West Lafayette Smart City Challenge Demo Day

The Innovation Partners Institute at the Purdue Research Foundation, in partnership with the City of West Lafayette, the Indiana 5G Zone, and US Ignite, launched the West Lafayette (WL) Smart City Challenge in the Fall of 2021. The challenge asked teams to develop scalable IoT solutions or software applications that leveraged the City of WL’s existing IoT infrastructure and data inputs and the Discovery Park District’s NineTwelve 5G/IoT Lab to improve public safety in  high-traffic corridors and intersections. 

After an exciting four months of modifications, mentoring, and learning, the WL Smart City Challenge approaches the final phase and real-world test! Each finalist team will present their solution on Demo Day – April 29 at 3:30 pm ET! A panel of judges will select and announce a winner by May 6, 2022. Not only will the winner earn $10,000 but also get the opportunity to pilot their solution with the city of West Lafayette. 

To get to this phase, the teams submitted a proposal for review in late 2021. A panel of judges reviewed proposals entered by the teams and selected three to move to Phase 2. The selected finalists, Metaverse Technologies Inc, Communicative LED Pathways, and Traffic Real-Time Analysis Weather Systems, have spent the past four months creating prototype products that showcase their ability to improve public safety in the West Lafayette community. Learn about the teams’ projects and experiences below:

Metaverse Technologies Inc. is creating a smart intersection beacon platform that will anonymously collect data from intersections and user apps and process the information to deliver messages and signal directives back to the intersection and roadway users to improve situational awareness and safety and intersection efficiency.

Communicative LED Pathways is an Internet-of-Things-based audio and visual platform to improve situational awareness of non-motor vehicle roadway users to local conditions at individual intersections – congestion, traffic speed, etc., to improve safety and intersection efficiency.

Traffic Real-time Analysis Weather System is an Internet-of-Things-based street sign platform that delivers automated AI/ML derived messages based on various roadway conditions – weather, congestion, construction – to road users to improve safety and roadway efficiency.

We invite all to attend the West Lafayette Smart City Challenge Demo Day on Friday, April 29th at 3:30 p.m. ET in NineTwelve Convergence at the Convergence Center for Innovation and Collaboration, 101 Foundry Drive, West Lafayette, Indiana 47906. The hybrid event is open to all; if you cannot attend in person, please register for the virtual event.