A computer programme to retrain the eye, a potential lifesaver for South African miners, a solution for solo horse riders and designer handbags for those not lucky enough to have designer wallets – all are award winning ideas from the University of Aberdeen.
And all four are now aiming for the marketplace after being judged winners and runners up in the University's Blue Skies Thinking business competition - a Dragon's Den style contest open to entrepreneurial staff and postgraduates.
After one too many single-handed struggles of trying to get her horse into her horse box, Cath Brown decided to do something about it.
The keen horsewoman and University of Aberdeen Teaching Fellow came up with a simple device which solves the problem by allowing one handler to safely load a horse into its trailer.
And her Solo Harness has earned her £4,000 after she took first place in the staff category of the contest which is in its second year.
Cath, who owns three horses, is now in the process of patenting her product which she will sell over the internet (www.soloequestrian.com). And she's not resting on her laurels, the School of Biological Sciences lecturer has a few other entrepreneurial ideas up her sleeve which include importing a device that allows easy alignment of trailers and tow vehicles.
University engineering student Ravindran Manoharan also scooped £4,000 after taking top place in the postgraduate category with his award winning idea of a new rock bolt testing device that could revolutionise safety in South Africa's diamond, gold and coal mines and beyond.
The 30-year-old PhD student's idea came amid University of Aberdeen research he was doing to assess the integrity of rock bolts.
Rock bolt testing is time consuming, involves bulky equipment and, because it destroys the bolts, only 5% to 10% (BS 8081, 1989) of them are actually tested in service even though it is estimated between 50% and 70% can be performing poorly or defective.
There is also a type of rock bolt that cannot be tested – it is called the Shepherd's Crook and 60% of rock bolts commonly used in South African mines are this type.
Ravi has come up with a new system for testing the integrity of rock bolts and the South African mine sector is the initial target for his device which he now plans to patent.
Last year Dr Arash Sahraie was in the headlines when he published research about a computer based device he had developed that helps stroke victims who have suffered partial sight loss regain some vision.
The innovative idea has resulted in the University's Reader in Visual Neuroscience being named the staff runner-up in the Blue Skies contest for his proposal to commercialise his technology into a programme of rehabilitation for patients who have lost vision following brain injury, most commonly caused by stroke.
The vision scientists, who was awarded £2,000, says tens of thousands of patients can benefit from his invention. In the UK alone, there 7,500 new partially sighted patients evenry year that could benefit from the rehabilitation programme.
(Please note Dr Arash Sahraie is not at the moment running any clinical trials)
And the award-winning postgraduate runner-up is Gavin Clayton who earned £2,000 for his brilliant idea that will be welcomed by fashion and budget conscious women everywhere.
The 37-year-old is to rent out top of the range handbags which will allow customers to be seen with the latest designer or vintage piece even though they have paid a mere fraction of the cost.
Gavin's lightbulb moment came from seeing his wife Michelle – who is Salon Director of Vidal Sassoon Glasgow – lending her designer bags to clients who were going to functions but didn't have bags to match their outfits.
The occupational psychologist with the Scottish Prison Service, who is studying for a postgraduate degree in psychology, will run Handbags for Hire with Michelle and her sister from a web-based shop backed by a door-to-door service.
The Blue Skies Thinking competition was the brainchild of Professor Dominic Houlihan who said of this year's contest: "We had a tremendous response to our Blue Skies Thinking competition which aligns perfectly with the entrepreneurial spirit we encourage at the University of Aberdeen.
"It was extremely difficult selecting the winning and runners-up ideas as there were some excellent ideas submitted from University staff and postgraduate students.
"We now hope our winners will go on to have success with their products as we think they have found a real niche."