3M today announced it is the recipient of two Gold Awards at The Edison Best New Products Award gala, presented by Discovery Channel in New York City. The prestigious Gold Award is the top honor given by the Edison Award Steering Committee for product excellence in innovation, creativity and ingenuity, as demonstrated by inventor Thomas Alva Edison.
As a leader in both the mobile interactive electronics and healthcare industries, 3M was recognized for its Mobile Projection Technology in the Technology category and Littmann Model 3200 stethoscope with Zargis Cardioscan software in the Electronics and Computers category, respectively.
The Power of Projection
As 3M's most recent product to incorporate the diversified technology company's Mobile Projection Technology, the 3M MPro150 was released to consumers in March 2010. Designed with professionals in mind, the MPro150 projects up to a 50-inch VGA image and offers a two hour battery life, despite being just over 5 inches long and weighing a mere 5.6 ounces. It includes 1 GB internal memory, a micro SD card slot and a USB input for transferring files from a laptop or netbook, so there is no need to carry the content device since entire presentations can be pre-loaded onto the mobile projector itself.
"We've long said 3M mobile projection and its products represent the gold standard in this category," said Mark Colin, vice president & general manager, Mobile Interactive Solutions Division at 3M. "Receiving a Gold Award from the Edison Awards leaves no doubt."
The recognition was just the latest in a string of industry accolades bestowed on the company's innovative projection technology. 3M's MPro110 pocket projector was recognized as the Grand Award winner in Popular Science's "2008 Best of What's New" awards while the 3M MPro120 was named one of PC World's "100 Best Products of 2009." The recently launched 3M MPro150 received a coveted "Highly Rated" seal from projectorcentral.com.
The MPro150 supports Microsoft Office applications (Word, Power Point and Excel), as well as Adobe PDF, photos and video, allowing the user to project images up to 50-inches at 15 lumens brightness in either the boardroom or break room. Additional features include an integrated MP3 player, flip stand and tripod.
The Heart of Innovation
The Bluetooth-enabled, wireless 3M Littmann Electronic Stethoscope Model 3200 with Zargis Cardioscan software, claims its third award in 2010, following significant recognition in late 2009. The novel stethoscope/software system, which was named 2009 Popular Science "Innovation of the Year" and winner in the "Health" category, is also the 2010 recipient of two industry awards for design and innovation - "red dot: best of the best" award for product design, and the Medical Design Excellence Award.
"Pairing the Littmann Electronic Stethoscope Model 3200 with Zargis Cardioscan software is a huge advancement in changing the way clinicians listen to and interpret heart sounds," said Debra Rectenwald, president and general manager, 3M Infection Prevention Division. "This major award win is a testament to the spirit that drives 3M's innovation to develop and create new ways to improve the delivery of healthcare. We are honored that 3M's innovation in healthcare has been recognized by the Edison Awards."
The Model 3200 is a next-generation auscultation device featuring Bluetooth technology that wirelessly transfers heart, lung and other body sounds to software for further analysis. The scope pairs wirelessly with both of Zargis Medical's companion software packages: Zargis Cardioscan software supports physicians in analyzing cardiac sounds for the identification and classification of suspected murmurs, which can be signs of heart disease, while Zargis StethAssist software allows clinicians to visualize heart, lung and other body sounds, play recordings at slow speeds to hear more clearly, and save recordings for comparison to future auscultations. The scope and software together mark a breakthrough in computer-aided auscultation that has the potential to reduce unnecessary referrals.
Recognition for ingenuity in two such distinct categories continues to underline 3M's proud reputation as a leader in innovation. Sarah Miller Caldicott, great grandniece of Thomas Edison, and Chairperson of the Edison Awards Steering Committee, commented, "Innovation is more important now than ever. The Edison Award winners are the moving parts in the engine of economic growth. They inspire people to think outside the box and their results improve the lives of people around the world." The Edison Awards honor a wide variety of innovative products with Gold, Silver, and Bronze prizes representing first place, second, and third in each of its 11 categories.