siuDE.com

Issue date: 3/26/07 Section: City

Media Credit: Jake Lockard Tim Homoya of Energy, Illinois demonstrates how to use his invention; a peanut-butter and jelly dispensing gun, for a panel of judges during a pre-audition event for ABC's "American Inventor 2" television show. Homoya and co-inventor, Austin Nelson, Homoya's step-son were awarded 1st place for their invention.

The drive to invent is as old as the human race, and the inventors themselves, those ingenious tinkers or armchair MacGyvers, have helped propel our species forward through innovation.

That drive for improvement called 25 local inventors to a pre-audition event for ABC's "American Inventor 2" at the Illinois Small Business Development Center on Saturday. The event was a tune-up before the actual audition on March 31 at Navy Pier in Chicago.

Robyn Laur Russell, director of the center, said she was very pleased with the turnout. The inventions ranged from redneck apparel to a portable, inflatable playpen, all providing a good cross section of inventive ideas, Laur Russell said.

"I thought they were really neat," Laur Russell said. "There was some stuff I'd never thought of before and there was some real practical stuff, but I was really impressed with the way stuff was all over the board."

Tim Homoya and his stepson Austin Nelson, both of Energy, claimed the top spot with their peanut butter and jelly gun. Improvised from a pair of caulk guns with wide, flat nozzles, Nelson said the PBJ guns were perfect for people who want a sandwich but don't have time to make them in the traditional way.

Homoya and Nelson wowed the judges by quickly pumping out a handful of ready-to-eat sandwiches and playing "Peanut Butter Jelly Time," a song made famous by a dancing banana on the Internet.

Homoya said they came up with the idea when Nelson visited him at work. Homoya was installing flooring and using a caulk gun to apply adhesive when Nelson said the adhesive looked like peanut butter. They decided to go with the idea, and originally created the guns without the nozzles and used them to apply peanut butter to crackers.

They are planning on traveling Chicago for next weekend's audition, especially after receiving $300 in travel reimbursements for winning first place, Homoya said. Each of the five winners received and inventor's gift basket with books and CDs, and the top three inventors also received varying amounts of travel reimbursement for the trip to Chicago.

Laur Russell said 15 of the contestants indicated that they will be traveling to Chicago for the audition, where they will compete to earn a spot on the show which is set to debut June 6. There are six audition spots all over the country and one winner will be selected from each city and given $50,000 seed money to further develop their product.

Anyone is allowed to audition, but the application process is lengthy and confusing. Laur Russell said the center will provide technical support for anyone who wants to audition in Chicago.

536-3311 ext. 262 or brandon_augsburg@dailyegyptian.com

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