The University of Iowa College of Engineering has announced that the student business plan for a company named Asonus Tech is the winner of its 2017-18 Hubert E. Storer Engineering Student Entrepreneurial Start-up Award.

Asonus Tech creates accessories made specifically to alert people with hearing loss about sounds throughout the day that they may otherwise miss, such as a fire alarm or a doorbell. This young company will receive $5,000 from the college to help advance the business.

The founders include Philip Abangan, a junior in Electrical Engineering; Adam Hoffman, a junior in Mechanical Engineering; and Lyric Harris, a senior in Journalism and Enterprise Leadership.

"Asonus Tech provides stylish, affordable devices that are convenient and comfortable to wear," Co-Founder Harris explained. "The accessories will vibrate and illuminate whenever they detect sounds that the user has selected as important to ‘hear’. For example, if someone is calling out the user’s name from behind, the device will vibrate and light up to notify the user.”

Asonus Tech plans to focus on creating solutions for people with partial hearing loss that hearing aid companies tend to overlook. The company will offer the device in a ring to start, then expand to other accessories like bracelets and necklaces.

"Similar to Alexa, and Siri wake-up calls, our device uses voice recognition and noise classification to create awareness of the user’s surroundings,” Co-Founder Abangan added. "Its an ideal device for those who live their daily lives in an environment where hearing is difficult."

Asonus Tech already has achieved First Place, People's Choice, Customer Standout Discovery, and Pre-Order/Sales Award at the University of Iowa Startup Games.

The annual Storer award, established in 2002 and funded by an endowed gift from the late College of Engineering alumnus Hubert E. "Bud" Storer (BS 1959 Industrial Engineering), currently provides $5,000 of initial financial support for a College of Engineering student technological business plan. Storer was president, owner, and founder of Storer Equipment Company, Shreveport, LA.