If you’ve been following the blog for a while, odds are you are familiar with the SAF-T vest and Davenport Systems. The SAF-T vest is a wearable vest that automatically senses when the wearer is in the early stages of a potentially devastating fall. Sensors in the vest inflate at a moment’s notice to help protect the wearer from the trauma of a fall. Not only can the vest protect against injury, but it could also significantly reduce healthcare expenses across the nation as well as reduce the burden that falls put on the healthcare system.
We’ve written about the SAF-T vest a number of times in the past, and we’ll link to past articles later in the blog, but we wanted to shout out the company for being featured in a recent article in the Star Tribune. The article is titled “Have an idea for an invention but no formal training? Here’s how to do it,” and it takes a closer look at how some local inventors have been able to turn their dream into a reality. We urge you to head over and check out the full article, but we’ve grabbed some snippets from the article that focus on Davenport Systems and the SAF-T vest.
SAF-T Vest In The Star Tribune
(Excerpts from the Star-Trib)
Ryan Davenport achieved proof of concept for his company’s design — a wearable vest equipped with airbags that deploy once a person begins to fall — by partnering with a group of students for a class project at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul. The results gave Davenport an example to show potential investors.
Mooneyham (an inventor who worked to create a more effective nursing bra for mothers) sought the help of professionals at Kablooe Design — a Minneapolis product research, design and development firm — to create her pumping bra product. It’s the same firm where Davenport is having his SAF-T VEST invention developed.
Kablooe staff “were very receptive to startup people with an idea they want to try to develop,” Davenport said. They were also willing to work within Davenport’s budget. Davenport raised roughly $80,000 through a crowdfunding campaign, of which 90% went toward paying for engineering. While Davenport could have tried to hire a team of engineers to build the vest under the umbrella of his company, bankrolling a payroll wasn’t feasible at the time.
Recently, engineers at Kablooe tested newly designed airbags, giving Davenport results and visual proof to show at CES, the annual innovation trade show in Las Vegas produced by the Consumer Technology Association.
Capital Needs
To start, Davenport and his father invested about $50,000 of their own money into the SAF-T-VEST but quickly realized they couldn’t advance the project without financial help, he said. Investors, mostly those focused on software companies, were hesitant to put money into the business. They wanted more evidence of its functionality, Davenport said. After fielding a working estimate from Kablooe on how much it would cost to build a prototype, the crowdfunding route provided enough funds to take the company to the next level.
“It gave us what we needed to be able to create a video showing a forward fall and backward fall, and that was great,” Davenport said. “Our gamble was, if we can get to that, that will show people what we’re talking about.”
It’s awesome to see that the SAF-T vest continues to gain momentum, and we know that big things are in store for the device in the near future. In the meantime, if you want to read up on out past blogs on the SAF-T vest, simply follow the links below!
The SAF-T Vest Crowdfunding Campaign Is Live!
SAF-T Vest Named To MassChallenge Accelerator Program
SAF-T Vest Moves Forward With First-Generation Prototype
SAF-T Vest Earns Innovation Grant!
*Dr. Silverman sits on the advisory board for Davenport Systems