A new spin on a sleeping bag originally designed to make sleepovers more convenient was the star of the show at the 2019 Invention Convention U.S. Nationals, garnering its inventors an Industry Innovation Award in the category of Home Organization and Appliances.
Isabella Hickey and Rebekah Bushmire of J.C. Booth Middle School are the inventors of the Soft Storage, a sleeping bag with storage compartments. The students initially designed the sleeping bag as a convenient way to pack and store personal items such as makeup, hair accessories and toiletries that persons take with them to sleepovers, eliminating the need for additional tote bags.
They soon realized that what they invented had the potential to be more than an upgraded sleeping bag. After conducting research and interviews, they redesigned their invention to provide a safe, portable storage place for children taking refuge in domestic abuse shelters. In regards to the redesign, they said that they realized “the people who need the most are those who have the least.”
Isabella and Rebekah were selected to represent Georgia at the Invention Convention U.S. Nationals based on their performance at the Georgia Tech InVenture competition in March. At the national event, they competed against 500 other student inventors from across the country and around the world, and were among 17 students who won an Industry Innovation Award. Each student received a trophy along with a Google Home Mini and a Google Home Hub. The competition was held at the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation.
