Four female McMaster students have been named national runners-up in the prestigious James Dyson Award competition and have advanced to the next stage of the contest.

Future engineers Maria Akhtar, Jocelyn Kuntsi, Cate Prince and Shayaha Jeyaseelan were named Canada 2024 runners-up for their web app invention ‘WheelBeats’.

The national winners and runners-up from the Americas move on to the next level with the international ‘Top 20’ shortlist to be selected by Dyson engineers in mid-October.

Wheelbeats centralizes accessibility information for event venues, increasing access to live events for individuals with impaired mobility and physical disabilities.

The inspiration behind the project stemmed from recognizing the challenges faced by a wheelchair-user when planning for such outings.

“Having an impairment disability makes event attendance stressful due to the lack of clear accessibility accommodations from venues. WheelBeats eases this stress by consolidating and clarifying mobility access details, removing this significant barrier,” the James Dyson Award website states.

The project prioritized a “user-centric approach”. As part of their research the students contacted venues for accessibility information and created an intuitive interface that adhered to Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act web standards.

They also ensured inclusivity and ease of access for all users.

The students were encouraged to enter their app idea into the competition after a Dyson representative happened to be at a class presentation.

They say they hope their project will make a “tangible difference in the lives of individuals and allow them to plan for and attend concert and sports events with confidence and ease”.

Kate Prince, who is in her second year of mechanical engineering, says the goal of the WheelBeats app is to eventually include more than just venues and events.

“It’s obvious that not only venues are inaccessible structures, there’s restaurants, malls … anywhere can be difficult to get around,” she says.

The James Dyson Award celebrates, encourages and inspires the next generation of design engineers. Global winners of the competition will be announced on Nov. 13.