June 2, 2005
Graduate student’s Web site searches UW technologies
UW TechTransfer’s Invention Licensing group recently unveiled a dynamic web tool that makes searching for UW technologies easier than ever.
The new Innovations tool is a Web site and searchable database that was created in response to a growing demand for information about UW technologies. The new tool makes it easy for interested investors and companies to view the wide array of technologies currently available for licensing. Technologies developed by UW researchers are frequently licensed and developed into new products and services for the marketplace. The Innovations tool was created by Chris Erdmann, a graduate student at the UW Information School.
The Innovations database contains nearly 150 technologies, ranging from automobile head restraint systems to virtual reality displays. The database can be accessed in multiple ways. Users can search by category (“ultrasound” or “biomaterials”), keyword (“enzyme”), or both. Or, users can browse technologies by category or UW department (Medicine or Engineering, for example). A browse or search returns a description page where users can find a non-confidential summary describing the innovation and its commercial potential.
Users interested in learning more about a particular technology can submit an e-form to connect directly with the corresponding technology managers at UW TechTransfer Invention Licensing.
Another feature allows interested parties to monitor innovations as they are added to the database via RSS feeds. RSS feeds are “live bookmarks” that connect the user directly to the Innovations database. For example, users interested in nanotechnology can elect to have all related innovations sent directly to their intranet or website as they become available for licensing.
And finally, a news search tool extracts UW-related stories from sites such as CNN, the National Institutes of Health, and the Puget Sound Business Journal, giving potential investors an idea of the UW’s regional, national, and international impact.
View the new Innovations tool on UW TechTransfer’s Web site: http://depts.washington.edu/uwinvent/Innovations/.
UW TechTransfer facilitates the commercialization of new innovations arising from UW research through managing and licensing intellectual property rights.
