PRODUCT INNOVATION PROJECT

Hosted by KU Leuven

Come give us a visit at

www.pipleuven.be

facebook.com/PIPLeuven

At the beginning of the academic year, we launch the student teams on their respective missions. In that process, the teams will be using the design thinking approach:

Observing the needs of the product’s users Brainstorming and ideation Rapid Prototyping Testing of the final prototype At the finish line, in May, the student teams are required to deliver a working prototype of the product together with an extensive value proposition and a brief business plan.

SO, WHAT IS PiP?

Transforming the future through ideas

PiP is an education format where interdisciplinary teams of students work together during a full academic year to come up with a solution for a task given by the project sponsor.

A PiP-team consists of a mix of students with various backgrounds (engineering, economics, …). Together they must deliver a working prototype and a business case.

We want students to learn how to work together in a large self-steering team with people from various backgrounds, by applying all their creativity and entrepreneurial drive in a hands-on way.

PiP is able to offer these projects to students with the help of several companies called project sponsors. The scope of the project (healthcare, engineering, life sciences, ... ) differs with each project and each project sponsor.

At Google, the most ambitious projects are called “moonshots”. A moonshot is a project or proposal that addresses a huge problem,

proposes a radical solution and uses breakthrough technology.

So, are you ready to go moonshooting with us?

Which students can apply?

Depending on the topic, students from the following faculties can participate in the project:

• Faculty of Architecture • Faculty of Arts • Faculty of Bioscience Engineering • Faculty of Economics and Business • Faculty of Engineering Technology • Faculty of Engineering Science • Faculty of Movement and Rehabilitation Sciences • Faculty of Law • Faculty of Medicine • Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences • Faculty of Psychology & Educational Sciences • Faculty of Sciences • Faculty of Theology & Religious Sciences • Institute of Philosophy

The list of participating faculties is continously expanding.

With the support of these faculties, the students can participate in a PiP-project and are able to valorise their work, receiving ECTS study credits in return. The equivalent workload corresponding to these study credits varies between 90 and 270, depending on the faculty where the student is enrolled. For each project we will assess which profiles are best suited, based on personal interviews and motivation letters. Not only do we look at individual profiles, but we strive to compose teams of complementary skills and backgrounds.

The picture above features Jannes and Bert from the first PiP-team, Tremtech, lasercut-ting a prototype out of plastic lid.

TREMTECHThe challenge of the Tremtech team was given by the RVO-Society: “Develop a product that improves the daily life of people with tremor”. The final product? A simple, robust tool that empowers people with tremor to go out, with no fear of spilling their drinks in public.

The Tremtech team is working together with the project sponsor RVO-Society and COMmeto to further develop their product into a marketable product.

2015-2016

VIVIGATE

Sponsoring their second project, RVO-society gave the challenge “develop a product to improve the daily life of people with dementia and their caretakers”. Team Vivigate created an interactive planner that displays the users daily schedule, while allowing for sudden changes. Just like Tremtech, Vivigate earned a Cera Award (www.cera-award.be) for their solution. The team is currently reviewing the possibilities to further develop their product.

2016-2017

2017-2018

TRACKED

Multinational chemical concern BASF & IT company Cronos Groep joined forces to sponsor the challenge “use holographic computing to improve business processes in the chemical industry”.

The team set out to improve employee training using the Microsoft Hololens. They created a mixed reality applica-tion in which employees can learn and practice working with complex equipment in an immersive environment.

CIRCULAID

The city of Leuven hosted the first governmental challenge, asking the team to “improve Leuven’s shopping experience using smart technology”.

Focusing on mobility issues in the city, the students used data to predict occupancy of parking spots in the different city parts. Their platform shows people the best spot to park their car, based on their destination and time of arrival.

In the academic year of 2017 - 2018, PiP hosted four projects. Read more about all of them at pipleuven.lcie.be.

Have you got what it takes to

become a sponsor?

Workshops

WORKSHOPSDuring the year, various workshops are organized. These are meant to give the students extra knowhow and prepare them to tackle the different challenges thrown at them while working on their project. Workshops are usually given by experienced companies or organizations.

The following list provides a rough idea of the different workshops during the year.

First semester:

• Design Thinking Workshop - PiP methodology • Creativity Session - learning how to brainstorm • Scrum Workshop - project management

Second semester:

• Business Model Canvas - how to create a business case • Intellectual Property workshop • Video making workshop • Presenting and pitching

This list is not definitive. If needed, other workshops can be arranged. For instance, PiP-teams might benefit from a workshop specifically regarding the topic they are working on.

Final Gala

FINAL GALA

After a year of hard and fulfilling work, the PiP-teams present their product at the Final Gala. Here, the teams get a chance to pitch their newly made product to a large and broad audience consisting of fellow students, professors, companies, organizations and family. After the presentation, everyone is invited to attend the reception. The perfect opportunity to meet the students and other attendees over some food and drinks. Check out our website or facebook page for the time, place and other practical details.

CONTACT

For more information, please visit: www.pipleuven.lcie.be

Mail us at pipleuven@gmail.com

Lucas Vanlaer | PiP Coordinator +32 486 60 95 73

Wim Fyen | Coordinator Lcie +32 496 06 39 52

PRODUCT INNOVATION PROJECT

Connecting the students of KU Leuven