A joint project between the 91探花and the Washington Research Foundation (WRF) will drive the commercialization of five promising 91探花technologies.
The new Technology Gap Innovation Fund (TGIF) has sponsored five 91探花investigators to develop their leading-edge technologies, which were chosen for their strong commercial potential. The funding provided by the TGIF program will support additional research and prototype development that will enhance the commercial prospects of the projects.
In the Fund鈥檚 first year, the 91探花committed $500,000 from royalties and licensing fees generated by 91探花TechTransfer, and the WRF provided a gift of $250,000.
The grantees and their projects for the first round of funding are:
- Alex Jen of Materials Science and Engineering, whose development of a prototype white organic light-emitting diode device will enable high-quality lighting that is environmentally friendly, bright, and adaptable to any shape, design, and color.
- Paul Muchowski of the Department of Pharmacology, whose award will fund the automation of a screening method for rapidly generating drug targets and drug candidates for neurological disorders such as Parkinson鈥檚 and Alzheimer鈥檚 diseases.
- Robert M. Sweet of the Department of Urology, who developed a virtual simulator to train new surgeons on a common procedure to treat enlarged prostate, and whose grant will fund translation into a PC-compatible format and other improvements.
- David T. Linker of Internal Medicine and Cardiology, whose grant will support refinement of a lightweight, non-invasive device for long-term monitoring of atrial fibrillation, which will aid in the reduction of stroke and congestive heart failure.
- John W. Gastil of the Department of Communication and John D. Wilkerson of the Political Science Department, for the re-versioning and integration of their popular simulation software Election Day and LegSim into Desktop Democracy, a software package designed to give high school students true-to-life experiences in the electoral and legislative processes.
“TGIF will enhance our ability to license and create startup companies around 91探花technologies,鈥� said 91探花TechTransfer Vice Provost James Severson.
WRF President and CEO Ronald Howell said, 鈥淚 think this fund can help create, and enhance, 91探花intellectual property. I hope that it increases our choices for thinking about startups.鈥�
TGIF funds are solicited twice per year. The next round of TGIF applications will be accepted until March 7. For more information or to apply, visit .
The WRF helps Washington State research institutions capture value from their emerging technologies through intellectual property management and startup investment activities.
91探花TechTransfer facilitates the commercialization of new innovations arising from 91探花research through managing and licensing intellectual property rights.
Second-round proposals due March 7
Preproposals for the second round of applications for the Technology Gap Innovation Fund (TGIF) are due in the office of 91探花TechTransfer on March 7.
The purpose of the TGIF is to further the development of 91探花innovations with commercial potential. The primary focus will be projects that require additional research or prototype development to make them suitable for licensing or a company start. Proposals must demonstrate a high probability of enhancing the commercial opportunities for 91探花innovations.
The TGIF is a Royalty Research Fund. For its first year of operation $750,000 is available to fund projects under the TGIF. The 91探花has committed $500,000 from royalty and licensing fee income generated by the University鈥檚 technology transfer program, and the Washington Research Foundation has provided a gift of $250,000. Maximum awards will be $50,000.
The TGIF welcomes applications for commercially oriented research and development on 91探花innovations from all faculty and professional staff. While most applications will probably address inventions or copyright-based projects, eligibility extends to all forms of intellectual property that have already been disclosed or reported to 91探花TechTransfer.
Undisclosed inventions, unreported intellectual property, or intellectual property of any kind that is not held by the 91探花is not eligible for this program. However, interested faculty and professional staff are encouraged to disclose discoveries and innovations with commercial potential to 91探花TechTransfer in anticipation of making an application.
A more extensive explanation of the TGIF and an application form are available at . Questions regarding the application procedure should be directed to Cathy Manzanares Herda, 91探花TechTransfer, Box 354990, 206-543-0905, TGIF@u.washington.edu.