photo by: Lauren Fox

Local engineer James Crowder holds up his invention, the AllBadge, an ID badge holder that also functions as a contactless way to open doors.

As James Crowder worked from his office building throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, he noticed that door handles were the most frequent point of contact he and other employees shared. So for the past three months, he’s been coming up with a solution.

Last week, Crowder, a 25-year-old engineer, launched his new product, the AllBadge. It’s an ID holder that also doubles as a door opener. The item looks like most other badge holders but with the addition of a plastic rounded hook at the bottom.

For employees like Crowder, who have to swipe or scan their ID badge before entering their offices, the AllBadge allows that same ID holder to be used to open the office door.

“It’s a very convenient and natural thing to then just be able to grab (the door handle),” Crowder said.

photo by: Lauren Fox

James Crowder demonstrates opening a door with the AllBadge.

The goal of the AllBadge, according to Crowder, is to try to “prevent anybody from getting sick by eliminating shared contact with surfaces.”

Crowder said he recently read a case study about how COVID-19 spread from one person to another in China via an elevator button, and how because of that initial spread around 70 people became infected.

In addition to using his invention to open doors around town, Crowder said he also uses the corner of the ID holder to push buttons.

Crowder has worked in new product development for Schlumberger — an oilfield services company with an office in Lawrence — for the past three years, but this is the first time he’s developed his own invention for consumers. He worked on it after work and on the weekends.

photo by: Lauren Fox

James Crowder demonstrates opening a door with his invention: the AllBadge.

So far, Crowder has sold 173 AllBadges, mostly to businesses, he said. He needs to sell around 2,000 to break even, so he’s still “a ways from home,” he said. But Crowder’s product has only been on the market about a week. One AllBadge costs $8.

He originally bought a 3D printer for his invention, but ended up just using it to create prototypes of his designs. He sent his final design to a manufacturer to be produced.

Crowder said he spent a lot of time testing the polycarbonate plastic he ended up using for his product, as well as different geometrical layouts, so as to determine the optimal design for strength and durability while still remaining lightweight.

Crowder believes that combined with hand washing and mask usage, the AllBadge will help keep workers stay safe.

“I want to mitigate the dangers and ease the anxieties that are rampant in the work place right now,” he said.