ArmadilloSkin- The Bulletproof Backpack Insert
My personal passion project beginning Aug 2022
The Road to ISEF
The path to competing at the most prestigious STEM competition in the world began midway through 2022 as I brainstormed a way to better my community (with some help from the ISEF guidlines). Sponsored by my Tech Center, I was able to use their resources and connections to begin the project that would change my life forever.
Inspiration
In 2018, a high school shooting rocked our local community and subsequently the country, in a time where gun violence was on the rise and anxieties were heightened about the safety of students in school.
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My mother had a unique perspective as a 1st grade teacher who instructs her students to hide in the corner of the room under their backpacks during an active shooting drill.
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In 2020, the leading cause of death in American children (1-18) became and to this day remains as Gun Violence.
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To best protect our children, we must provide a nonchalant and discreet layer of protection, a defense for them in the worst case-scenario.
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In the same way that an Armadillo ( a Spanish word meaning "Little armored one") wears its shell as second nature, American children can wear ArmadilloSkin, the lightweight Bulletproof Backpack Insert. ArmadilloSkin is designed to easily fit into the laptop sleeve of a child's backpack and protect them in the case of a school shooting.
Testing and Prototyping
My Initial Design required research testing with different firearms and material combiniations, and I was fortunate to have a community of true SOMD men behind me! Here I am spending the day testing and learning more about firearms.
Competition
Moving from Schoolwide competition to county, then to tri-county, and to international! Over the 2023 competition season I learned how to best present my data and grew my confidence in ArmadilloSkin as well as its future.
