Project Summary: The Phloat is a phone case that has a super-compact, deployable flotation feature that would trigger in the event of your phone falling and sinking into deep water. The flotation device is deployed with a chemical reaction between the water and chemicals inside the case. This will deploy a bright colored flotation device that will bring the phone back to the surface for retrieval. The flotation unit would be modularly designed and could easily be replaced with a new unit after its use.
Journey: After much brainstorming, the team converged on the idea to design a floating phone case using a reaction that would cause the case to float when in contact with water. The idea was to mimic a hot air balloon as the reaction would take place on the back of the phone case. The team performed calculations for buoyancy and incorporated gas laws as they began work on their initial prototype. They bought competitors’ products to compare to their own design, and 3D-printed a prototype that they tested in an on-campus pool. They found that the phone case could float for up to 30 minutes. The team continued to improve on and test their design while doing customer discovery at Green Lakes. They found that customers would be willing to pay up to $50 for the Phloat.
Team Members: Malak Aljerari, Elijah Alexander, Joshua Varkey, and Nathan Brekke
