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InventX, formerly known as Invention Factory, is an intensive six-week residential summer program that trains engineering, science, and design students to develop patentable inventions. Through hands-on problem-solving, prototyping, and expert mentorship, participants refine their ideas and gain a deep understanding of the innovation process. By the end of the program, each team files a provisional patent application, ensuring that their work has real-world impact.

Since its inception, InventX has hosted over 200 students from 300+ institutions, resulting in more than 100 provisional patent applications filed in India and the U.S. Initially receiving participation from IIT and NIT students, the program expanded in 2024 to welcome applications from all engineering, science, and design colleges across India. 

The 2025 edition will be held at IIT Gandhinagar (starting May 23) and IIT Jammu (starting May 30), with 10 teams of three students at each location. 

The residential structure fosters a collaborative environment where participants not only build technical expertise but also develop critical thinking, decision-making, and effective communication. All participants walk out confident in their patenting, pitching, and product development skills. InventX offers a unique opportunity to move beyond theory and actively engage in the process of invention, preparing students to lead in technology and innovation.

2024 IIT Jammu Winners

Khushboo Kanwar Rathore (Indian Institute of Technology Jammu) and Varun Rawat (NIT Trichy) won the 1st prize at the Invention Factory program for their development of the “Multi Drug Injector.” This innovative device mixes and injects two fluids instantly using a double-piston system with chambers, ensuring precise dosing, variable mixing ratios, and effective mixing through built-in channels and a special membrane.

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Aayush Bhansali (Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi) and Abhishek Kumar (Indian Institute of Technology, Madras) won the 1st Runner-up prize at the Invention Factory program for developing a faster, simpler, and more affordable Braille display device, addressing the issues with existing Braille display devices that are slow, complicated, and highly expensive.

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Supragy Mishra (MIT Academy of Engineering, Alandi, Pune) and Keya Shah (G H Patel College of Engineering & Technology) won the 2nd Runner-up prize at the Invention Factory program for developing an ankle joint with adjustable stiffness. This innovation aims to overcome the rigidity in lower limb prostheses, providing improved mobility and comfort for users.

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2024 IIT Bombay Winners

Ishan Agarwal (Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar) and Vrushti Shah (Nirma University) won the 1st prize at the Invention Factory program for developing a therapeutic pain relief device. This innovative device is designed to alleviate muscle spasms through pulsating pressure using air compression and features an integrated medicine delivery system for deep muscle penetration, providing effective relief and promoting relaxation.

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Sheersh Shah (Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi) won the 1st Runner-up prize at the Invention Factory program for addressing the inefficiency and environmental impact of existing food delivery bags. Traditional delivery bags often fail to prevent spillage and do not support the use of paper containers effectively, leading to increased plastic waste and poor customer satisfaction. He developed an add-on for existing delivery bags made with eco-friendly materials and snap-fit technology, enhancing the use of paper packaging and reducing plastic waste.

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Sahil Rao (Indian Institute of Technology Jammu) and Harshada Kale (Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar) won the 2nd Runner-up prize at the Invention Factory program for tackling the inconvenience and safety issues associated with soldering. They developed an attachment for the soldering iron that includes a lightweight insulation cover with ventilation holes and a separate solder wire feeder, improving efficiency and safety for users.

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2024 IIT Gandhinagar Winners

Nageshwar Kumar and Chaitanya Tandon from Indian Institute of Technology Jammu tied for the 1st prize at the Invention Factory program with their development of a groundbreaking glove enabling real-time communication for deafblind individuals, and Stavan Mehta from Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, and Kritika Patidar from Indian Institute of Technology Jammu tied for the 1st prize with their solution addressing complications in tooth extraction.

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Krishna Chaitanya Myneni from Indian Institute of Technology (Banaras Hindu University), Varanasi, and Adya Tripathi from Shiv Nadar University won the 1st Runner-up prize at the Invention Factory program for creating a smart sock designed to alleviate pain and numbness in diabetic peripheral neuropathy patients.

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Divya Patel from Karnavati University and Saket Joshi from Nirma University won the 2nd Runner-up prize at the Invention Factory program for developing an automatic device for the treatment of Restless Leg Syndrome.

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Past Inventions of the programme

The prizes for Invention Factory® are supported by Sudarshan Saraf, Co-Chairman cum Managing Director, TECHNOCRAFT Industries India Ltd. The Programme is end-to-end supported by Maker Bhavan Foundation.

"I am leaving here with this tremendous sense of optimism. This is what real innovation is, otherwise you can have guys like me sit and solve complex algorithms and sometimes wonder who does it benefit other than getting me a good name in research journals"

Ajit BalakrishnanChief Executive Officer at Rediff.com

“With many ups and downs full of emotions, this journey has been about more than just our achievement—it has been a transformative experience of growth I have developed, not only as an innovator but also as an individual, gaining confidence in pitching ideas and understanding the patenting process.

Our diligent efforts led us to explore numerous patents and successfully file a provisional patent application for our invention.”

Sanskar PurwarIIT Jammu

“Every week we had guest evaluators, who gave recommendations that helped us build our invention. Ultimately, we could build what we believed in and make it a success.

We are grateful to the donors and MBF who brought such an outstanding opportunity for us Now it feels like I have been associated with them forever.”

Akanksha Saini1st Runner Up, IIT Bombay
Invention Factory 2022

Why Invention Factory?

Students work very hard to enter engineering colleges like IITs and NITs. They learn from top- notch Faculty and acquire domain knowledge. What they do not know is how to be creative. How to invent novel systems. This is much to the detriment of the long-term goal of engineering education. Fostering creative engineering is an essential skill that can be taught but is not currently taught in universities. This is the gap which Invention Factory aims to address. Throughout the 6 weeks program, the young graduates learn to develop an inventive attitude and acquire skills that they can leverage for the rest of their lives be it as creative inventors, effective problem solvers and future business leaders for the nation.

What Students Learn

Invention Factory Learnings

Invention Factory India: Participation Data

2018

IIT GN

20 students

10 teams

5 IITs

10 Provisional Patents filed in USA & India

2019

IIT GN

28 students

10 teams

9 IITs

14 Provisional Patents filed in USA & India

2022

IIT GN & IITB

39 students

20 teams

15 IITs

20 Provisional Patents filed in USA & India

2023

IITJ, IIT GN & IITB

60 students

30 teams

12 IITs & 6NITs

30 Provisional Patents filed in USA & India

2024

IITJ, IIT GN & IITB

58 students

30 teams

21 IITs, 18 NITs, 2 BITS, 4 design schools & 272 private colleges

30 Provisional Patents filed in USA & India

Faculty Mentors

Eric Lima

Eric Lima

Professor

Mech. Engg. The Cooper Union College

Madhu Vadali

Madhu Vadali

Assistant Professor

Mech. Engg. IIT Gandhinagar

Ankit Dubey

Ankit Dubey

Assistant Professor

Electrical Engg. IIT Jammu

Navneet Kumar

Assistant Professor

Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Jammu

Testimonials

Subheading

The Maker Bhavan Foundation has been a very valuable partner for IIT Gandhinagar in strengthening our agenda to embed active learning as a core value in the educational experience of our students. We hope that this partnership between the MB Foundation and IITGN will be path breaking in introducing the culture of Maker Education across institutions of higher education in India.

Prof. Sudhir JainDirector, Indian Institute of Technology, Gandhinagar

It's been truly a pleasure to work with the outstanding students at IIT over the past few summers. We were impressed by the students' excellent knowledge-base, energy, and passion to help people through their chosen profession of engineering. The students' willingness to work intensively on their inventions caused us to redouble our commitment to mentor them and drive them to produce their best work. We like to think that a program in inventing and patenting is valuable to and appreciated by the school's students particularly given that IITGN prides itself on its modern and innovative engineering curriculum. During our two summers in India, we felt welcomed and supported by the IITGN community, including the students, faculty and staff. We are looking forward to the programme running again at IIT Gandhinagar and IIT Bombay in the summer of 2021.

Alan Wolf and Eric LimaFounders, Invention Factory Programme, Cooper Union College, USA

I found Invent@IITGN as the best place where I could work on a real-life problem, where my creativity won't be confined to just my engineering stream. The structure of this programme not only made me confident about my inventive potential but also made me learn how to respectfully address the criticism of my work. Invent@IITGN was one of the best learning experiences I have ever had.

Yash SharmaStudent, IT Kharagpur, Winner, Best Invention, Invent@IITGN2018t

Working in TL fulfilled the conception I had while preparing for JEE, about how engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology ought to be...It is true that most of the project done at TL are hobby projects, spontaneous in nature, not goal-directed and often unfinished. But that precisely is what makes TL so unique, so amazing. For every 1000 naive attempts, 100 may attempt turning it into a product, 1 may sustain and hit a jackpot. TL allows for those naive attempts in the first place by making it easier to build, by causing serendipitous events. By inspiring.

Chirag ShettyTL Alumnus, IITB, Graduate researcher at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

TL has the potential to make learning practical and hands-on in engineering colleges of India. TL at IIT Bombay provides students with a platform led by them who otherwise, would have to rely largely on classroom learning. The time gap between thinking of a project and actually implementing it is significantly reduced with the presence of TL. This initiative has the potential to transform the way engineers are created in India in the years to come.

Ashima MittalTL alumnus, IIT Bombay