Cribbage Project for the Visually Impaired Receives Top Award

Andrew Ashton, a graduate of the Electronic Systems Engineering Technology at Saskatchewan Polytechnic, was recently awarded the top prize in the Technology Accreditation Canada (TAC) 2020 Technology Report Contest.

Andrew’s project, titled Cribbage for People with Reduced Vision, utilizes technology to replace a traditional wooden cribbage board with a combination of electronic devices which aids players with reduced vision capabilities. With large-character, backlit LCD displays and large, colour-coded buttons, each player uses a handheld, wireless controller to enter points scored throughout the game and to view the current score of each player.

“Over the past few years, I noticed that some of my older relatives were having trouble seeing the very small parts and markings on the cribbage board,” notes Andrew. “I felt I could provide a solution and hope to produce a marketable version in the future, which will make cribbage available to those who may otherwise not be able to play.”

“Saskatchewan Polytechnic has 15 Technology Accreditation Canada accredited programs. Congratulations to our graduate, Andrew Ashton, on this exciting recognition from TAC,” says Jamie Hilts, dean, School of Mining, Energy and Manufacturing at Sask Polytech. “This innovative project to design a Cribbage game for those with poor eyesight demonstrates the applied research and entrepreneurial opportunities available to students at Sask Polytech, while also creation solutions to the problems facing industry and society every day.”

“I was very pleased, though not surprised, Andrew won the 2020 Technology Report Contest,” comments Chris Roslinsky, E.I.T., Electronic Systems Engineering Technology program head at Sask Polytech. “Andrew was a very hard working student with a great work ethic and dedication to his studies.”

The contest, open to TAC and CTAB (Canadian Technology Accreditation Board) national accredited programs, saw a record number of thirty-three entries. Discipline specific judging panels, comprising of certified engineering technology and applied science technician and technologists with audit experience, evaluated each technology report. The top two reports were assessed by a final judging panel of three certified professionals, each with extensive education, industry and audit backgrounds. Reports were examined for their originality, complexity, academic rigor, innovation and presentation.

The three top reports can be viewed at 2020 Technology Report Contest.

The Cribbage for People with Reduced Vision project previously received second place in the Sask Polytech 2020 Applied Research Student Showcase.

October 2020