Meet new generation of Scottish inventors

FROM the steam engine to the raincoat, the list of great Scottish innovations is seemingly endless.

For generations, the country has churned out inventors whose work has changed the world. Now, in the name of one of the greatest, The John Logie Baird Awards seek to reward the latest in this illustrious line. Shortlisted finalists are set to pitch their ideas to a Dragons Den-style panel and will compete to win 20,000 of product and marketing support to help make their bright ideas into reality.

Tracey Ward, 29, of About Tack Ltd, has designed a strong, flexible saddle

"You'd go to work, get on a horse, pick up a wooden sword and go and beat up some stunt guys," Tracey recalls. As she describes what she was up to when she first came up with her invention, it is clear it was no everyday employment.

She was in her native New Zealand, training horses on the set of the film The Last Samurai. Amid the drama, the shortcomings of existing saddles became very clear. She explains: "The current design for saddles is based on a design that's about 2,000 years old. It has a rigid frame and it's made from wood and steel. The frame serves to distribute the load of the rider standing in the stirrups along the length of the saddle, but if you're asking the horse to bend or do anything that's quite athletic, it can be quite restrictive – it's somewhat like a splint.

"We did have difficulties with saddle fittings for the film because the people who do the 'costumes' for the horses have to produce 50 saddles, each saddle has to be fitted to each horse and each horse changes condition through the year and with the rigid saddle, there's very little room for change. With a flexible saddle it's much easier to adapt, and that's a problem not just with film horses."

Now based in Whittingehame, East Lothian, she has developed a saddle which has a flexible structure made out of Dyneema, a fibre 15 times stronger than steel. Most commonly used by paragliders, its combination of strength and flexibility means the saddle can redistribute the rider's weight without restricting the horse's movement.

www.abouttack.com

Isla McLean, 30, has invented Uloop, a luggage lock and alarm which attaches bags to their owner

"I suppose I wouldn't really call myself an inventor, I'd call myself a businesswoman," Isla reflects.

A Marie Curie Cancer Care fundraiser by day, it was her experience of travelling that inspired her to turn inventor – or businesswoman. The Uloop is a wire lock which travellers can use to attach their luggage to themselves. If the bag is stolen, the alarm goes off and stays with the bag, making it a burden for any would-be thief. The alarm also sounds if the wire is cut.

Isla, who lives in Broughton, explains: "I've done a lot of travelling and I've slept in many airports, on buses and trains and in communal rooms and I always had this recurring fear that while I'm asleep, someone's going to nick off with my bag. I was on a three-hour train journey in the UK, I'd just bought myself a new handbag – normally I have manky old ones – and I really wanted to fall asleep and I thought 'What about my bag?'

"I wanted to buy something that would keep it secure and set off an alarm if someone tried to take it, but I couldn't find anything, so I decided to make it."

It was a steep learning curve to go from a bright idea to a commercial product, but when she picked up the first Uloop, she could hardly contain her excitement. She recalls: "My production design team are in Glasgow and I got on a train and I thought 'I'm going to connect my bag to myself for the first time' and I thought 'I'm the only person in the world – IN THE WORLD – who knows what this is."