Safe Trip - Mobile phone app to plan safer routes through unfamilar locations wins award for Sheffield students
Last updated 11/29/2011 8:45:14 AM
Safe Trip - Mobile phone app to plan safer routes through unfamilar locations wins award for Sheffield students
Students from Sheffield have scooped a national prize for their creative mobile app Safe Trip, which uses Government crime statistics, GPS location and Google maps to plot the safest route through an unknown town or city.
They created their entry at a so-called 'appathon' event that gave budding entrepreneurs the opportunity to work with designers, developers and marketeers to design and build a unique app for the commercial market in just two days.
The competition was hosted by Silicon Valley Comes to the UK (SVC2UK), a not-for-profit organisation aiming to improve the environment for entrepreneurship.
Steve Briscoe from Sheffield Hallam University and University of Sheffield students Luke Stringer, Sam Oakley and Mark Dessain joined seven other teams at 10 Downing Street to receive their award from Prime Minister David Cameron.
Steve, 19, said: "I was so shocked that we won the award and were given the once in a lifetime opportunity to visit 10 Downing Street and actually meet the Prime Minister."And Sam, 21, added: "Technology entrepreneurship is a really hot area to be in and this competition is a fantastic opportunity to get connections with the right people."
Chris Bates, senior lecturer in computing at Sheffield Hallam, said: "The SVC2UK competition gave our students the chance to apply their innovative thinking and learning to a leading-edge, real world product. The winning team have produced an application that, although a prototype, is a saleable product with a real use."