Weeks of hard work and sleepless nights paid off for Notre Dame design students when they returned on Saturday from Kokomo, Ind., victorious.

Delphi Automotive Systems and Delco Electronic Systems sponsored a student competition between Notre Dame, Purdue University and ITT Technical Institute in which the students invented and designed a car product dealing with the field of "infotainment," a combination of information and entertainment. Professors Paul Down, Sheila Weist, John Caruso and their product design students represented the University.

"I know we all had fun doing this. It's really an honor," Zack Fulton said upon receiving his award for aesthetics.

"I haven't slept for days," he confessed after being teased about his haggard appearance by Caruso.

Junior Dave Hunt shared Fulton's enthusiasm.

"It was great. The whole thing was pretty cool," Hunt said.

Hunt received a technology award for his design of "a unit that goes in the backseat of a minivan or SUV. It produces a 3-D holographic image to play videos games and things like that."

Sophomore Christopher Mahoney received an award for his interactive children's helmet.

"It is a way for children to be entertained in the backseat of a car and not bother the parents in the front seat. The only way it will work, though, is if the kids are wearing their seat belts," he said.

Mahoney said that he was surprised with his award.

"I was a little socked because I am just an English major and most people there were industrial design majors," he said.

Additional awards for aesthetics were given to Lori Mergler for her chair aiming to reduce motion sickness and to Fulton for his vertebral overhead dashboard.

Notre Dame tied with Purdue overall in the competition.

Maureen Smithe contributed to this report.

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