utah, $25,000

This E-Team is developing a portable, point-of-use, solar-powered water purification device to provide clean water in rural areas or wherever access to clean water is limited. The technology utilizes the sun to oxidize bacteria, viruses and protozoa in surface water and can use low voltage electricity from lightweight, durable solar panels when lighting conditions are less than ideal.

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, $20,000

Long-term forms of contraception are generally preferred by both governments and women around the world, but they require more advanced training to administer, making it a challenge to provide access to them in low-resource settings. This team is developing an assistive medical device that dramatically reduces the training required to administer subcutaneous contraceptive implants. The device ensures accurate insertion of the contraceptive implant and minimizes the risk of incorrect placement.

Johns Hopkins University, $5,000

TocoTrack is a low-cost uterine contraction monitor for low resource settings, that provides midwives with information from which to make a diagnosis for a complication.

Pennsylvania State University, $25,000

This team is developing low-cost urinary tract infection diagnostic test strips that can be manufactured for less than two cents each by using a regular inkjet printer.