Dublin student’s design for the vision impaired wins SciFest National Final 2024

5th year student, Maura Moore-McCune representing The King’s Hospital School, Palmerstown in Co. Dublin has won the title of SciFest STEM Champion 2024 with her project ‘VIPMOD: Vision Impaired Person’s Moving Object Detector’. Maura Moore-McCune will represent Ireland at the Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair 2025 in Columbus, Ohio.

Now in its 19th year, SciFest is Ireland’s largest, most-inclusive all-island STEM fair programme for second-level students. The National Final, held in Marino Conference Centre in Dublin today, was attended by students from every corner of the island, with 62 students qualifying to participate this year. Since 2006, the programme has continued to evolve and expand, reporting an average increase of over 20% year on year. This has been helped by the tremendous support offered by Intel Ireland, Boston Scientific, EirGrid and Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals.

Maura Moore-McCune, who is vision impaired, developed an app to detect fast moving objects, so that vision impaired people can live safer and more independent lives.

This project evolved through six prototypes. The first three prototypes used Micro:bits. Prototype 4 uses GPS technology. Prototype 5 is an app which uses TensorFlow.js Image Classification model to detect oncoming vehicles and other objects. The app displays the object’s name, vibrates and issues a text-to-speech warning. Finally, Prototype 6 is an application that estimates the speed of oncoming objects. It uses a YOLOv8 model to analyse input footage.  Prototype 5 was tested in a controlled setting, with 95% accuracy (316 trials).  Vision Ireland will be testing VIPMOD in the WayFinding Centre – an indoor environment replicating the real-world experience of using public transport for vision impaired people.

Maura was presented with the SciFest STEM Champion 2024 Award by Sheila Porter, SciFest Founder and CEO. Maura rose to win the top prize, following her success at the regional final in SciFest@TU Dublin Tallaght.

Founded in 2006, the programme’s primary aim is to encourage students’ participation in STEM in an enjoyable and interactive way. SciFest is free to enter and open to everyone across the island of Ireland, no matter their background or circumstance.

Speaking at this year’s National Final, CEO and Founder of SciFest, Sheila Porter commented: “On behalf of everyone here at SciFest, I would like to extend a warm congratulations to all the winners, particularly to Maura for winning the title of SciFest STEM Champion 2024. SciFest has been providing opportunities in STEM for students for nearly two decades, and I am proud to have watched it evolve during that time. And while every year, we continue to grow, our core mission remains the same: to inspire and empower the next generation to engage with and explore the world of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

This year saw a big uptake in projects focusing on the environment and sustainability – critical areas for shaping a better future. I want to sincerely thank everybody who has been involved – from our students, teachers, and parents to our wonderful sponsors – all of whom have contributed to this extraordinary event. Together, we continue to drive progress and spark the creativity that will lead us into the future.”

Other award winners at the SciFest 2024 National Final were:

• Lily Cahill who won the SciFest STEM Champion 2024 Runner-up Award for her project on ‘Investigating Whether Childhood Imaginary Companions Impact Social Competence and Coping Skills in Teenage Years’
• Fionn Campbell who won the Berlin Long Night of Science Award for his project on ‘A Crystal-Clear Way to Slow Down Ireland’s Energy Crisis’
• Maura Moore-McCune who won the Boston Scientific Medical Devices Grand Award for her project on ‘VIPMOD:Vision Impaired Person’s Moving Object Detector’
• Gráinne Ní Chrónín who won the Boston Scientific Medical Devices Grand Award Runner Up for her project on ‘No More Ice, Ice Baby!’
• Matthew Daly and Rory Maguire who won the EirGrid Cleaner Climate Grand Award for their project on ‘How “Green” are the Local GAA Clubs? Comparing the Carbon Footprints of our Rural GAA Clubs’
• Lillie Li and Miles Bueno who won the Intel Technology Award for their project on ‘Finding Habitable Exoplanets on the NASA database with the Help of AI’
• Orlaith Connors who won the Mallinckrodt STEM Excellence Award for her project on ‘MITES BEE GONE! An Investigation of Irish Honeybees and Their Natural’
• Micheala Gillooly who won the STEM Outreach Video Award for her project on ‘Own your Cycle, Own Your Game’
• Áine Ní Fhearraigh, Muireann Haicéid and Kerry Magner who won the SciFest Social Sciences Award for their project on ‘Cé Mhéad Leictreachais is Féidir le Roth Uisce Simplí a Ghiniúint, agus an Leor é Chun Roinnt Soilse a Lasadh?’
• Emmalise O’Boyle and Cara Mullen who won the SciFest Life Sciences Award for their project on ‘Investigatingthe Effect of Microplastic Concentrations on Plant Growth and Nutrition’
• Megan Bohan and Ríona O’Farrell who won the THEA Award for their project on ‘Feathered Frequencies: The Invention of a Bird Deterrent Sound System to Eliminate the Threat of Bird Strikes Involving Jet Engines and Turbine Blades’
• Séana Dunne, Miriam Senior and David Fitzpatrick who won the ISTA Award for their project on ‘Extracting Latex from Dandelions and Using it to Make a Glue to Find a Sustainable Alternative Source for Latex’
• Robyn O’Hanlon, Emilia Aherne and Elodie Wallace who won the SciFest Junior Scientist of the Future Award for their project on ‘Mushrooms vs Normal Building Material’
• Addison Carey who won the SciFest Junior Technologist of the Future Award for her project on ‘Enhancing Data Security in AI Training using Zero-Knowledge Proofs for Secure Methodology Development’

See more stories here.