Fiscal Year 14 Annual Report
Fiscal Year 14 Annual Report
Fiscal Year 14 Annual Report
THE OFFICE OF
TECHNOLOGY
MANAGEMENT
FISCAL 2014
ANNUAL REPORT
Message from the Vice President for Research 04
Five-Year History By Campus 05
Directors Message 06
Staff Contacts 22
The Ofce of Technology Management
FISCAL 2014 ANNUAL REPORT
TRANSFER (1217) RESEARCH (0811) IMPACT (1821)
CONTENTS
4 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Ofce of Technology Management Fiscal 2014 Annual Report
The Ofce of the
Vice President for
Research (OVPR)
advances the economic
development mission
of the University of
Illinois by elevating
ideas and innovations
into sustainable
technologies and
businesses. Our
innovation pipeline
provides a process and
platform for technology transfer, company formation, and,
inevitably we hope, start-up and licensee success.
The Ofces of Technology Management (OTMs) are
responsible for protecting and managing the Universitys
ideas and intellectual property. Through the leadership of
Nancy Sullivan and Jeremy Hollis in Chicago and Lesley
Millar-Nicholson in Urbana, the OTMs continue to nd
innovative ways to help students and faculty advance their
research discoveries, resulting in new technologies and
start-up companies.
Demonstrating this, here are some highlights from
Fiscal 2014:
Proof-of-Concept Award Programs The Chicago
and Urbana campuses administered successful proof-
of-concept award programs that are designed to help
faculty increase their chances of commercialization and
start-up success. More than $800,000 was awarded to
help researchers across both campuses advance selected
technologies. In addition to funding, award recipients
receive commercialization support and access to other
start-up resources.
Lawrence Schook, Vice President for Research
Fiscal 2014
Disclosures 179
U.S. Patent Applications Filed 203
U.S. Patents Issued 78
Licenses & Options 38
Start-Ups 6
Royalties Earned $5.26M
Innovate@UIC - OTM-Chicago, IllinoisVENTURES, and
EnterpriseWorks Chicago launched Innovate@UIC, a
new initiative that supports innovation and technology
commercialization on the UIC campus. By integrating
these units and functions, the University can better
serve the needs of UIC innovators.
Share the Vision Technology Showcase OTM-Urbana
hosted its second technology showcase, a two-day
event that highlights the extraordinary research,
technology, and start-ups arising on the Urbana campus.
This event helped facilitate new connections for more
than 200 participants including University inventors and
visiting entrepreneurs, corporate partners, and venture
capitalists.
U.S. Utility Patent Ranking The University of Illinois
was ranked #11 on the Top 100 Worldwide Universities
Granted U.S. Utility Patents list. This ranking, compiled
by the Intellectual Property Owners Association and the
National Academy of Inventors, recognizes the global
impact of U of I research and innovations.
More than ever, University research is acknowledged
as critical to the U.S. economic ecosystem. It is a great
privilege to work so closely with our brilliant researchers
and talented OTM staff members as they engage to
enhance research and innovation through the transfer of
intellectual property, thus driving economic growth for the
state of Illinois and beyond.
Fiscal 2014 Annual Report The Ofce of Technology Management University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 5
U.S. Patents Issued
Five-Year History: Fiscal 2010 Fiscal 2014
Invention Disclosures
Royalties ($ MILLIONS) Patent Costs ($ MILLIONS)
Licenses & Options
U.S. Patents Filed
FY2011
FY2010
FY2012
FY2013
FY2014
180
182
223
181
179
143
166
194
191
203
FY2010
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
FY2014
FY2010
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
FY2014
69
68
76
72
78
FY2010
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
FY2014
3.06
3.02
3.05
2.76
3.94
FY2010
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
FY2014
40
55
46
46
38
FY2010
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
FY2014
5
12
5
6
6
FY2010
FY2011
FY2012
FY2013
FY2014
6.12
6.36
6.41
4.91
5.26
NUMBER OF START-UPS
Read more about new and existing
start-ups on pages 18 and 20.
6 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Ofce of Technology Management Fiscal 2014 Annual Report
Campus Total 179 203 78 38
College of Agricultural, Consumer,
and Environmental Sciences
24 12 7 8
Agricultural & Biological
Engineering
3 1 3
Agricultural & Consumer
Economics
1
Animal Sciences 3 1
Cooperative Extention 7 1
Crop Sciences 7 3 2 4
Food Science & Human Nutrition 6 6 2 2
Information Technology &
Communications Services
1
Natural Resources &
Environmental Sciences
1 2 1
Nutritional Sciences, Division of 1
Plant Biology 1
College of Education 1
Education Policy 1
College of Engineering 100 124 61 18
Aerospace Engineering 8 7 5 2
Bioengineering 20 17 6 3
Dear Colleagues,
I am proud to present this Fiscal
2014 Annual Report, in which you
will nd highlights of the activities
and accomplishments surrounding
innovation and entrepreneurship on
our campus.
Our report is organized to reect the
ow of technology commercialization
from research to transfer to impact,
and to show how our ofce is involved
at virtually every point in supporting
emerging technologies and new
business ventures.
Research: The Universitys world-class research enterprise is the foundation of
our intellectual property portfolio. To help support faculty, we provide tools to
facilitate research collaborations (page 11), we are involved in the IP negotations in
major sponsored research agreements and strategic engagements (page 10), and,
whenever we have the opportunity, we showcase the Universitys stellar researchers
(pages 8-9).
Transfer: Protecting, marketing, and licensing the Universitys intellectual property
is the core of our mission (pages 12-17). In addition, and more than ever before, the
OTM and the University community offer supporting programs and services for
innovators and entrepreneurs (pages 12-13).
Impact: From new companies (page 18) to the achievements of our existing
start-ups (page 19) to new licensing partnerships with existing corporations
(page 20), the impact of transferring University IP into companies, products, and
services is substantial.
As always, our successes would not have been possible without the support of our
community of outstanding researchers, innovators, entrepreneurs and other partners.
We look forward to working with you this year.
Lesley Millar-Nicholson, Director
Ofce of Technology Management
Fiscal 2014 Summary
College/Department/Unit Disclosures
U.S. Patent
Applications Filed
U.S. Patents
Issued
Licenses &
Options
OTM is involved at virtually every point
in supporting emerging technologies and
new business ventures.
Fiscal 2014 Annual Report The Ofce of Technology Management University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 7
Civil & Environmental Engineering 8 6 2 1
Computer Science 12 3 2 4
Coordinated Science Lab 3 1 1
Electrical & Computer
Engineering
40 57 31 6
Materials Research Lab 9 9 2
Materials Science & Engineering 30 37 13 5
Mechanical Science &
Engineering
7 23 11 2
Micro & Nanotechnology Lab 14 13 2 3
Nuclear, Plasma & Radiological
Engineering
2 6 2
Physics 6 7 3 1
Theoretical & Applied Mechanics 1
College of Fine & Applied Arts 2
School of Music 2
College of Liberal Arts & Sciences 47 75 14 13
Biochemistry 5 3 1 3
Biophysics & Computational
Biology
1 1 1
Cell & Developmental Biology 7 3 6
Center for African Studies 1
Chemical & Biomolecular
Engineering
6 10 1
Chemistry 23 59 11 6
Entomology 1 1 1
Microbiology 1 1 1 1
Molecular & Integrative
Physiology
1
Plant Biology 4
Psychology 1 1
School of Integrative Biology 1
College/Department/Unit Disclosures
U.S. Patent
Applications Filed
U.S. Patents
Issued
Licenses &
Options
College of Medicine 2 1
Medical Information Science 1
College of Veterinary Medicine 1 3 1
Pathobiology 2 1
Veterinary Clinical Medicine 1
Academic & Research Units
Advanced Digital Sciences Center 5
Beckman Institute for Advanced
Science & Technology
21 32 21 12
Information Trust Institute 1
Institute for Genomic Biology 15 11 3
Library & Information Science,
School of
3
National Center for
Supercomputing Applications
4 1 2
Illinois State Geological Survey 1
Illinois State Water Survey 1
Illinois Sustainable Technology Center 1
Natural History Survey 1
Non-Academic &Administrative Units
AITS 1
CITES 1
Facilities & Services 1
Library 1
Ofce of Corporate Relations 1
Ofce of the Chancellor 1
Ofce of the Vice Chancellor for
Student Affairs
1
Note: Due to the large amount of interdisciplinary research on campus, inventions are often associated with
more than one college, department, or unit. As a result, the numbers reported in the table above may be counted
multiple times, once for each associated college of unit. For the same reason, the totals for each college may be
smaller than the sum of their departments.
College/Department/Unit Disclosures
U.S. Patent
Applications Filed
U.S. Patents
Issued
Licenses &
Options
8 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Ofce of Technology Management Fiscal 2014 Annual Report
TRANSFER RESEARCH
Share the Vision 2013
Our 2nd Share the Vision research and start-up showcase, co-hosted by OTM and the
Research Park, took place over 2 days in October 2013. Share the Vision helps connect
University inventors, innovators, and entrepreneurs with corporate partners and venture
capitalists. The goal is to create opportunities for further innovation and innovation transfer.
The event included presentations from 35 faculty and more than 30 start-up companies.
There were also panel discussions and facility tours. Share the Vision drew more than 200
participants, with attendees coming from across the country.
Since Share the Vision has been such a success on campus, OTM is taking it on the
road. The rst regional event will be held in conjunction with the University of Illinois
Foundations Silicon Valley Roundtable hosted by Chancellor Phyllis Wise on
November 18, 2014.
Corporations:
Abbott
Ameren Corporation
Amgen Inc.
ATSP Innovations
BASF Corporation
Beijing Ansheng
Blakely Sokoloff Taylor
& Zafman
Caterpillar Inc.
Dell
Eli Lilly & Company
EMD Millipore
EpiWorks
Force Diagnostics
Google
HelpHippo
Hyde Park Angels
IHI Corporation
Illinois Partners
INOAC Group
INOS Technologies
ISS, Inc
Janssen Research
& Development
Konica Minolta
Laboratory USA
Life Science Angels
Life Technologies
Marcus Law
Mentor Management, LLC
Merck & Co., Inc.
MicroLink Devices
Monsanto
Motorola Solutions
Neustar Inc.
Parallel Worlds
Plextronics
Polsinelli PC
Prairiere Consulting, Inc.
Rao Research and
Consulting, LLC
Riverbed
Riverside Research
Rogers Corporation
Singleton Law Firm, P.C.
Sony Biotechnology
The Dow Chemical Company
The HDF Group
W.W. Grainger, Inc.
Waterborne
Woll Enterprises
Investors:
Agile Equities
Amgen Ventures
Applied Ventures LLC
Cultivian Sandbox Ventures
Flavin Ventures
Foundation Capital
Hyde Park Angels
IllinoisVENTURES
Life Science Angels
Merck Global Health
Innovation Fund
New Venture Partners
New World Ventures
OCA Ventures
Oracle Ventures
Osage University Partners
Serra Ventures
Silicon Pastures Angels
Investment Network
Below: Scenes from Share the Vision 2013. (Photos: Jon Dessen, Illini Studio)
PARTICIPATING COMPANIES
IMPACT
Fiscal 2014 Annual Report The Ofce of Technology Management University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 9
Innovation Celebration
Professor Stephen Boppart received the 2014 Innovation Transfer Award. The award
was announced at the annual Innovation Celebration, a campus and community event that
honors innovators and entrepreneurs.
The Innovation Transfer Award recognizes an individual or group from the University
whose research has resulted in a discovery with the potential for signicant societal
impact. OTM received 17 nominations for the award.
Professor Boppart won for his work on medical imaging devices capable of delivering real-
time microscopic imaging at the point of care. His research is being further developed in
two start-up companies, Diagnostic Photonics and PhotoniCare.
Mark your calendars for next years 10 Year Anniversary of Innovation Celebration Awards:
March 3, 2015, Krannert Center Lobby, 5:30 8:30 p.m.
Above Left: Innovation Celebration 2014 awardees and nalists. Bottom Left: Brett Walker, New
Venture awardee for ElectronInks. Bottom Right: Innovation Transfer award nalists & awardee. Scott
White (left), Stephen Boppart (center), and Stephen Sligar (middle)
(Photos: Justine Bursoni Photography)
10 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Ofce of Technology Management Fiscal 2014 Annual Report
Updates on Disclosures Resulting from Major
Sponsored Research Agreements
Established centers:
Energy Biosciences Institute (EBI): Founded in 2007 with a $500 million investment from
BP for research in cellulosic fuels and fossil fuel microbiology at Illinois and UC Berkeley.
Forty-two total disclosures since inception. Two disclosures in 2014.
Advanced Digital Sciences Center (ADSC): Established in 2009 with a grant from
Singapores Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) to address challenges
in computer science and engineering. Eleven disclosures since inception, including ve in
2013/2014.
New and emerging centers:
Center for Nutrition, Learning and Memory (CNLM): Established in 2011 with a ve-year
investment from Abbott, CNLM supports pioneering research in nutritional compound
utilization and mechanisms that enhance learning and memory. Three disclosures in
2013/2014
Joint Center for Energy Storage Research (JCESR): Established in 2012 to create
new breakthroughs in energy storage technology and made possible by a $120 million
investment by the Department of Energy. JCESR includes 14 partner institutions and is
administered by Argonne National Lab. One disclosure in 2014
Innovation and Economic
Prosperity University
The Association of Public Land Grant Universities (APLU)
has named the University of Illinois as one of its Innovation
& Economic Prosperity Universities.
From the APLUs press release (July 10, 2014): The
designation acknowledges universities working with public and private sector partners in
their states and regions to support economic development through a variety of activities,
including innovation and entrepreneurship, technology transfer, talent and workforce
development, and community development.
President Obama announcing funding for the Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation
Institute, a rst-of-its-kind manufacturing lab based in Chicago, supported with $70 million in federal
funding and $250 million in partner and regional funding. OTM worked closely with multiple partner
institutions to craft the intellectual property agreement that was part of the grant application.
(Ofcial White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)
Lesley Millar-Nicholson was
present at the Universitys
induction into the National
Academy of Inventors.
College of Engineering
professors Brian Cunningham
and John Rogers were also
inducted. (Photo courtesy:
Aimee Blodgett)
RESEARCH TRANSFER IMPACT
Fiscal 2014 Annual Report The Ofce of Technology Management University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 11
Tools to Reduce Transaction Costs and
Encourage Tech Transfer
The Ofce of Technology Management has agreements in place with two online
marketplaces in order to make it easier for faculty to transfer research materials such as
reagents and plasmids to colleagues.
KeraFast connects laboratories producing unique research materials with laboratories
that need those materials. More than 100 institutions are currently providing materials
through KeraFast. In scal 2014, KeraFast handled 30 transactions for UI.
AddGene operates a plasmid repository for the research community. More than 1,300
laboratories have contributed to their library, and AddGene handles packaging, shipping,
and material transfer agreements. In scal 2014, AddGene handled 309 transactions
for UI.
OTM Advisory Committee
The Ofce of Technology Management thanks our advisory committee (OTMAC) for their
guidance, input, and commitment.
Advisory Committee by College 2014-2015
Michael Biehl Veterinary Medicine
Isaac Cann
Agricultural, Consumer & Environmental Sciences; Liberal Arts
& Sciences; Institute for Genomic Biology
Lizanne Destefano Education
Carl Gunter Engineering
Elizabeth Hsiao-Wecksler Engineering
Fatima Husain Applied Health Sciences
Victor Jongeneel NCSA and Institute for Genomic Biology
Wynne Korr, Chair School of Social Work
David Lipari Engineering
Yi Lu Liberal Arts & Sciences
Deana McDonagh Art & Design
Jim Morrissey Liberal Arts & Sciences
Rob Pennington NCSA
Jennifer Quirk Institute for Genomic Biology
Paul Redman Fine & Applied Arts
Beth Sandore Namachchivaya Library
Jim Shriner Education
Fei Wang Liberal Arts & Sciences
Melissa Wasserman Law
FACILITATING COLLABORATIONS
The OTM manages many IP-related agreements in addition to licenses and options; these
include condentiality, material transfer, inter-institutional, and evaluation agreements.
These agreements help facilitate research collaborations and lay the groundwork for future
technology transfer activity.
KeraFast
AddGene
Material Transfer
Agreements
TOTAL: 517 AGREEMENTS
Confidentiality
Agreements
Amendments
Other Agreements
309
55
25
27
71
30
12 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Ofce of Technology Management Fiscal 2014 Annual Report
OTM Launches a $500,000 Illinois
Proof-of-Concept Program
The OTM launched the Illinois Proof-of-Concept Program (I-POC) in Spring 2014 to help
address the funding gap between University innovations and the marketplace. I-POC helps
de-risk technologies, making them more attractive to potential investors, funders, and
licensing partners.
I-POC projects include a dened set of milestones that, if completed, help overcome
specic hurdles to an innovations transfer outside of the University.
The I-POC Fund is currently made possible by contributions from colleges and units across
campus and matching funds from the Ofce of the Vice Chancellor for Research. The
Ofce of Technology Management is also working with campus advancement ofcers to
try to create an ongoing and sustainable source of funding via alumni gifts.
Five faculty projects were chosen for the rst round of I-POC awards ($195,000 awarded):
Kaustubh Bhalerao, from the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental
Sciences, for developing a Soybean Cyst Nematode (SCN) testing service that is faster
and provides more precise data than existing solutions.
Stephen Boppart, from the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology
and the College of Engineering, for his Quantitative Pneumatic Otoscope, which uses
optical coherence tomography (OCT) to visualize middle ear disease.
Martin D. Burke, from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, for advancing a
non-toxic amphotericin toward clinical candidacy by developing a compound with the
potential to become a frontline antifungal therapy.
Andrew Singer, College of Engineering professor and Director of the Technology
Entrepreneur Center, for developing a high-speed underwater wireless
communications system.
Heinrich Taube, from the College of Fine and Applied Arts, for Harmonia, which aims
to replace paper-based music theory instruction with a mobile app that allows musical
content to be created, edited, searched, annotated, and automatically graded.
Government
Funding
Private Sector
Funding
Basic
scientific research
LEVEL OF
DEVELOPMENT
F
U
N
D
I
N
G
Products
demonstrated and scaled up
Valley of Death
Lack of Funding
$
I-POC
PROOF OF CONCEPT FUNDING WORKS
Previous Proof-of-Concept projects on the Urbana campus have resulted in:
$4mil
RAISED IN
VENTURE AND
ANGEL FUNDING
MULTIPLE ONGOING
DISCUSSIONS WITH
LARGE CORPORATE
PARTNERS
$1.1mil
MORE THAN
IN ADDITIONAL
GOVERNMENT
FUNDING SUPPORT
FOUR START-UP
COMPANIES FORMED
TRANSFER RESEARCH IMPACT
For more information: otm.illinois.edu/IPOC
Fiscal 2014 Annual Report The Ofce of Technology Management University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 13
Update on Supporting Programs for Innovators & Entrepreneurs
The Ofce of Technology Management, the Research Park, the Technology Entrepreneur Center and IllinoisVENTURES
all offer programs and services that facilitate and support new venture creation. Taken together, these programs offer
a comprehensive set of resources addressing many of the challenges faced by new businesses.
On-Site Expertise through Entrepreneurs-in-
Residence (EIRs):
Free individual mentoring and consulting for faculty,
students, and staff
Monthly training events
More than 1,290 consultation meetings since the
program began four years ago
Lean Start-Up Training through NSF I-Corps Site:
UI is one of only 10 NSF I-Corps sites
Thirty teams have completed the program already
Teams have gone on to raise more than $4 million so far
Early Guidance through Chicago Innovation
Mentors (CIM):
Matches new technology-based ventures with
experienced mentor teams
Mentors help young companies understand their
potential market and validate their value propositions
Seven faculty from Urbana have presented at CIM; each
has secured a mentor team
Hitting the Ground Running with ISTART:
First-year start-up professional services for new
companies including legal services, business planning,
SBIR assistance, and nancial services
Twenty-ve companies have received rst round ISTART
funding; 16 have become EnterpriseWorks tenants or
afliates
Three rst round ISTART companies have graduated
from the incubator
Early and Seed Funding through IllinoisVENTURES (IV):
IV has more than $65 million under management and
investments in 75 companies
IV companies have attracted more than $600 million in
follow-on funding (13:1 leverage)
Improving the Odds for SBIR & STTR Funding through the
Technical Assistance Program:
Free individual consultations and workshops help
identify solicitations, write grant proposals, draft
budgets, and complete contracts
EnterpriseWorks clients have received more than 193
SBIR & STTR awards, totaling more than $49 million
RESEARCH PARK EXPANSION
Deere & Company is doubling the size of its
innovation center to 13,500 square feet.
Yahoo broke ground on a new building that will
increase their space to 40,000 square feet.
Silicon Valley advertising technology rm Turn
opened an innovation center in the Park.
Top: Laura Frerichs, Director, Research Park (Photo: Justine Bursoni
Photography) Middle: Jed Taylor, Operations Director, Technology
Entrepreneur Center and Research Park Entrepreneur-in-Residence
Bottom: Nancy Sullivan, CEO and Senior Managing Director,
IllinoisVENTURES
14 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Ofce of Technology Management Fiscal 2014 Annual Report
Where Were Going & Where Weve Been:
Conference, Meeting & Event Highlights
from Fiscal 2014 & 2015
TRANSFER RESEARCH IMPACT
JULY
2013
Association of University
Technology Managers (AUTM)
Central Region Meeting
Indianapolis, IN
TTS North America
San Francisco, CA
Bionanotechnology Summer
Institute
Campus
Farm Progress Show
Decatur, IL
Chicago Innovation Mentors
Chicago, IL
Farmland Markets
Decatur, IL
Licensing Executives Society
IP 100 Forum
Phoenix, AZ
AUTM Annual Meeting
San Francisco, CA
Pittcon Conference & Expo on
Laboratory Science
Chicago, IL
National Council of
Entrepreneurial Tech Transfer
Start-Up Conference
Washington, DC
Clean Energy Challenge
Chicago, IL
118th Metalcasting Congress
Schaumburg, IL
STARS Undergraduate
Research Showcase
UI Springeld
JANUARY
2014
Entrepreneurship
Forum
Campus
State Science &
Technology Institute
Annual Conference
September Chicago, IL
Global 1000 Startup Conference &
Showcase
September San Mateo, CA
Chicago Ideas Week
October Chicago, IL
Integrating Solar Storage into the Grid:
A Joint UI & JCESR Symposium
October Campus
Share the Vision: San Francisco (co-located
with the Silicon Valley Roundtable)
November San Francisco, CA
Radiological Society of
North America
November Chicago, IL
Major Campus/
OTM-Hosted Events
Industry Event
Professional Meeting
Innovation Showcase
Fiscal 2014 Annual Report The Ofce of Technology Management University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 15
OCTOBER
2015
Microscopy & Microanalysis
Indianapolis, IN
Plug Volt Battery Seminar
Plymouth, MI
New Faculty Resource Fair
Campus
AUTM Eastern Region
Meeting
Boston, MA
Innovation LLC Student
Orientation
Campus
Patent Clinic
Campus
Chicago Innovation Mentors
Chicago, IL
A New Landscape: The Implications of
the Supreme Courts Myriad Decision
Campus
Women in Technology Lunch
Campus
Radiological Society of
North America
Chicago, IL
IP Basics for Postdocs
Campus
Chicago Innovation Mentors
Chicago, IL
National Innovation Summit
Washington, DC
BIO
San Diego, CA
Sensors Expo
Chicago, IL
Precision Aerial Agriculture Show
July Decatur, IL
AUTM Central Region
Meeting
July St. Louis, MO
FISCAL
2015
Innovation
Celebration
March Campus
Pittcon Conference &
Expo on Laboratory
Science
March New Orleans, LA
Entrepreneurship
Forum
April Campus
Clean Energy Challenge
April Chicago, IL
BIO
June Philadelphia, PA
TTS North America
July Chicago, IL
JANUARY
2015
Share the Vision 2015
October Campus
Share the Vision 2013
Campus
AUTM
Annual Meeting
February
New Orleans, LA
16 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Ofce of Technology Management Fiscal 2014 Annual Report
UI ranks #11 in the World for Universities Granted U.S. Patents
The University of Illinois (all campuses) was #11 on the list of top 100 worldwide
universities granted U.S. utility patents in 2013. The National Academy of Inventors and
the Intellectual Property Owners Association compile the list.
An Active Term for the Supreme Court
The U.S. Supreme Court heard six patent cases in the term that ended June 30, 2014,
weighing in on a variety of patent issues, including fee shifting, infringement, and patentable
subject matter. This is the most patent cases the Supreme Court has heard in one term since
the 1982 establishment of the Court of Appeals of the Federal Circuit (CAFC). The Supreme
Court overruled the CAFC in ve of the six cases this term, continuing a trend of high reversal
rates that has been ongoing for several years.
OTM Director Takes A Stand on Patent Reform
Lesley-Millar Nicholson discussed the potential negative impact of the Innovation Act on
university technology transfer in articles in Governing Magazine, the National Law Journal,
and Corporate Counsel. The Act, which attempted to curb the abusive practices of patent
trolls by targeting them as non-practicing entities (NPEs), raised the concern of many
universities since universities can also be broadly categorized as NPEs. Ultimately the
Innovation Act did not have enough support for a vote in Congress.
The average pendency of a U.S. patent issued
to campus in Fiscal 2014 was approximately
three years.
AVERAGE TIME TO ISSUE FOR CAMPUS U.S. PATENTS
TRANSFER RESEARCH IMPACT
20
30
40
50
15
25
35
45
55
1
-
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-
9
6
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4
M
O
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ISSUE DATE
ROLLING AVERAGE
After the Innovation Act, More Targeted Patent Reform
Unable to garner enough support for the broad reforms in the Innovation Act, the House
has narrowed the scope of proposed legislation in the TROL Act (Targeting Rogue and
Opaque Letters Act of 2014). TROL specically seeks to curb the patent troll practice of
sending abusive demand letters. This more focused bill has won support from organizations
including the Association of American Universities, the American Counsel on Education,
and the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities.
IP Updates
Fiscal 2014 Annual Report The Ofce of Technology Management University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 17
FY2014 ISSUED U.S. PATENTS BY CATEGORY
For a full list of U.S. patents issued in
Fiscal 2014, please see the OTMs website:
otm.illinois.edu
PERCENT OF U.S. PATENTS LICENSED OR OPTIONED AT ISSUANCE
46%
36%
42%
36%
47%
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
Healthcare
(Diagnostics &
Therapeutics)
Engineering:
41% 17%
7%
7%
13%
5%
10%
Software
Materials
Agriculture
Optics
Energy
Electronics
of U.S. patents issued to campus
in scal 2014 have been licensed
or optioned.
46%
18 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Ofce of Technology Management Fiscal 2014 Annual Report
Charmworks
Charm software is a system for helping programmers write science and engineering
applications for powerful computers, such as clusters. The software includes multiple
components such as adaptive runtime libraries, performance analysis tools, debuggers,
and visualization tools. Based on the research of founder Laxmikant Kale from the College
of Engineering. The company is located in the Universitys Research Park in Champaign,
Illinois.atgsites.com/Charmworks_Inc
ElectronInks
Developing inks for printed electronics technologies.
Their rst product, the Circuit Scribe, is a rollerball
pen lled with conductive silver ink that allows users to literally draw circuits. Based on the
research of co-founders Jennifer Lewis, formerly in the College of Engineering, and
Brett Walker. The company is located in the Universitys Research Park in Champaign,
Illinois. electroninks.com
eText
Delivering textbooks and other classroom materials with multimedia, notes, and
assignments embedded directly in context. Based on the research of co-founder
Milind Basole from the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences.
The company is located in Savoy, Illinois.
Network Perception
Developing the NP-View software tool designed to
perform an automated and comprehensive network
path analysis of rewall and router congurations.
Based on the research of co-founders David Nicol
and William Sanders from the College of Engineering. The company is located in the
Universitys Research Park in Champaign, Illinois. network-perception.com
X-Celeprint
Developing micro-transfer-printing technology as a
manufacturing platform for integrating microscale
devices such as lasers, LEDs or integrated circuits onto non-native substrates. Based on the
research of John Rogers from the College of Engineering. The company is located in Cork,
Ireland. x-celeprint.com
Unmanned Dynamics
Specializes in the simulation
and implementation of control
systems for autonomous vehicles. Based on the research of co-founder Naira Hovakimyan
from the College of Engineering. The company is located in Champaign, Illinois.
unmanned-dynamics.com
Fiscal 2014 Start-Up Company Licenses
TRANSFER RESEARCH IMPACT
Fiscal 2014 Annual Report The Ofce of Technology Management University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 19
OTM Start-Ups and Licensees Across the Country
Licensees in more than 15
countries outside the U.S.
More than 225 licenses and
options (FY2010-2014)
More than 55
Active Start-Ups
Active Start-Ups Licensees (FY2010-2014)
20 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Ofce of Technology Management Fiscal 2014 Annual Report
TRANSFER RESEARCH IMPACT
Start-Up Company Milestones
aPriori, provider of enterprise product cost management software, was selected
as a nalist in the Big Data and Analytics Innovation category for the MITX Whats
Next Awards.
ANDalyze signed Hatch as an authorized distributor for their product line of devices to
test for water contamination. ANDalyze was also proled in Forbes.
ElectronInks completed a Kickstarter campaign that raised more than $670,000 to
begin manufacturing their rst product, the Circuit Scribe, a rollerball pen lled with
conductive ink. They were also named a National Innovation Awardee at the Tech
Connect Expo in Washington, DC.
EP Purication, developer of air and water purication devices, won the $100,000 grand
prize in the Clean Energy Challenge, run by the Clean Energy Trust.
Glucosentient received a Phase I NIH SBIR award and a Phase II NSF SBIR award to
continue developing drug and disease monitoring technologies.
InstaRecon was awarded a Phase II NIH SBIR award to continue work on their
technology to increase the computational efciency of CT image reconstruction.
mc10, developing exible electronics, was proled in the Boston Globe. The Checklight,
created by mc10 and Reebok, won the 2014 Red Dot Award, one of the highest honors
for product design.
Multicoreware, a leader in heterogeneous computing, ranked 3
rd
in ITENs Top Ten
Start-Up Companies 2013 report.
Personify, provider of immersive video conferencing services, was awarded a prestigious
Globee Award as one of the Fastest Growing Companies in America in the category of
Products and Services Growth.
Runtime Verication received a Phase II NASA SBIR award to continue developing
techniques to improve the safety and reliability of software systems.
Semprius, working together with Solar Junction, has developed a solar cell with the best
ever conversion efciency for a photovoltaic technology.
Solarbridge Technologies closed on a $42 million round of funding led by Constellation
Technology Ventures. SolarBridge is a leading provider of microinverters and monitoring
technology for solar systems.
Naira Hovakimyan, founder of Unmanned Dynamics, was awarded the prestigious
Humboldt Prize honoring career of research achievements.
Vanquish Oncology received a $2 million investment to help advance its PAC-1
anti-cancer compound towards human trials.
(Photo: Clean Energy Trust)
Fiscal 2014 Annual Report The Ofce of Technology Management University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 21
Royalties Earned: $5,255,381
Non-University Share: $80,197
Patent Expense Reimbursement: $1,983,513
Net Available for Distribution: $3,451,040
Actual Distributions
Inventors Share: $616,052
University Share
Unit/College: $1,629,133
OTM Cost Recovery: $719,552
Note: Actual Distributions do not match the Net Available for Distribution in any one year because of the time lag between the date
many are received and the date actual distributions are made.
Royalties and Royalty Distribution
Native Oxide:
A semiconductor technology
used in laser printers, ber
optic communications,
microelectronic devices,
and more.
MarketMaker:
An interactive data
base of food industry
marketing and business
data that helps connect
food producers with new
markets.
Soybean Germplasm:
A collection of soybean
germplasm having a wide
range of agronomic traits.
Top Three Royalty Generating Technologies
22 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The Ofce of Technology Management Fiscal 2014 Annual Report
Staff Contacts
Ofce of Technology Management
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Ceramics Building, Suite 319
105 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL 61801
217.333.7862 otm@illinois.edu otm.illinois.edu @ILinnovations
Leadership & Technology Managers
Director Lesley Millar-Nicholson 217.333.6807 millar@illinois.edu
Associate Director, Life Sciences and Strategic Initiatives & Senior
Technology Manager Lisa Dhar 217.333.3715 ldhar10@illinois.edu
Assistant Director, Marketing & Senior Technology Manager
Steven Wille 217.244.5956 stvwille@illinois.edu
Assistant Director, Finance and Compliance Operations & Senior Technology Manager
Nathan Hoffmann 217.244.4747 nhoffma2@illinois.edu
Senior Technology Managers
Svetlana Vranic-Sowers 217.244.7243 svsowers@illinois.edu
Jeffrey Wallace 217-265-0548 jrwallac@illinois.edu
Technology Manager
Brad Edwards 217.244.6453 ebedward@illinois.edu
Professional Staff
Account Technician II
Lori Boltz; leboltz@illinois.edu
Business Manager
Todd Creason; creason@illinois.edu
Patent Ofce Manager
Tracy Hunter; tracyh@illinois.edu
Patent Coordinator
Eric Ives; eives@illinois.edu
Assistant to the Director & Ofce Manager
Heather Jones; hbaker@illinois.edu
Ofce Support Associate
Jessica Morgan; morgan@illinois.edu
Senior Marketing Coordinator
Nicole Nair; nnair@illinois.edu
Interns (2014-2015)
Commercialization Analysts
Matthew Chang, Carlos Duarte-Guevara, Gwendolyn Humphreys,
Shenghan Jin, Ismail Kuru, Miano Njoka, Fatimeh Pahlavan, Sizhu You
Communication & Marketing Interns
Bailey Bryant, Drew Bollinger, Anna Hecht, Samantha Holt
After 27 years of leadership in technology
transfer, Del Kranz retired from the OTM
in May.
Paralegal-Compliance Coordinator
Jane Reid; janereid@illinois.edu
Chief Clerk
Liz Schleef; easchlee@illinois.edu
Patent Coordinator
Sandra Thompson; sjthomps@illinois.edu
Technology Transfer Specialist
Meredith Walker; walkerme@illinois.edu
Legal Ofce Manager
Donna Wilm; dwilm@illinois.edu
Legal Support
Karen Higgins, Ofce of
University Counsel
2014 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
All rights reserved.
Design: Lauren Allen; www.laurenallendesign.com