UCC gears up for Invention of the Year award

Life

A number of world-class inventions are vying for this year’s UCC Invention of the Year award sponsored by Purdy Lucey Intellectual Property.

The finalists will be exptected to follow in the path of recent commercial successes fostered by UCC’s Office of Technology Transfer. In 2011 alone, 65 inventions were disclosed, with 23 initial patent applications and almost 20 technologies licensed to third party organisations. There were three successful spin-outs from on campus projects.

With this commercial focus, the Office assembled a panel comprising industry experts, scientists, experienced entrepreneurs and investors to review technologies and inventions under development at the University.

This year’s shortlisted innovations range from new probiotic strains which significantly reduce stress, anxiety and pain; software that enables accelerated data services for satellite systems at lower costs and increased speed and quality; semiconductor substrate formation; and therapeutic innovations like the identification of molecules for treating multi-drug resistant Cystic Fibrosis infections.

"We are very excited by the inventions which have been put forward for this year’s Invention of the Year. The quality of the IP and standard of the applicants this year is excellent, and truly reaffirms UCC’s position as an innovation campus," said vice president for research and innovation at UCC and panel chair Prof Anita Maguire.

UCC’s approach to commercialisation has seen the conversion of research from the Tyndall National Institute and the BioInnovation Centre into viable business opportunities. In addition to supporting high potential technology start-ups, UCC provides support to entrepreneurs through its Ignite intensive training and mentoring programme.

The winner of the UCC Invention of the Year will be announced on Tuesday, 27 March.

TechCentral Reporters