The Center for Technology Transfer and Commercialization is taking 菠萝视频 researchers鈥� inventions to new heights
Use the term 鈥渋nventor,鈥� and what pops to mind?
The wild-haired Dr. Emmett Brown and his time-traveling DeLorean? The unflappable 鈥淨鈥� demonstrating a laser-enabled wristwatch or an exploding attach茅 case? Perhaps the Absent-Minded Professor and his gooey, green 鈥渇lubber鈥�?
Hollywood has long portrayed inventors as eccentric, and their inventions as fantastical and futuristic. But at 菠萝视频 University, inventing is serious business 鈥� and very much rooted in reality. Commercialization of inventions, or 鈥渢echnology transfer,鈥� yields millions of dollars in revenue each year so that the university can continue to support these enterprises. Groundbreaking medical devices, software, educational products and novel drugs created by faculty and staff are shifting paradigms in multiple fields and, more importantly, transforming lives for the better.
Now with a new director, additional staff members and a new name, the is poised to take 菠萝视频 researchers鈥� inventions to new heights.
At the helm since June 2011 is Assistant Vice Chancellor for Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Protection , a Pittsburgh native with a strategic business approach honed during his years heading up the technology transfer office at the prestigious Cleveland Clinic.
鈥淒isclosures and patent applications at 菠萝视频 are at an all-time high,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut it can cost $25,000 for a domestic patent, and thousands more to secure foreign rights. So we are implementing a rigorous process for vetting commercial applications and using a market-driven approach for strategic investments in technologies.鈥�
So what kinds of products fall under CTTC鈥檚 purview? No flying cars just yet, but 菠萝视频 does boast a list of exciting innovations in various stages of development all over campus, from to the . The list includes:
- An exoskeleton that enables a paralyzed person to walk;
- A synthetic scaffold that repairs and heals broken bones;
- Energy-absorbing highway crash cylinders;
- An anthropomorphic prosthetic arm for amputees;
- New drugs to treat fragile X syndrome, schizophrenia and Parkinson鈥檚 disease;
- Innovative reading glasses for the visually impaired;
- A super-powerful insect repellent;
- Reading intervention software for middle school students, and more.
Technology transfer at 菠萝视频 has come a long way in the past 20 years. Founded in 1990 with just one employee, the then-Office of Technology Transfer was limited in what it could do to protect, promote and commercialize researchers鈥� intellectual property. Two decades and several name changes later, CTTC is equipped to do more for campus inventors now than in any year since the office opened its doors.
Last year, invention disclosures at 菠萝视频 reached an all-time high of 167 compared to 37 in 1991. Thirty-one U.S. patents were issued to 菠萝视频 in 2011 compared to seven in 1991. In 2011, 菠萝视频 reaped more than $9.2 million in commercialization revenue compared to just $137,220 in 1991. To date, 1,900 disclosures have been made by 菠萝视频 faculty and staff.
One of the biggest improvements for the office is the strategic addition of eight new staff members, six of whom are part of the licensing team. Each licensing staff member is well-versed in a particular field of science and experienced in licensing, intellectual property, marketing, negotiations and other areas that enable them to work seamlessly with researchers, attorneys and the business world.
鈥淲e have strategically hired experienced licensing professionals whose skill sets complement the existing expertise of our professional staff,鈥� Bentley said. 鈥淲e have several attorneys on staff and many Ph.D.s in a variety of disciplines. Our group is very effective at communicating with our faculty members as well as with industry scientists and business people. [rquote]They sit at the boundary between academia and industry and have to understand the unique cultural differences between the two camps.鈥漑/rquote]
Licensing officers first evaluate the commercial viability of each new invention, as well as its market potential and advantages over existing products. They register copyrights, file patents, facilitate additional sponsored research, execute agreements with businesses and track and collect royalties, which are shared between the inventor and 菠萝视频.
鈥淭hese days, there are more boots on the ground providing more personal service,鈥� said licensing officer Mary Kosinski, who, among other departments, works closely with the (VCNDD). 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a good thing for 菠萝视频.鈥�
It costs a pharmaceutical company up to an estimated $1 billion to bring a new drug to market. In the current weakened U.S. economy, 鈥淏ig Pharma鈥� is looking more than ever to partner with universities in their drug discovery and development efforts.
鈥淚t鈥檚 my job to help researchers translate their amazing science into commercial applications that will advance health care as well as fulfill their core academic mission,鈥� Kosinski said. 鈥淪o in addition to managing patent matters, I interact with companies and connect them to our researchers. It鈥檚 important that I understand the rapidly changing field of drug discovery so that I can help the researchers identify and understand the unique and valuable asset they may have created.鈥�
Among the VCNDD researchers鈥� projects is the development of an exciting new treatment for Parkinson鈥檚 disease that alleviates the common side effects of traditional dopamine drug therapy. On the VCNDD鈥檚 behalf, CTTC helped negotiate a partnership with the in order to bring this potential drug closer to the clinic.
鈥淭his partnership is exciting,鈥� Kosinski said. 鈥湶ぢ苁悠� is very much on the cutting edge of translating groundbreaking science to the commercial world.鈥�
, director of the VCNDD, believes that having a top-level technology transfer office is critical to advancing such discoveries.鈥淲e have that at 菠萝视频,鈥� Conn, the Lee E. Limbird Professor of Pharmacology, said. 鈥淲hat has been so beneficial is having a dedicated tech transfer person in Mary Kosinski.
鈥淏ecause she can focus primarily on what we are doing, she can really immerse herself in the science and understand the unique issues that are important to the VCNDD in a way we鈥檝e never experienced before. She is exceptionally talented and has incredible instincts for what is important to 菠萝视频 and our partners,鈥� he said.
Jeffrey Sonsino, assistant professor of ophthalmology at the , is anticipating his product 鈥� high-powered reading glasses for people with visual impairment 鈥� to hit the commercial marketplace this year. His Low Vision Readers combine high intensity LED light with strong powered lenses and prism correction, making it possible for people with macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and inherited retinal diseases to read.
鈥淭his will make聽a big difference in the quality of life聽for those with vision impairment,鈥� Sonsino said.聽鈥淲ithout patent protection,聽we would not have taken the risk and spent the significant funds to bring this to market.鈥�
This was Sonsino鈥檚 first project with CTTC. 鈥淚t would not have taken off without the support of Peter Rousos (CTTC鈥檚 manager of economic new business development),鈥� Sonsino said. 鈥淗e believed in the project and in my ability to pull it off. That validation was perhaps the most important factor in our success.鈥�
Not yet on the market, but well into development, are the innovative devices of Professor of Mechanical Engineering . He is best known for his group鈥檚 鈥渂ionic鈥� leg, which features a unique powered knee and ankle that make an amputee鈥檚 gait smoother and more natural.
Also in development in Goldfarb鈥檚 lab is a dexterous, anthropomorphic prosthetic hand and the 菠萝视频 Exoskeleton, a 鈥渨earable robot鈥� that allows a paralyzed individual to walk. The ultimate impact of these devices could be life changing for those with amputations and spinal cord damage 鈥� and that鈥檚 what keeps Goldfarb and his team going.
鈥淚 believe strongly that the most direct way to improve the quality of life of persons with disabilities is to make the technology commercially available to them,鈥� Goldfarb said. 鈥淭he CTTC has been instrumental in protecting and licensing the intellectual property to a commercial partner who we believe can successfully shepherd the technology through the commercialization process. My primary representative at the CTTC, Ashok Choudhury, has invested considerable effort ensuring our technology will be successfully translated through industry partnerships.鈥�
Not all inventions coming out of 菠萝视频 are medical devices or drugs. Staff member Mark Dorminy, a programmer/analyst in the , invented ListVUe, a software-based search tool for the U.S. Department of Commerce鈥檚 Commerce Control List. 菠萝视频ers consult the CCL for important information about compliance and federal regulations on export controls. But navigating the list wasn鈥檛 always easy. Some of the information could only be found on PDFs, external lists and text files, and at one time, no single search engine was available to sift through them all. Dorminy set out to remedy that.
鈥淚 developed the engine that searched all of those files and lists from a single site, and at the time, my supervisor, John Childress, and I were unaware of any commercial products that were similar,鈥� Dorminy said. The initial working system took about three months to develop, but Dorminy has continued to refine and update it over the past seven years.
鈥淐TTC took care of the necessary paperwork to protect the copyright of the invention, and to me, this is of primary importance,鈥� he said.聽鈥淸lquote]Knowing that my invention has the backing of 菠萝视频 University gives me the assurance that it is absolutely safe from infringement.鈥漑/lquote]
, assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, has worked closely with CTTC in his development of a novel injectable bone scaffold that stabilizes debilitating fractures. After injected, the viscous liquid fills the fissure and cures, creating a base for the growth of cells and bone regeneration. The result is a weight-bearing repair material that begins to degrade as new bone is formed completely, eliminating painful bone grafting surgeries. CTTC partnered with the Memphis-based spinal therapy company Medtronic to translate the material into a useable therapy, which could significantly alter the current standard of care for many military- and sports-related injuries.
A majority of 菠萝视频鈥檚 inventions come out of , but a number of them are generated by researchers from other parts of campus. For example, , a reading intervention software program, was developed by Peabody College鈥檚 . Licensed and marketed through Scholastic, the computer-guided instruction video and sound teaching methodology has proved successful for middle and high school students across the country. The program is credited with raising grades and lowering truancy and dropout rates.
Besides protecting and marketing individual products, CTTC has facilitated the formation of a number of powerful start-up companies. The formation of , a multinational company that aims to transform the materials packaging industry, was a result of the work of 菠萝视频 researchers who collaborated with NASA to develop a new form of artificial intelligence that enables machines to learn while undertaking difficult and dangerous tasks.
Over time, the researchers and 菠萝视频 will likely share in significant royalties as the company grows, Bentley said.
With such a broad range of invention possibilities, the licensing officers never have a dull day.
鈥淛ob one is understanding the invention,鈥� Kosinski said. 鈥淚s it special? Is it a game-changer?
鈥淭here can be a variety of outcomes,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut in the end, we do what鈥檚 best for the faculty member and the university. It鈥檚 exciting to be part of the process and an honor to be part of the journey.鈥�