Archive for October, 2008

Opure: Safe Handling of Drinking Water

October 30, 2008 at 1:11 pm · Filed under Uncategorized ·Tagged , ,

Safe drinking water is a major issue in most developing countries (4 million people die worldwide every year due to water related diseases) where improvements in its use, management and quality are greatly needed.

Marie-Claude Asselin, an undergraduate student at Université de Montréal’s School of Industrial Design, came up with a new design of the traditional jar as her final-year project: Opure.

Opure keeps clean drinking water during the whole daily task; by ensuring safe handling of drinking water from its source to consumption. There is no contamination when being filled and it protects the water from contamination during transportation and storage. Finally, Opure is used directly by end-users, helping them adopt good habits. Futhermore, since it is not a purifier, so there are no filters to change.

Interested in working with us on this project? We’re currently seeking an organization to finish its development and to distribute it.

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Portfolio Update: Oct. 2008

October 27, 2008 at 7:53 pm · Filed under MRI, Materials, Medical, Photonic, Software, data processing, image and video ·Tagged , , , , , , ,

As usual, we welcome your comments and feedback.
You can also contact us if you wish further information.

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Healthcare technologies: transforming ideas into innovations

October 9, 2008 at 6:59 pm · Filed under Materials, Medical ·Tagged , , , ,

From October 3rd to October 10th were held in Montreal the Entretiens Jacques Cartier 2008.
We participated in the “Healthcare technologies Seminar” and presented four of our projects.

1 – Fast, Low Temp Sterilization
We propose a set of technologies of know-how enabling the development of fast, effective and low temperature sterilization equipments for medical instruments (heat sensitive, catheters, etc.). We are seeking financing and industry partners to support commercial deployment of these uniques patented technologies and expertise.

2 – Spasticity measurement device
Resent clinical scales used to estimate spasticity, a neurogical symptom, have questionable validity, inconsistent reliability and are subjective. We offer the first clinical device for a valid, reliable, and objective measurement of spasticity. The technology is currently available for exclusive or non-exclusive licensing to a medical/rehabilitation technology company that will develop the technology into a marketable device or integrate it into an existing one.

3 – Vascular phantom
There is a need for anthropomorphic flow phantoms that allow in vitro investigation of vascular diseases such as stenoses and abdominal aortic aneurysms. We offer a patent pending multimodality imaging phantom with superior caracteristics that fill this need. Univalor is seeking an exclusive or an non-exclusive license agreement with a company in the medical imaging market.

4 – Visual Cortical Implant
For the first time worldwide, we present a miniaturized electronic device providing all sightless people, with hope of functional vision.

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Interested in identyfing design defects in software?

October 7, 2008 at 5:30 pm · Filed under Software, Technology Transfer ·Tagged , ,

We are looking for early adopters for testing a platform that detects design defects in object oriented applications (existing or in development).

This platform was initiated by professor Yann-Gaël Guéhéneuc from École Polytechnique de Montréal and Université de Montréal. It targets java based programs but can be extend to C# and C++. This platform (called Ptidej) allows for quickly identifying design defects patterns such as blob, spaghetti code, etc. when such defects can lead to reduce the performances of applications and eventually malfunctioning, requiring then major corrections.

Ptidej has the following characteristics:
• It is fast and can be used within any development step;
• It is reliable and the user can define the sensibility of detection; and
• It can be upgrated since it provides a language allowing any user to define a cutsomized pattern detection.

In term of uses, this technology can be used for:
• Controlling the development of an application;
• Assessing the performances of an application prior to its deployment;
• Validating an application developed by a third party; and/or
• As a management tool for managers (hiring process, training, self-training).

Yann-Gael Guéhéneuc and his team are currently working on 1. Improving the tool and 2. Suggesting some particular routes for correcting indentified defects.

While there is still basic research involved, the goal is not academic. Depending on the feedback gathered we are seeking to deploy this platform into the market. On a short term, and considering the work to be done in order to stabilize the current version of Ptidej as well as extending its capabilities, we are considering applying for a technology maturation grant from MDEIE in January 2009. While feedback from potential users is instrumental to such application, we will also be looking for commercial partners, angels and/or entrepreneurs sharing the same views as us with Ptidej’s potential.

We encourage you to download the test version of Ptidej here Ptidej and relay this opportunity in your network

We look forward to hearing from you

Didier

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New Issued Patent: Portable and Low Cost SPR Biosensor

October 2, 2008 at 5:09 pm · Filed under Materials, Medical, Optics, Photonic ·Tagged , , ,

One of our patent application has just been successfully reviewed by the USPTO and is now allowed for issuance as a patent: a new SPR biosensor developed by Prof. Skorobogatiy at Ecole Polytechnique de Montréal.

Prof. Skorobogatiy proposes the miniaturization of waveguide-based SPR biosensors. This miniature biosensors operate from IR to visible wavelengths while providing comparable sensitivity to its laboratory predecessors.
The first challenge overcome to achieve portability was to satisfy phase matching condition between waveguide mode and plasmon by employing a multilayer photonic crystal waveguide with a low refractive index core. This enables tuning of the effective refractive index of the Gaussian-like core mode anywhere from zero to the core dielectric. Phase matching with plasmon at any desirable wavelength is achieved using any material combination for the waveguide.

For more details about the technology:
Read the press release published in 2006 in Nature Photonics

About Univalor’s IP Portfolio:
Between 2001 and 2008, about 520 discoveries arising from Université de Montréal and its affiliated institutions have been evaluated by Univalor and more than 900 patents applications have been filed. Univalor currently has approximately 265 patents and patents pending in its portfolio.

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