Artemus Labs Wins Innovation Challenge

 

Artemus Labs Team Members (left to right) Rae Jillian Rivera, Calvin Leung, Nikki Escobar, Anna Maria del Mundo, and Kimberly Ventura.

They sweated over their ideas and worked tirelessly on the designs. Then, they challenged their engineering, marketing and strategy skills, eventually proving their innovative projects worthy. But only one could be the best.

And that was Artemus Labs, which took the top prize in the Cal State Long Beach 2018 Innovative Challenge for its idea of a colorful, sexy take on a prosthetic sleeve that provides comfort as well as style to those who have lost lower limbs.

Artemus Labs was co-led by Calvin Leung, a marketing and management information systems major, and Rae Jillian Rivera, an electronics engineering technology student. They were joined by Anna Maria del Mundo, management information systems; Nikki Escobar, industrial design, and Kimberly Ventura, aerospace engineering.

“Winning, for me and the rest of the group, means that we get to help more people,” Leung said. “And we will get more funding and assistance that we need to move forward.”

The team will receive support for their business, including $10,000 in seed funding, and space, marketing, legal and accounting services totaling $40,000.

Rivera spent three years researching lower limbs as part of the Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement (RISE) program. The program designed to support students, who are interested in careers as research scientists in biomedical and behavioral science fields.

She said her research focused on how to improve the lives of those who have lost lower limbs. One of the issues was bland, uniform-looking Silicon sleeves that work as a protective cover worn over the residual limb. It is designed to reduce movement and chafing between the skin and socket. Artemus Labs promises sleeves that are not only breathable and comfortable, but are “sexy,” she said. This was Leung’s third time being on a finalist team. Previously, he was a team member of 1010 Innovation, which proposed a mobile app that would help caregivers look after elderly family members. The company was a runner-up in 2017 and 2016.