Re-open the hunt for ideas with the Leonardo Innovation Award. Young people will once again be the absolute protagonists of the 2016 edition of the initiative that rewards the creativity and innovative abilities of students, recent graduates and graduate students of the scientific faculties of all Italian universities, as well as of employees within the Company throughout the world .
In the sign of renewal, Finmeccanica today has a new organization and a new name, Leonardo, from the Da Vinci protagonist and the most emblematic expression of the cultural and technological revolution of the Renaissance. An innovator in the most profound and modern sense of the term, expression of the universal value of research and experimentation, capable of imagining, with five hundred years in advance, the technologies that are the basis of many products: from the rotor of a helicopter to the flying machine , from optical studies to armored vehicles. It is precisely inspired by him that Leonardo pursues the culture of innovation, the driving force of his own growth. Thanks to Leonardo Innovation Award, the Company, a global player in the High Technology sector, also has the opportunity to recall how supporting technological innovation and the scientific system's competitiveness are the true engine of growth for our country.
For more than ten years, Leonardo has promoted the Innovation Award internally, an initiative that offers all its resources in the world the opportunity to present innovative ideas and be rewarded for their contribution to the Company's continuous progress.
Since last year the Prize has opened its doors to young students, recent graduates and graduate students of the faculties of engineering, mathematics, physics, computer science and chemistry of all Italian universities, to offer them an incentive to generate new ideas and a privileged channel to enter in contact with the Company.
The young participants can present their innovative projects in four corporate business areas: 1) Protection from mini-micro UAV threats; 2) Reduction of internal and external acoustic noise in aeronautical and terrestrial platforms; 3) Generation and storage with high efficiency of electricity; 4) Digital innovation.
Up for grabs for students, recent graduates and graduate students opportunities for training internships - which will be extended to the first three finalists in each category - economic awards and the invitation to participate, together with the winners of the internal Award, in the award ceremony in the presence of the top management of Leonardo-Finmeccanica. All the details on the initiative are available at www.premioinnovazioneleonardo.com which also hosts the platform through which projects can be presented.
“The enhancement of the talent of the new generations that invest in their training is one of the objectives on which the Company aims - underlines Mauro Moretti, CEO and General Manager of Leonardo-Finmeccanica - as is the closer dialogue between the business world and the academic world, useful for bridging the gap between the skills acquired by young university graduates and the real needs of businesses. For a company like Leonardo, the ability to manage complex technological environments is fundamental. The strengthening of the culture of science and technology is therefore a key objective to which the school system must aim to represent a solid base on which to base the managerial skills of the future. The Leonardo Innovation Award is therefore a moment of encounter between young people, the company and the academic world, from which to draw inspiration for the consolidation of the supremacy of the country in the high-tech sector ".
The technologies of the future. The research areas of the Leonardo Innovation Award dedicated to young people:
Protection against mini-micro UAV threats
The easy accessibility, together with the difficulty of identifying in the urban environment with traditional tools (radar), characterize the mini and micro UAV (Unmanned aerial vehicle) systems, in such a way as to make them a difficult tool to oppose in the hands of potential terrorists or ill-intentioned . Therefore, innovative logical and physical solutions are needed for their identification and neutralization in order to avoid or minimize any side effects, especially in urban areas.
Abatement of acoustic noise, internal and external, in aeronautical and terrestrial platforms
Noise is a non-secondary element in the operation of many terrestrial and aeronautical means of transport, both for the external impact, in terms of acoustic pollution of the environment, and for the internal liveability, ie the perception of noise from part of the passengers. It is therefore necessary to develop innovative solutions, active and passive, for the elimination of the acoustic noise generated, towards the outside, by motors and structures that interact with the air and by the noise perceived inside the vehicles.
Generation and storage with high efficiency of electricity
The availability of electricity affects the development and operation of most of the objects, systems and platforms that are an essential and indispensable part of our lives. From smartphones to systems for electric mobility, from DIY tools to more and more "electric" airplanes and helicopters. In response to this growing need, new solutions are needed for generating electricity and storing it.
Digital innovation
The technologies for Cyber-physical Systems (hyper-connectivity, higher local processing capacity and the cloud, interdependence and decision-making autonomy) are the basis for the "embedded intelligence", enabling factor for the 'digital transformation' of the industry. This new industrial revolution passes from the Internet of Things, BigData and Industry4.0, posing challenges often governed by software-driven solutions, not linked to the dynamics of the "app", but to the processes of engineering, production, logistics and maintenance, for aeronautics , space and security.
