Isis Innovation, the technology transfer company for the University of Oxford (UK), announced that researchers there have discovered a new way to produce methanol from an industrial waste chemical, glycerol. Currently, 90% of methanol is produced from natural gas, and the new process offers an alternative that does not rely on fossil fuels. According to Professor Edman Tsang, who invented the process, “around 350,000 tons of glycerol are incinerated in the U.S. each year, and converting this to methanol gives you a portable store of energy, and potentially an economically viable new biofuel business.” Advantages of the new process are that it is direct — not requiring multiple costly processing steps — and works at a low temperature and low pressure. “In industry, temperature costs money, but high pressure is even more expensive. This process operates under readily achievable, mild conditions of 100 degrees C and 20 bar of pressure,” Tsang reports. Although glycerol is used in foods and personal care products, there has until now been no large-scale industrial demand for the chemical. Earlier this year, Tsang identified a precious metal that efficiently converts glycerol to methanol. The conversion process is “clean” in that the catalyst is very selective, producing only methanol with no byproducts requiring additional processing, he explains. Isis Innovation has patented the technology, and is welcoming inquiries from commercial partners. Go to: Royal Society of Chemistry

Posted November 5th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

TranSecurity, LLC, a spinoff out of the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI), is developing a novel technology called DriveVision Pro that will monitor commercial drivers to improve performance feedback and provide collision warnings. The system aims to reduce the likelihood of accidents involving the more than two million large commercial trucks currently traveling on American highways. It monitors the environment around a vehicle and creates a log of vehicle performance, road conditions, and the actions of other vehicles, which can be reviewed by companies to determine if their drivers present a high crash risk or cost risk. Data collected can also be used to provide feedback and further training to commercial drivers. The company was established in May of 2006 and is a member of Virginia Tech’s KnowledgeWorks business accelerator. It has been awarded a Department of Transportation contract based on its technologies, which were licensed from Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties, Inc., the university’s non-profit tech transfer and licensing arm. Go to: PR Web

Posted November 5th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

If you had the opportunity to exchange the potential of a lucrative long-term royalty stream for a huge windfall right now, would you take it? An increasing number of TTOs and the organizations that support them are entertaining just such a proposition, and quite a few of them are opting for the sure money. Experts say royalty monetization agreements are becoming increasingly sophisticated to suit all the parties involved. And while royalty buyers clearly favor innovations with established revenue streams, they are beginning to take an interest in earlier stage innovations as well, particularly in the medical device and pharmaceutical arenas. Both the frequency and size of these transactions are accelerating. “From 2000 to 2003 there were a total of about $500 million in royalty monetizations. In the last four years, from 2004 to 2007, there have been $5 billion in royalty monetizations — a 10-fold increase,” says Louis Berneman, former head of the University of Pennsylvania’s TTO who is now a consultant to New York City-based royalty buyer Paul Capital Healthcare. “I believe royalty monetization is going to increasingly become a post-license value-creating mechanism because institutions frankly can do far better by monetizing a portion of a future royalty stream, and then reinvesting those dollars to recruit new faculty for start-up programs, build out new labs, or launch translational research,” he says. A detailed article examining trends in monetization deals and deal structures appears in the November issue of Technology Transfer Tactics. For subscription information, CLICK HERE.

Posted November 5th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Scientists with EMPA, a Swiss federal research lab, have developed a novel sensor intended to help doctors monitor broken bones as they grow back together. Depending on the values of the forces measured by the sensor, they can decide whether the healing process is progressing normally or whether there is a danger that the fracture or implants might be overloaded. The new device is entirely mechanical with no electronic components. Until now doctors have used expensive and complicated electronic monitors which reported results via radio signals. According to EMPA’s Felix Gattiker, the electronics-free sensor — whose data is read out by an ultrasonic scanner — offers many advantages, including cost savings. The device is a small, hollow spiral which sits on the bone implant together with a fluid reservoir. When the implant is subject to compression or tension, the level of fluid in the spiral changes. The resulting data allows the proper mechanical loading on the implant to be calculated. If successfully commercialized, the monitor will be considerably less expensive than current technologies, its developers say. The next step is animal tests of its accuracy, and EMPA scientists are also considering making the sensor from biodegradable materials, in which case it would simply dissolve away in the patient’s body after completing its task — making surgery for removal unnecessary. Go to: ScienceDaily

Posted November 5th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

French Ambassador to the U.S. Pierre Vimont (L) receives gift subscription from Dr. Leslie Norins, publisher of Technology Transfer Tactics.

During his recent visit to Naples, Florida (our headquarters city), the Ambassador of France to the United States, Pierre Vimont, was presented with several gift subscriptions to Technology Transfer Tactics by Publisher Leslie Norins, MD, PhD. The gifts were both to honor the occasion and this year’s Nobel Prize awarded to French scientist Luc Montagnier, co-discoverer of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). In his remarks to a group of local executives, Ambasador Vimont touched upon the important role of multinational technology cooperation in extricating countries from the current worldwide economic crisis. He also praised Europe’s greatly accelerating expenditures and research into “green technology,” while also warning that, if overdone, a “bubble” could be produced in that sector.

Posted November 5th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

The California Institute of Technology is suing six electronic retail giants it says are illegally profiting off the school’s patented technology used in today’s digital cameras. The complaint, filed Oct. 15 in federal court in Tyler, TX, accuses Canon USA, Sony Corp., Nikon Inc., Olympus America, Panasonic Corp. and Samsung Electronics Co. of infringing on Caltech patents “… by making, using, selling … without authority, products that fall within the scope of the claims of the Caltech patents” Caltech also alleges that the companies knew of the patents, but have “nonetheless engaged in the infringing conduct.” The willful infringement claim carries the potential for treble damages if Caltech succeeds in court. In a statement, Caltech said it “is committed to guarding its intellectual property and is hopeful that the defendants will work with Caltech to promptly reach an agreement respecting Caltech’s intellectual property rights.” The suit alleges that the companies are infringing on six U.S. patents covering active-pixel technology, which uses image sensors on a chip to reduced “noise,” resulting in clearer images. The camera-on-a-chip technology was developed by Eric R. Fossum — a former Caltech researcher who went on to commercialize the innovation — in the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which is managed by the school. “What we developed at JPL has become very useful technology for consumer applications, including cell phones,” Fossum says. The technology is now used in camera phones, digital SLR cameras, web cameras and high-speed motion capture cameras. After leaving Caltech, Fossum continued to develop the technology in private industry and is currently a consultant to Samsung, one of the companies Caltech sued. “It’s pretty clear Caltech owns certain intellectual property that was developed at JPL,” he said. “But any other arrangements are up to JPL.”

If Caltech prevails in the lawsuit, legal observers say the Pasadena school could reap a huge settlement, particularly in the willfulness charge is upheld. The suit alleges that the technology is included in nearly 70 commercial products, including popular cameras such as the Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT; the Nikon D300; Olympus E-3; Panasonic Lumix DMC-L10; and the Sony DSLR-A700. Go to: Pasadena Star-News

Posted October 29th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

We have reported previously on the hiring of serial technology entrepreneur Linden Rhoads as the University of Washington’s tech transfer leader. Rhoads was brought in to boost start-up activity and change a wide-held perception that the TTO there was bureaucratic, overprotective of its IP, and lacked a business-friendly atmosphere. In just a few months on the job, Rhoads is reportedly making big strides in stimulating an entrepreneurial culture and building bridges with investors and corporations. In a recent coup for the tech transfer program’s visibility, Rhoads met last week with former Vice President Al Gore, who is a now a venture partner with Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and serves in an advisory capacity with Apple and Google, to fill him in on UW’s new College of the Environment and its involvement in the state’s Cleantech Initiative.

Rhoads is also bringing in new blood to head up the university’s LaunchPad program to support start-ups. She recently announced the hiring Janis Machala, founder of Paladin Partners and former senior manager at Microsoft, Sun Microsystems, and Wang Laboratories. Machala starts work next week and will be helping UW’s licensing officers “to provide the best possible advice and help and networking for our researchers who have entrepreneurial plans,” says Rhoads. Part of the TTO’s improvement plan is to get involved with researchers further upstream in the innovation pipeline, she adds. Rather than merely reacting to incoming invention disclosures, “we want to get involved years before that point. We want to help [researchers] meet the right members of the industry and investor community.” To that end, Machala is starting an entrepreneurs-in-residence program, in which five or six entrepreneurs at a time will be matched with appropriate faculty members to give support and advice.

Rhoads says the VC community is responding to the culture change. “They’re really excited about the opportunity,” she comments. “They need personnel within tech transfer who are very informed and knowledgeable as to the investment profile that a given venture firm is interested in…. We can’t just have them ‘walk the halls.’ We have to call them when there’s an opportunity.” She also hinted at a relaxation of licensing terms, particularly regarding the rights to post-license improvements. “We’re trying to think less in terms of patents and more in the project sense,” she says. “Nobody has to be the intellectual property police.” Go to: Xconomy

Posted October 29th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Two upcoming audioconferences will offer expert, detailed guidance for tech transfer professionals on two area with different but equally significant potential to boost licensing revenues. Selling University IP In Cyberspace: Best Practices In Web-Based Marketing For Tech Transfer Professionals, being held November 20th from 1:00-2:30 p.m. eastern time, features to web marketing veterans — an SEO, SEM and website expert and an e-mail marketing guru. They’ll outline proven tactics and techniques to turn your website and electronic marketing efforts into valuable tools for building your TTO’s brand, generating leads, and getting your IP if front of more licensee “eyeballs” — so you can sign more deals. CLICK HERE for complete program and faculty details or to register.

Royalty Audits: Are You Getting What You Bargained For? is scheduled for December 18, from 1:00-2:30 p.m. eastern. In this how-to session, a leading audit expert will show you how to begin an audit program or bolster your existing efforts, and recoup tens of thousands — even millions — of dollars your university is rightfully due. You’ll gain a deeper understanding of the most common and hard-to-spot areas where under-reporting occurs, how the audit process works, and how to proceed once you’ve received the results and identified discrepancies. To register of for more information, CLICK HERE.

Posted October 29th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Audioconferences, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

An article published in the Journal of Accountancy offers some interesting reading for tech transfer and licensing professionals, as well as IP attorneys. Written by two experts in calculating infringement damages, the article lays out a methodology for arriving at appropriate royalty rates in damage award calculations, but the analysis can also be used in establishing valuations and negotiating rates. Authors Glenn S. Newman and Jeffrey N. Press, both with the Forensic & Litigation Services Practice at Parente Randolph, cited the 1970 New York district court decision in Georgia-Pacific v. United States Plywood Corp., as offering a good construct for calculating a reasonable royalty rate. The court outlined a 15-factor guide that nearly 30 years later remains the most commonly used methodology used by damage experts. Newman and Press provide a useful explanation of how to apply the methodology. Go to: Journal of Accountancy

Posted October 29th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

STC.UNM, the tech transfer arm of the University of New Mexico, signed an agreement with GeneThera, Inc. giving the firm an option to a worldwide license for a vaccine designed to significantly inhibit the carriage and shedding of the E. coli bacteria in cattle. The vaccine consists of certain strains of live attenuated E. coli bacteria created by Dr. Edgar Boedeker, internal medicine professor at UNM’s Health Sciences Center, and Dr. Chengru Zhu, formerly of UNM but now Chief of Environmental Microbiology in the Maryland Department of Health. Bacteria in the vaccine are easily cultured and harmless to humans and animals because the key virulence genes have been mutated by molecular approaches. The Centers for Disease Control estimates an annual incidence of 70,000 infections with E. coli O157, a virulent strain that is among those targeted by the vaccine. According to a UNM statement, vaccinated cattle will have a greatly diminished ability to carry and shed these bacteria, reducing illness related to contaminated meat and water sources. Ultimately, that will result is safer foods, reduced mortality and illness among consumers, and savings from reductions in costly meat recalls. GeneThera Chairman Tony Milici, MD, PhD, said the company intends to complete phase II trials of the vaccine within a year “and take the vaccine to market as soon as possible.” Milici cited recent studies documenting a heavy cost associated with E. coli 0157, including 70 deaths and more than $35 million in medical care and lost productivity. Go to: Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News

Posted October 29th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Technology developed by researchers at the Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T) significantly increases read rates, reduces read errors, and improves system coverage in RFID systems. The school is currently seeking partners to commercialize the patent pending technology, which eliminates RFID signal collision by employing two different innovations to adjust RFID reader power in response to interference levels. Developed by a research team led by Dr. Jagannathan Sarangapani, the technology uses distributed adaptive power control (DAPC) and probabilistic power control (PPC) schemes to adjust RFID reader power output in response to interference levels caused when multiple RFID readers try to read RFID tags and by RFID antennae in close proximity to each other. This interference, called signal collision, can result in lower read rates, higher read errors, and poor system coverage, which greatly reduce the efficiency and effectiveness of RFID systems. Go to: More RFID

Posted October 29th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

The lead scientists at the Roskamp Institute have created a for-profit company to speed the development of drugs for treating Alzheimer’s disease. The spinoff, Archer Pharmaceuticals, hopes to begin clinical trials by the end of this year. Sarasota, FL-based Roskamp is a research institute opened in 2003 to develop therapies targeting neurological diseases — primarily Alzheimer’s. Directors Michael Mullan and Fiona Crawford have led teams testing compounds to treat the condition and will leave their posts to focus on the start-up and commercialization of its lead drug candidates. Archer is a separate company that is leasing space and support from Roskamp, Crawford said. Mullan will be CEO and Crawford will serve as chief technical officer, but they will remain on Roskamp’s staff for now, she said. The new for-profit entity allows them to solicit the huge investments necessary to turn experimental drugs into medications on the market. Crawford estimated $25 million would be needed to run the first two rounds of trials, testing first the drug’s safety and then its efficacy. The launch represents a ray of hope in what has been a difficult year for potential Alzheimer’s treatments. Myriad Genetics dropped its drug Flurizan after a study — the biggest Alzheimer’s trial yet — showed it did not improve patients’ conditions. Wyeth and Elan released disappointing results for their drug bapineuzumab. But Archer’s most promising candidate works in a different way than those drugs, Crawford said. The institute’s research has focused on Nilvadipine, an existing drug for high blood pressure. In mice, the drug has been shown to reduce levels of a protein known as ß-amyloid, which accumulates in clumps in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. A small study by Japanese researchers has indicated that Nilvadipine staves off memory loss in humans, and a safety study in Ireland, backed by Roskamp and partners, found the drug had virtually no side effects in Alzheimer’s patients. Crawford said Archer’s lead compound, ARC029, is a different formulation of Nilvadipine. “ARC029 acts to lower the soluble forms of amyloid before they damage the brain’s neurons,” Mullan explained in a statement. “We believe that the soluble, rather than the deposited forms, are the real culprits in the disease, and so reducing them is our goal with this compound.” Last year, Mullan stated that an effective Alzheimer’s treatment is a matter of when, not if. Crawford echoed that on last week. “We are confident that the expertise and dedication of the Archer staff will lead to effective treatments for this terrible disease,” she said. Go to: Herald Tribune

Posted October 29th, 2008 by David Schwartz under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

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