Home › Monthly archive ›

July 2009

Mashavu: networked health solutions for people in Tanzania

Submitted by dave on Fri, 07/31/2009 - 10:37

Another cool innovation from NCIIA's Sustainable Vision program - the Mashavu healthcare system, created by a team at Penn State. Think Tanzania, where there's one doctor for every 50,000 people, meaning that many never see a doctor in their lives. Think technology: Biomedical diagnostic tools and a data entry system, operated by trained local villagers. The diagnostic system is connected to a network of doctors in the US, who can review the data and prescribe situation-appropriate medical treatment. In this video, team leader Khanjan Mehta describes the technology (clips provided by Cornell University's eClips program).

Khanjan talks more about Mashavu here.

 

Innovators Start Here!

Each year, the NCIIA helps faculty and students move their technology innovations along the path towards commercial reality. And each year, the faculty and student teams we support create innovations and businesses that make a positive difference in the world.

Get started!

Check your institution's membership status.

Not a member? Join NCIIA today!

Fund your project | Develop your venture | Build your network | Be recognized

Fund your project

Here's an example:

Mashavu: Networked Health Solutions for the Developing World (Sustainable Vision grant, 2008)

Grantee: Khanjan Mehta, Senior Research Associate, Pennsylvania State University

The challenge: one doctor for every 50,000 people in Tanzania.

The solution: A computer-based biomedical diagnostic devices and a networked system of trained local operators and doctors around the world.

Research shows: Locals are willing to purchase Mashavu stations and that local customers are willing to pay a small fee, thereby making Mashavu economically sustainable and creating a revenue stream.

 

We award $2 million in grants annually to our member institutions in three major categories:


Sustainable Vision grants

More about the grant.

Next deadline: October 16, 2009


Course and Program grants

More about the grant.

Next deadlines: December 4, 2009 & May 7, 2010


E-Team grants

More about the grant.

Next deadlines: December 4, 2009 & May 7, 2010

 Questions? Got an idea you'd like to discuss? Contact jkjackson@nciia.org.

Develop your venture - and your   entrepreneurial skills

We've helped more than 70 student teams become fully fledged, successful companies. You can see a list of these companies here.

Some of the entrepreneurs we've worked with describe their work and how NCIIA helped them:

 

 

Christie Chatterley, from the University of Colorado-Bulder's High Efficiency Stove Microenterprise team, describes what she learned from working with NCIIA:

 

 

Since 1995, NCIIA has helped its grantees launch more than 70 companies. Take a look at these here.

We provide the training, support and resources you need to advance your idea or venture.

Start here, with our entrepreneurship workshops. To learn more about ways NCIIA can help you advance your idea or venture, contact Mary Secor at msecor@nciia.org.Invention to Venture

Do you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? I2V is a one-day workshop on the basics of technology entrepreneurship, with presentations by successful entrepreneurs in your area.

Learn more, and find a workshop near you.  

Organize your own workshop

We can help you - with funding and logistics - organize a customized entrepreneurship or innovation workshop for your faculty and students (eg: with a specific focus, such as biomedical, greentech, etc). Contact Mary Secor at msecor@nciia.org.

 

Advanced Invention to Venture

So you’ve got a great idea for a venture. Now what? If you’re serious about moving your venture forward, AI2V is for you. You’ll spend four intense days receiving instruction, doing exercises, practicing pitching and interacting with qualified coaches to develop and articulate a strategic plan for your venture.

Learn more and find a workshop near you. 

Venture Well

Next deadline: December 11, for selection of the 2010 Venture Well cohort group.

Venture Well provides venture development and seed investment to start-ups that will change the world. Venture Well supports ventures that are emerging from U.S. universities and colleges and that are ready for incorporation and development.

We provide advice and funding to ventures that offer scalable, market-oriented solutions to health and environmental problems. 

Contact Joseph Steig at jsteig@steig.com.

Build your network

Each year, the leading thinkers in technology innovation and entrepreneurship in higher education gather at the NCIIA Annual Conference to share iceas, curricular models, venture development experiences, research and personal and professional experiences.

We invite you to build your network with NCIIA.

Register for the conference today!

2009 Annual Conference attendees said:

Everything I saw was planned and executed well; I can't wait til next year.

It was very useful in terms of sharing ideas.

14th Annual NCIIA Conference

San Francisco Hilton, March 25-27, 2010

Register for the conference today!

Program highlights

  • More than 70 presentations, workshops and panels from leading faculty innovators
  • Annual March Madness of the Mind showcase of student innovations, to be held at the Exploratorium.
  • Venture Well Forum, providing advice and networking to select student ventures
  • Olympus Innovation Awards ceremony and luncheon

 

Gain recognition for your work

Each year, Oympus and the NCIIA recognize faculty excellence and innovation in higher education.

The 2009 Olympus Innovation Awards winners talk about their work and their awards.

 

Nominate yourself or a colleague for the 2010 Olympus Innovation Awards.

Deadline: Nominations close November 20, 2009.

Nominate here.

Awards are made in these categories:

  • The Olympus Innovation Award ($10,000) recognizes the work of an outstanding faculty member in invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship education
  • The Olympus Lifetime of Educational Innovation Award ($2,500) recognizes the sustained contributions of an outstanding faculty member who has devoted his or her career to innovative education
  • The Olympus Emerging Educational Leader Award ($1,000) recognizes the work of a faculty member who, early in his or her career, shows outstanding leadership promise in the field of invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship education.

Previous winners are not eligible for re-nomination. However, if you were nominated in the past but not selected, we encourage you to apply again. Several past winners were nominated more than once!

Log in to nominate here (you may need to open an account. Once logged in, click on 'enter a competition.')

 

The awards will be given to faculty nominees from NCIIA member institutions. Olympus will present the awards at the NCIIA's 14th Annual Conference in San Francisco on March 26, 2010.

To become a member of NCIIA or to renew your membership, click here.

Cool technology file: Solar ivy's GROWth

Submitted by dave on Tue, 07/28/2009 - 15:46

Former E-Team GROW's solar ivy technology is flourishing. The wind and solar power generating photovoltaic leaves system, which can be easily integrated on the side of a building to produce energy, was featured in the MoMa Exhibition: Design and the Elastic Mind and was a concept design for a five-star luxury hotel in Zayed Bay, Abu Dhabi.

Read more about GROW's growth at Inhabitat.com.

 

More about Lab-on-a-Stick, 2009 BMEidea winners

Submitted by dave on Fri, 07/24/2009 - 08:55

Stanford University's  Lab-on-a-Stick team talks more about their BMEidea award-winning innovation, here.

 

Entrepreneurship training for 'Base of the Pyramid' ventures

Submitted by dave on Wed, 07/22/2009 - 11:32

NCIIA presents essential training to move your 'base of the pyramid' venture ahead!

Register now for our new Advanced Invention to Venture workshop for ventures that focus on customers in developing nations. The workshop will be held in Cambridge, MA, August 16-19. This intensive, four-day workshop, created especially for 'base of the pyramid' ventures, will followed by eight weeks of weekly, one-hour teleconferences or strategy sessions with coaches and mentors.

Innovative Probe Design for Adaptive Metrology in Manufacturing Environments (InsituTec)

in

University of North Carolina, 2002 - $17,500

Quality control is a key element in the industrial production process. Historically, methods to inspect the geometry of manufactured parts have consisted of either single parameter probes or Coordinate Measuring Machines (CMMs), which require parts to be removed from manufacturing process. The InsituTec E-Team developed a state of the art precision instrument that is ten times faster than traditional methods, yet comes with comparable accuracy, lower cost, and the added advantage of implementation within the manufacturing process. The probing system rapidly measures 0.125" to 1.0" diameter holes, including outer and inner diameter holes. The system's design scales to encompass small and large circular features and is capable of measuring cylindricity, surface finish, and form error in real time.

The team completed its first phase of product development with support from a December 2001 Advanced E-Team grant. With the initial grant, the team furthered product development, established InsituTec Inc. and filed for intellectual property rights. A mix of sales and research grants totaling $560k has made the young company profitable, and they anticipate an 80% to 100% increase in revenue in 2007.

ChemoTemp

in

Rowan University, 2002 - $14,750

An adverse effect of chemotherapy is that it lowers patients' white and red blood cell production as it attacks their rapidly dividing cancer cells. Progressive reduction in red blood cell counts leads to anemia, while reduction in white blood cells leaves them susceptible to infection. In the event of infection, mortality rates for chemotherapy patients can reach as high as 70% if not promptly treated with antibiotics. Thus, quick detection of infection is critical to maintaining chemotherapy patients' health. Because fever is an indicator of infection, chemotherapy patients and their caretakers must monitor patients' temperatures to ensure patient health. When fever is detected, patients require prompt medical attention.

The ChemoTemp E-Team developed a fever monitoring and reporting device for chemotherapy patients. The device accurately measures patient temperature, identifies fever and risk of fever, and reports fever conditions to the patient and/or caregiver. Patients can wear ChemoTemp comfortably for long periods of time.

The team consisted of twenty-three undergraduate students from the Junior/Senior Engineering Clinic course, including students from electrical and computer engineering, mechanical engineering, and life sciences students. These students worked with a team of twelve graduate students and the clinic course professor.

A Microfabricated Compound Eye for Intravascular Optical Detection

in

Stony Brook University, 2002 - $17,100

The novel compound eye device was designed for the detection of incident radiant energy. Modeled after the compound eye found in insects, this biomimetic system has the capability of generating a high-resolution mosaic from the simultaneous detection of light from many sources. The particular application presented here is for the improvement of angioscopy, the imaging of blood vessel walls by use of a fiber optic scope. Angioscopy has enabled physicians to better understand the pathological mechanisms of atherosclerotic disease, to evaluate failing vein bypass grafts, and to assess angioplasty effectiveness. Each year, 1.5 million intravascular procedures are performed, and endoscopic purchases total $650 million with an annual growth rate of 6-7%. However, available angioscopy catheters are unable to provide quantitative details, often making their use secondary to angiography, a simpler technique. By projecting images from several polymer waveguides onto a photodiode array, the compound eye device calculates distance and measurements from multiple perspectives. This improvement makes angioscopy a viable alternative to existing technologies. The innovative features are the small size, fabrication method, ability to provide quantitative dimensions, and application to intravascular imaging.

Bringing Unique Nanosatellite Solutions Down To Earth

in

Case Western Reserve University, 2002 - $20,000

Nanostar Technologies is a startup company with a unique nanosatellite-based technology developed at Taylor University in Upland, IN. This grant focused on developing a prototype that can transfer small amounts of data from remote locations on a non-time critical basis. The team's unit was equipped to sense the tank level of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and report the information to an LPG distributor. This enabled distributors to optimize their operations efficiently and save money on their primary costs of doing business (gasoline, labor and truck maintenance) by cutting down on the number of deliveries made each year.

New Design Painting

in

Lehigh University, 2002 - $13,600

A favorite art activity for many children is painting with tempera paints and brushes. Although kids enjoy the creative and fun exercise, they often make a mess when painting. To address this problem, the New Design Painting E-Team analyzed existing paintbrushes. From their research, they created the No-Dip-Paintstick. The No-Dip-Paintstick is a revolutionary, self-contained art utensil that eliminates the need for separate pots of paint, water for rinsing, and multiple brushes. The transparent handle of the brush contains a soft cartridge of non-toxic, washable paint. The handle's transparency allows the user to see the color of paint held within. To release the paint, the user squeezes the brush and activates the cartridge. Paint flows from the cartridge and into a funnel which controls the paint flow onto the brush bristles. The eight brushes in the No-Dip-Paintstick set have synthetic, straight nylon bristles.