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AUSTIN, the United States, March 11 (Xinhua) -- Handheld ultrasound medical imaging device, robot duck that eases children through cancer treatment and self-learning headphone were among the winners of innovation awards Monday evening at an annual gathering of innovators and entrepreneurs in Austin, Texas.
The awards ceremony on Monday evening for the most innovative digital projects in 2018 was one of the highlights at the 22nd SXSW Conference and Festivals, which gathers innovators and entrepreneurs from across the globe.
The awards were given to winners in 13 categories, each chosen from five finalists.
The award in the category of health, med and biotech went to Butterfly iQ, a lightweight, handheld whole-body ultrasound device that could take medical images of body organs within seconds.
The device connects directly to a smartphone and will soon offer AI interpretation and augmented reality tele-guidance to improve patient care.
Guru Sundar, director of marketing of at the firm that produces the device, said at a showcase earlier that it can be used for 19 different applications "from abdomen to bladder, the cardiac, lung, all the way down into the carotid."
The project is expected to help bring access to medical imaging to more people, he said.
In the category of robotics and hardware, My Special Aflac Duck, a robot duck that supports children through cancer treatment, took home the trophy.
The duck was developed to interact with children who are going through chemotherapy for cancer, and help them express feelings better to caregivers.
The goal is "focused on how we might be able to deliver comfort and joy to kids," said Aaron Horowitz, CEO and co-founder of Sproutel, which partnered with Aflac Inc. in creating the social robot.
The other 11 categories of the awards included those for AI and machine learning, innovation in connecting people, music and audio innovation, new economy, as well as social and cultural impact. A self-learning headphone and a visual interpreter for the blind, were also among the winners.