Irish inventor runner-up in Dyson prize

UL graduate’s system allows users to breathe under water for up to two minutes

University of Limerick graduate Cathal Redmond has been awarded a €7k runner-up prize in the international James Dyson Award competition for his Express Dive invention, a lightweight underwater breathing system.

Irish inventor Cathal Redmond has been awarded a runner-up prize in the international James Dyson award.

Mr Redmond, who won the Irish leg of the design competition earlier this year, will get €7,000 to develop his Express Dive invention, a lightweight underwater breathing system.

He is the first Irish student to win an international prize in the history of the competition.

The 26-year-old University of Limerick graduate's system allows users to breathe underwater for up to two minutes, and can be refilled by returning to the surface and pressing a button.

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It is less complex than the traditional scuba set up, and costs around €400, compared to €3,000 for a full scuba kit. It also allows divers to go to greater depths than the traditional snorkel.

“I’m absolutely thrilled to be a global runner-up in the James Dyson award. The support I’ve received over these past months since I was shortlisted has been phenomenal,” he said. “Since winning the Irish leg of the award and talking to different people, I’ve seen there is a huge appetite for Express Dive. I’m going to spend the money developing the safety testing and getting it ready to sell.”

Mr Redmond also received €2,500 for winning the Irish leg of the competition.

The over-all prize was scooped by a team of Canadian students for a printer than can produce circuit boards in minutes. The team will get €40,000 to develop the Voltera V-One prototyping system.

The second runner-up was a team from Taiwan, with a system of biodegradable cell beads aimed at fighting algal bloom. The micro organisms inside Green Fairy beads consume the nutrients that cause algal bloom, and then die off.

Ciara O'Brien

Ciara O'Brien

Ciara O'Brien is an Irish Times business and technology journalist