Each and every day, new technologies and approaches inform new products. But what if you need to design a new product to save lives? It has to be comfortable and convenient enough to actually use. It has to work. And it needs to be affordable enough to encourage consumer adoption.

That’s the idea behind The U.S. Coast Guard Ready for Rescue Challenge, designed and produced by Luminary Labs on behalf of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Science & Technology Directorate in collaboration with the U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center. The $255,000 prize competition seeks cost-effective boater safety solutions that will help make it easier to find people in danger in open waters.

This call for concepts kicks off the first phase of an anticipated three-phase prize competition, which will culminate in the announcement of 5 prize winners and 5 honorable mentions. At the discretion of the Coast Guard and DHS S&T, Phase I winners will compete in subsequent phases offering chance for innovators to pitch their solutions, compete for prize money, develop their concepts into working prototypes, and field test products alongside standard Coast Guard-approved safety equipment. The winning solution may have an opportunity to introduce a new consumer product — and could change an industry standard.

Do you have an idea for a new or updated life jacket or personal flotation device (PFD), an attachment to a life jacket or PFD, or an additional device for boaters? Learn more about the U.S. Coast Guard Ready for Rescue Challenge and submit a solution.

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