Latest technologies from Washington State University

Archaeal-derived antimicrobials effective against plant, animal, and human pathogens

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 23 Sep 2025 10:53:46 GMT

Unmet Need: Effective prevention and treatment of fire blight, an emerging concern in apple and pear orchards. Fire blight is a one of the most destructive diseases in apple and pear crops, resulting not only in lost crops but the destruction of entire orchards depending on the timing of infection and environmental factors. This destruction produces significant economic impacts – totaling more than $100 million per year and growing. The disease, caused by bacterium Erwinia amylovora, is expected to grow in coming years due to climate change. Current treatment and prevention strategies ...

System and Methods for Nutrition Monitoring

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 17 Sep 2025 12:19:13 GMT

Summary Diet is an important lifestyle and behavioral factor in self-management and prevention of many chronic diseases. Currently, technological approaches for nutrition monitoring either use computer vision techniques for image-based diet assessment or mobile apps for maintaining electronic food diaries. These approaches are lacking in accuracy, ease-of-use, and privacy and thus adherence to utilizing these technologies in clinical and real-world settings is quite limited. Researchers at Washington State University’s School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science have develop...

Methods for Identifying Epigenetic Transgenerational Inheritance of Toxicant Exposure specific non-coding RNA in sperm

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 21 Aug 2025 15:06:16 GMT

Unmet Need: Need for Non-Coding RNA-Based Methods to Trace Epigenetic Inheritance Across Generations Environmental toxicants can induce heritable epigenetic changes passed across generations, increasing the risk of various disease. Researchers at Washington State University (WSU) have investigated how toxicant exposures can be passed down through generations. Their research focuses on epigenetic inheritance, emphasizing the role of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) in sperm as carriers of these ancestral signals. These ncRNAs signatures not only reflect past toxicant exposures but also serve as potent...

Recycling cellulose waste into foams

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 01 Jul 2025 14:55:36 GMT

Unmet Need: A method for recycling cotton waste into lightweight foams Current petroleum-based polyurethane and polystyrene foams are non-biodegradable, hard to recycle, and contribute significantly to landfill plastic waste and pollution. There is a critical need for sustainable alternatives that reduce environmental impact. To address this, researchers at Washington State University (WSU) have developed biodegradable foams made from recycled cotton waste. This innovative solution not only reduces plastic pollution but also promotes the circular use of textile waste, aligning with global sus...

Subsurface spectroscopy system for optically scattering heterogeneous opaque materials

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 23 Jun 2025 10:25:01 GMT

Unmet Need: Need for a spectroscopic apparatus to perform spectroscopic measurements inside of an optically scattering heterogeneous opaque materials There was a need to identify a new way to analyze and study the internal structure of materials that don't let light pass through easily, such as clouds, biological tissues, paints, colloidal solutions, and plastic-bonded explosives. Normally, when light hits these materials, it scatters in all directions, making it hard to get a clear picture of what is inside. The Technology: A special technique of optical phase conjugation along with ul...

Turning Waste into Wealth: A Self-Sustaining System for Clean Water and Energy

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 03 Jun 2025 09:38:56 GMT

Self-sustaining system to recover clean water, renewable energy, and valuable products from animal manure wastewater Unmet Need: Treatment and processing of animal manure wastewater Self-sustaining technology for manure treatment transforms a potential environmental liability into valuable resources, benefiting both the environment and the agricultural sector. This self-sustaining technology not only facilitates the production of high-quality biogas but also ensures the recovery of clean water and the conversion of waste into valuable by-products, including ammonium bicarbonate fertilizer ...

Extremely Strong Material Made from Ternary Acrylic Resin System

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 18 Mar 2025 14:38:19 GMT

Title: Extremely Strong Material Made from Ternary Acrylic Resin System Unmet Need: Chemical recycling of plastic waste through aminolysis diverts waste stream to useful resin products Polylactic acid (PLA) is the most used bioplastic in the world. PLA products include disposable cutlery, electronics, and medical implants. Degradation of PLA by aminolysis is simple, and the degradation product can be easily formulated into a strong acrylic resin that is suitable for photocuring, 3D printing, and other uses. WSU inventors have demonstrated a true upcycling method that transforms PLA wastes ...

A smart Neuron-Targeted Drug Delivery Platform for the treatment of brain diseases

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 12 Mar 2025 09:43:35 GMT

Unmet Need: Treating brain disorders has long been hindered by the impermeability of the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Even if the drugs or nanoparticles cross the impaired BBB following brain injury or neuroinflammation, their uptake in the key cells involved in the brain diseases, especially neurons, specifically at the site of brain injury, remain the most significant challenge. This is due to their lower abundance, reduced phagocytic activity, and the diversity of neuron types, each with distinct functions. Addressing these hurdles is critical for advancing treatments for traumatic brain inju...

Structured Data Extraction Using Large Language Models

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 10 Feb 2025 10:36:23 GMT

Unmet Need: Method in Long-Form data extraction for LLMs Large Language Models (LLMs) excel in Natural Language Process (NLPs) tasks but face challenges in extracting information from large databases effectively. Current practices fail to address the inherent limitations of LLMs, resulting in suboptimal performance for long-form data extraction tasks. Researchers at Washington State University (WSU) have developed a nuanced, multi-step method to overcome these limitations. They have used a combination of vision-capable LLMs and a sliding window technique for data extraction. The application...

Salt waste immobilization: separating organic acid-enabled dechlorination and off-gas captures

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 23 Jan 2025 13:46:48 GMT

Unmet Need: Mechanistic Process for Treating Salt-Based Nuclear Waste As global power demands rise and fossil fuel reserves dwindle, nuclear energy has emerged as a vital component of sustainable energy solutions. However, managing salt-based nuclear waste comprising compounds like LaCl₃, LiCl, KCl, and KI remains a significant challenge. Researchers at Washington State University (WSU) have developed an innovative method to address this issue. Their process combines the dehalogenation of salt-based nuclear waste with iodine capture, followed by the immobilization of the dehalogenated waste...

2-deoxyglucose-based dendrimer nanomedicine for the treatment of prostate cancer

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 14 Jan 2025 09:46:39 GMT

Unmet Need: Highly Effective and Selective Drug Delivery Methods for Advanced-Stage Prostate Cancer Treatment Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths among men in the United States, with advanced cases requiring urgent treatment. Current therapies offer only limited survival benefits, and many chemotherapies cause severe side effects due to their non-selective distribution, damaging healthy tissues. The five-year survival rate for patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) remains low, around 30%. Treatment options are scarce, large...

Low-cost reference membrane for electroanalysis

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 13 Jan 2025 15:19:45 GMT

Low-cost reference membrane for electroanalysis Unmet Need: Development of low-cost reference membrane for electroanalysis Low-cost reference membranes for electrolysis are crucial components in various electrochemical sensors and systems. For a reference electrode to function properly, it must maintain a stable potential (electromotive force, emf). The most widely used reference electrode is the Ag/Cl reference electrode, which maintains a constant potential based on the redox couple between silver (Ag) and silver chloride (AgCl). Researchers at WSU invented a low-cost reference membrane ...

Ionizable Lipid Nanoparticles for Treating Inflammation and Cancer

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 09 Jan 2025 17:33:55 GMT

Unmet Need: Necessity of approved therapeutics to treat ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome) Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a life-threatening form of respiratory failure caused by widespread inflammatory damage. Trauma or infections can cause acute lung inflammation/injury (ALI) that can quickly lead to ARDS. WSU Inventors have identified a novel approach to treat lung inflammation and cancers. The Technology: Design of DHA-loaded liposomes targeted to activated neutrophils When DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) is delivered into activated neutrophils, it can be synthesized ...

Deactivation-free Electrochemical Oxygen Evolution Activity of Topological Weyl Semimetal Co3In2S2

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 04 Dec 2024 12:40:38 GMT

Unmet Need: Necessity of robust and efficient electrochemical oxygen evolution reaction for sustainable energy solution Sustainable oxygen production for medical and industrial applications is one of the prime aims of modern civilization. WSU researchers found an efficient and surprising electrochemical performance of Weyl semimetal Co3In2S2 in its single-crystalline form for oxygen evolution reaction in 1 M KOH. Co3In2S2 single-crystal electrode can produce oxygen at high current densities (300 mA cm-2 at 1.85 V vs. RHE, without iR-correction) and even in the presence of a surface poisoning ...

Targeted Drug Delivery Solutions for Advanced Prostate Cancer

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 29 Oct 2024 14:36:03 GMT

Machine Learning for High-Fidelity 3D-Printed Organ Models in Surgery

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 10:22:51 GMT

Machine Learning Enabled Design and Optimization for 3D-Printing of High-Fidelity Presurgical Organ Models Unmet Need: A better 3D printed presurgical organ model Presurgical organ models enable students and surgeons to practice new or difficult techniques prior to ever setting foot in an operating room. However, the practice experience is most beneficial when the models are as lifelike as possible. Many models currently exist that vary along this spectrum – from practicing injection technique on an orange purchased from the grocery store to elaborate, 3D printed models that are based ...

High-performance planar solar concentrators based on TiO2 nanoparticle doping

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 14:39:47 GMT

AbstractResearchers at WSU have invented a new conceptual solar concentrator: the light scattering-based solar concentrator (LSSC). This invention is a great enhancement of the photovoltaic (PV) application. Luminescence solar concentrator (LSC), has been considered a viable option to harvest solar energy with minimal environmental impacts. However, the enthusiasm for applying LSC in PV devices is damped by their efficiency (concentration ratio, C ≤ 1). Primary reason include photon loss from surfaces of the device, and spectroscopic losses of the fluorophores embedded in the devices....

Use of Recycled Asphalt Shingles (RAS) in an Asphalt Mix as a Compaction Aid

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 14 Jun 2024 17:03:37 GMT

Unmet Need: Innovative methods for incorporating waste materials into durable asphalt pavement Asphalt paving offers the opportunity to recycle waste materials that otherwise end up in landfills. This method can reduce the need to produce costly virgin component materials with a significant environmental footprint. Using too much recycled material can also reduce the performance of paved surfaces, causing issues like increased air voids or decreased elasticity, which lead to premature deterioration. Many factors can affect the compaction of an asphalt mix, including field conditions, ...

Molecular Treatment of Succinic Semialdehyde Dehydrogenase Deficiency with Messenger RNA

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 13 Jun 2024 16:07:51 GMT

Unmet Need: Addressing the Imperative of Succinic Semialdehyde Dehydrogenase Deficiency Succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase deficiency (SSADHD) is a rare metabolic disorder caused by mutations in the ALDH5A1 gene. The enzyme plays a crucial role in the breakdown of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). WSU Inventors used ALDH5A1-coding mRNA treatment method to treat patients who are deficient in this enzyme. Inventors proved that human cells isolated from a patient with complete SSADHD are successfully rescued by exposure to a commercially optimized ALDH5A1-coding mRNA. The Technology: Presented ...

TranquiDome™ healing pod integrated with multisensory features

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 12 Jun 2024 12:33:06 GMT

Unmet Need: A comfortable regenerative pod to reduce the stress among blood donors and enhance their blood donation experience. The United States is experiencing an increasing demand of about 2-3% per year for blood supply, to address medical treatments, natural disasters, and emergencies. Blood centers face a critical need to provide a comfortable blood donor experience that effectively reduces stress and anxiety, particularly for first-time, female, and younger donors. To combat this issue, WSU researchers have developed the TranquiDome™ healing pod, incorporating customizable multise...

An innovative device to improve bowel function in individuals with neuro-degenerative diseases and spinal cord injuries

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 26 Apr 2024 16:17:35 GMT

Unmet Need: Enabling independent bowel management for individuals with limited dexterity due to neurodegenerative disease or spinal injury Millions of people worldwide live with spinal cord injuries or neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS), Parkinson’s disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). In these populations, neurogenic bowel, bowel dysfunction, and incontinence are common and have a great impact on not only physical health but also functional independence. Thus, independent and efficient bowel management is crucial to maintaining health by minimizing ...

Elderberry-Derived Anthocyanin Compositions for weight management

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 11 Apr 2024 17:17:17 GMT

Unmet Need: Developing effective, evidence-backed tools for weight management Obesity occurs in more than 40% of Americans and contributes to more than $170 billion in medical expenses annually, primarily via increased incidence of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and breathing issues. Unsurprisingly, the weight loss industry is booming in the United States and estimated to grow at a CAGR of nearly 10% to $305 billion by 2030. Despite some recent pharmaceutical successes such as GLP-1 agonists, obesity remains a huge driver of the US economy and health system. Thus, continued innovation in we...

Enhancing Drug Bioavailability: Curcumin and Its Derivatives as Modulators of UGT2B17 and Intestinal Enzymes

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 15:30:28 GMT

Unmet Need: Inhibitor drugs of UGT2B17 that can be used for boosting bioavailability of its substrates. Since curcumin is a safe bioactive compound with potential health benefits, however, it has poor bioavailability, inventors have explored the use of curcumin as a bioavailability enhancer of other nutrients or drugs. They have developed an approach by developing a natural product that can be used as an inhibitor of UGT2B17. Curcumin is a safe herbal compound and is approved for human use. The Technology: Tested the concomitant used of drugs and curcumin to increase drug bioavailability&nb...

Aqueous self-crosslinking composite binders of electrodes for electrochemical devices

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 12:09:27 GMT

Unmet Need: The degradation of silicon anodes in lithium-ion batteries create obstacles in achieving longer life cycle and enhanced performance Conventional binders are not suitable for Silicon electrodes because of their weak adhesion force with Silicon and copper current collector. Binders play a crucial role in maintaining the structural integrity of electrodes during charging and discharging, and thus significantly affect the cycling performance and rate capability of batteries. WSU inventors designed a biopolymer composite binder for high performance micro-sized silicon/carbon anodes via...

Catalytic Degradation of Thermosetting Polymers in suitable solvents under Atmospheric Pressure: Approaches and Techniques

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 30 Jan 2024 11:46:02 GMT

Unmet Need: The imperative need for chemical recycling of thermosets and thermoset composites Management of thermosetting polymers and their composites is becoming a serious public concern. The demand for an eco-friendly and economically viable recycling technology that is suitable for industrial scale-up is crucial. Performing chemical recycling under atmospheric pressure is always desirable. WSU inventors invented catalytic degradation of thermosetting polymers and their composites with suitable solvents. The Technology: Introduced a method for catalytic degradation of the thermose...

Targeting ARRDC5 for Male Contraception

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 18 Jan 2024 13:10:47 GMT

Unmet Need: ARRDC5, an essential regulator of mammalian spermatogenesis Identification of a molecule arrestin-domain containing ARRDC5 as an essential regulator of mammalian spermatogenesis, which could potentially be targeted for the development of male contraceptives. By studying mice lacking the ARRDC5 gene, inventors observed that mice were infertile due to the production of low numbers of immotile and malformed sperm. They discovered that ARRDC5 is expressed uniquely in the testicular tissue of mammalian species and plays an essential role in sperm morphogenesis. The Technology: ...

Mice with humanized telomere homeostasis

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 09 Jan 2024 10:47:56 GMT

Unmet Need: The imperative need for mouse models in advancing research on human aging and tumorigenesis Telomeres play a key role in human aging and tumorigenesis. However, studying telomeres in mouse models presents challenges due to significant difference in telomere length, which is up to 10 times longer than in humans. To address this limitation, researchers developed a method of shortening the mice telomeres to the length of human telomeres resulting in an accurate mouse model for studying human aging and tumorigenesis. The Technology: Created an accurate mouse model for s...

Scalable manufacturing of flexible electronics via screen printing for biomedical applications

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 23 Oct 2023 14:53:57 GMT

Unmet Need: Flexible and stretchable electrodes face challenges in commercial adoption due to complex and costly microfabrication processes Current manufacturing processes for flexible biomedical electronics are complex and expensive, typically requiring cleanroom microfabrication. While other methods have been explored, none cover the full fabrication process. This invention streamlines production workflows for flexible biomedical electronics via a fully screen-printable manufacturing process. The method leverages commercially available inks and produces electrodes that maintain excellent me...

Controlling bacterial growth using conditional bacterial extracellular vesicle/exosomes

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 18 Aug 2023 10:53:07 GMT

Unmet Need: Antibiotic resistance makes existing front-line antibiotics ineffective and is attributed to more than 1 million deaths annually The World Health Organization calls antibiotic resistance “one of the biggest threats to global health, food security, and development today”. Microbes resistant to front-line antibiotics are attributed to more than 1 million deaths annually, and the treatment of antibiotic-resistant infections demonstrates the urgent need to develop more effective antimicrobial therapies. Many antibiotic resistant infections are secondary infections acquired...

IntelliBra: A bra for measurement of milk output during lactation

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 10 Aug 2023 11:55:02 GMT

Unmet Need: Simple method to measure milk production in mothers and consumption by infants. Adequate milk production by breastfeeding mothers and milk consumption by their infants are critical for optimal infant nutrition and growth during neonatal life. With current trends toward increasing breastfeeding in both the US and around the globe, there is an increasing desire and need for a simple method to measure milk production and infant milk consumption in both healthy and high-risk neonatal situations. Methods currently used to evaluate these parameters involve complex stable isotope tech...

New Oilseed Remodeling

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 01 Jun 2023 09:02:15 GMT

Unmet Need: Improved fatty acid production and composition in oilseed crops Unusual fatty acids are useful in the production of foods, biofuels, and feedstocks for industrial chemicals. Existing plants that accumulate meaningful amounts of desired unusual fatty acids such as hydroxy fatty acids are either banned in the US (Ricinus communis) or are unsuited to crop production (Physaria fendleri). Previous attempts to engineer plants to produce these unusual fatty acids resulted in plants that produced less oil overall, with a composition containing about 15% hydroxy fatty acids. The Technolo...

Baking-Stable Red Raspberries

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 23 May 2023 08:21:14 GMT

Challenge: Frozen raspberries break down and bleed in mixing and bakingWhole blueberries are commonly found in commercial baked goods, and strawberries are often mixed into ice cream. Raspberries preserved by traditional methods are not similarly hardy and suited to various applications, exhibiting high levels of lysis and syneresis when mixed or thawed. This Technology: Stabilized frozen produceWSU has developed a new process of stabilizing and preserving produce which combines vacuum infusing, dehydrating, coating, and freezing to create a premium value-added product, ...

Quantifying Police Interactions (QPI)

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 May 2023 16:20:05 GMT

Title: Quantifying Police Interactions (QPI) Unmet Need: Underutilization and restriction to the Body Worn Cameras (BWC) hampers review rates, hindering intelligence gatherings and evidence identification. The limited access to BWC footage, with existing software only permitting officers to view it, has resulted in less than 5% of recordings being reviewed by police agencies. The underutilization hinders the potential of BWC footage to gather intelligence and serve as valuable evidence in discovering important information. A team of Inventors has developed software named QPI (Qua...

Speakeasy Studio & Cafe

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 12 May 2023 14:14:34 GMT

Abstract The Speakeasy Studio & Cafe is a web-conferencing software that enables people to communicate with one another in real-time (chatroom) or "asynchronously" (in threaded-discussion forums). It is a platform upon which the framework for a digital online classroom complete with tables, chairs, assignments, blackboards, and interactive discussions between students and teacher can be built. Applications and Advantages § organizes conversations and security accesses, allowing for terrific ease of scalability; §...

Nonlinear Cochlear Filter for Treatment of Hearing Deficits

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 12 May 2023 14:12:38 GMT

Abstract A major problem with people who are deaf and receive cochlear implants is the perception of music. While speech is processed by cochlear implants in a fairly reasonable way, music sounds like horrific noisy traffic to someone with a cochlear implant. This is a major detriment to healthy living. Current research in the Portfors lab focuses on developing better sound processing algorithms that can be used in cochlear implants to provide a richer encoding of complex sounds such as music. This research is based on novel findings in the mouse auditory system that suggest that combinat...

Foldable Polymers as Gene Probes

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 12 May 2023 14:04:53 GMT

Abstract This technology utilizes novel probes to detect and identify target biomolecules in a sample. These probes employ conformational changes induced by molecular recognition events to initiate changes in the optical properties of the probe (e.g. the modulation of a fluorescence or absorption response upon target binding). Methods, including solid phase synthesis techniques for making probe molecules have been developed. Applications and Advantages § Versatile approach to molecular recognition § Hairpin formation not a prerequisite for self association ...

Gas Phase Mobility Selection of Ions Prior to Mass Spectrometric Analysis

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 12 May 2023 14:04:06 GMT

Abstract Traditionally, ion mobility spectrometry (IMS) has been used for the analysis of gas-phase compounds; however, with the advent of electrospray ionization (ESI) and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI), the technique's scope of analysis has greatly expanded. The powerful prospects of combining IMS and ion mobility mass spectrometry (IMMS) to yield instruments capable of distinguishing ions based upon both size and mass-to-charge ratios have led to a large body of work directed at the development of IMMS instruments. While many low-pressure (1-100 Torr) IMMS syste...

Hydrogen Sulfide Releasing Agents

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 12 May 2023 14:02:31 GMT

Abstract Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has demonstrated several essential critical care benefits when delivered properly in low doses. The current state-of-the-art delivery systems rely on gaseous delivery of H2S to patients. WSU researchers have developed chemical agents that controllably decompose to release H2S and demonstrated their efficacy in biological tissues. Applications and Advantages § Timed-release § Biocompatible IP Status US patent application issued: US9096504B2 - Controlled chemical re...

Improved performance of epoxies

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 12 May 2023 13:48:50 GMT

Unmet Need: Use of renewable and nontoxic feedstock for epoxies Currently over 90% of commercial epoxy resins are derived from the non-renewable petrochemical bisphenol A (BPA). However, BPA is considered as a suspicious endocrine disrupting chemical and may cause harm to human health. In the recent decade, a variety of biobased epoxies have been developed using renewable lignin, rosin, plant oil, vegetable oil etc., as substitutes for BPA epoxy; the abundant resource being vegetable oil, however it exhibits low reactivity, inadequate mechanical properties, poor heat resistance, etc. Recent ...

Enhancing Soil Carbon Sequestration to Address Climate Change and Crop Sustainability Concerns

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 12 May 2023 13:00:36 GMT

Unmet Need: Natural Rates of Soil Carbon Sequestration are Insufficient to Address Global Climate Change Concerns and Crop Sustainability Mineral associated carbon is both the most persistent and abundant form of carbon in the global soil carbon pool, estimated at more than 1200 Pg. Despite these large natural mineral associated soil carbon stores known to persist (and exist in a stabilized form) in the subsoil, chronosequence and field experiment studies have shown that the rate of soil carbon accumulation is very slow in natural ecosystems. As a result, natural ecosystems and natural r...

Counter Bias Training

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 12 May 2023 12:43:44 GMT

Abstract WSU researchers have developed a Counter Bias Training, specifically designed to help police officers override implicit racial bias in their decisions to shoot. In face of recent events that have led to a damaged police-community relationship this training will have a meaningful impact nationwide. The researchers tested police officers (110) and civilians (78) in strikingly realistic deadly-force simulators. The study findings indicate that despite clear evidence of implicit bias against Black suspects, officers and civilians were slower to shoot armed Black su...

PECO: a Personalized activity ECOsystem

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 12 May 2023 12:38:52 GMT

Unmet Need: Activity Recognition in multi-view ecosystemsSmart Environments have become more ubiquitous in recent years and with these advancements, the activity recognition algorithms have advanced, but still lack the ability to collaborate and transfer information across heterogenous devices.The Technology: Collegial Activity Learning between Heterogeneous SensorsWSU Researchers have developed a novel system for learning and transferring the data from different sensors to improve the way in which the sensors interact within the smart environment. This method employs machine learning techniqu...

Self checking Phasor Data Concentrator

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 12 May 2023 12:37:28 GMT

Unmet Need: Validation of synchrophasor measurements The current techniques and phasor measurement units provide synchronized phasor measurements with desirable accuracy only in the steady state condition. During transient conditions, especially during power swings or during transient changes in power system frequency, both magnitude and phase angle change. Thus, Fourier-like algorithms derived from signal models that assume amplitude, frequency and phase angle to be constant for computing synchronized phase measurements, provide erroneous results as the assumptions are violated during trans...

Wheat Variety 'Otto' (WA8092), Soft White Winter Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 16:02:47 GMT

Otto, is a soft white common wheat developed and released in 2011 by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Otto was named in honor of Otto Amen, a former state representative, WSU alumnus, and wheat producer who established an endowment to fund dryland wheat research in Washington. Otto provides a combination of excellent yield potential and excellent disease resistance in dryland winter wheat production areas of the inland Pacific Northwest. Otto is best adapted to regions of Washington, Idaho, and Oregon where Eltan, Bruehl, and Xerpha are currently grow...

Splatt Collaboration Table

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 29 Mar 2023 12:11:38 GMT

Unmet Need: Tested and Flexible Collaboration Furniture Available tables for office and educational environments provide limited flexibility to accommodate various group sizes and dynamics to encourage collaborative creativity. This Technology: Splatt Table A multi-disciplinary team designed petal and pocket configuration, revising proportions over years based on observations of its use and positive reception for multiple types of meetings and studies. Non-hierarchical seating for up to ten, with smaller groups able to shift for more intimate meetings within pockets, more so...

Smart Home Recognition of Multiple Residents

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 08 Feb 2023 10:15:17 GMT

Unmet Need: Smart Home Optimization for Multiple Residents Smart environments show great promise for use in medical monitoring, energy efficiency, and ubiquitous computing applications. Realization of truly smart environments requires the development of robust methods that can be applied to real world settings, to interpret data from the sensing elements present in the environment. Most research to date, however, handle cases where there is only one resident in the space at a time. This Technology: Tracking and Activity Recognition in Multi-Entity Environments This invention provid...

Improved performance of Zn-Br2 static batteries with internal magnetic fields

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 19 Dec 2022 08:17:32 GMT

Unmet Need: Zinc dendrite growth and cross-diffusion of bromide ions causes failure in Zn-Br2 static batteries. Flowless zinc bromide (Zn-Br2) batteries show potential as cost-effective, safe alternatives to lithium-ion batteries. However, uneven metal deposition leading to the growth of zinc dendrites limits the efficiency and durability of static Zn-Br2 battery systems. WSU inventors have developed a method to mitigate dendrite growth, corrosion, and cross-diffusion in Zn-Br2 batteries, leading to long life cycles and increased coulombic and voltage efficiencies. The Technology: Increased...

Gas-assisted dynamic co-extrusion

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 01 Dec 2022 15:26:55 GMT

Unmet Need: Scalable and high-throughput fabrication of personalized medicines In order to avoid dosage errors and adverse drug reactions for people taking multiple medications for co-occurring diseases, personalized medicines was introduced. This offered treatment of a patient by manufacturing proper drugs at the appropriate dosage via additive manufacturing and delivering to the right location at the right time. However, one of the major barriers hindering the deployment is lack of a scalable and high-throughput manufacturing process to fabricate personalized drugs on-demand at the point-of...

Nasal Treatment for Overdoses

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 04 Aug 2022 15:47:59 GMT

Unmet Need: Accidental Deaths due to Benzodiazepines, Opiates, and Combined Benzodiazepine/Opiate Overdoses are Epidemic The use of opiates combined with benzodiazepines is ever-increasing. A study evaluating the prescription patterns between 2002 and 2014 reported that the annual number of patients receiving benzodiazepines increased 31 percent (23 to 31 million), whereas those receiving opioid analgesics increased by 8 percent (75 to 81 million). Accidental deaths in the United States due to benzodiazepine, opiate, and combined benzodiazepine/opiate overdose are ‘epidemic&rsquo...

Polyurethane Composition with Enhanced Thermocompression Characteristics

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 14 Jun 2022 13:22:12 GMT

Unmet Need: Challenges recycling and reprocessing polyurethane foams due to their thermoset behaviors Polyurethane foams are thermosets and accordingly, at their useful end of life, it may be challenging to reuse or recycle such polyurethane foams. The reprocessing of polyurethane is usually a slow process, especially for those prepared from petroleum-based ether polyols. Though high processing temperatures (like 180 - 220 °C) can promote the network rearrangement and hence improve reprocessability, thermal degradation and decomposition of polyurethane likely occur at temperature ...

A Facile, Mild, Fast, Catalyst Free Polylactic Acid (PLA) Degradation Method that Generates a Variety of Valuable Products

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 09 Jun 2022 12:19:35 GMT

Unmet Need: Current Polylactic Acid Recycling Processes are not Optimal, Requiring High Pressures/Temperatures, Long Degradation Times and/or Catalysts Currently, PLA degradation routes are divided into three categories: high temperature hydrolysis, low temperature hydrolysis and alcoholysis. Alcoholysis usually requires transesterification catalysts in a high-pressure environment, which can be difficult to separate from the final product. Like alcoholysis, high temperature hydrolysis is usually performed in a high-pressure environment and under harsh degradation conditions. Although low...

Thermoacoustic-catalytic system for cooling and transforming cryogenic hydrogen

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 24 May 2022 11:55:05 GMT

Unmet Need: Efficient hydrogen cooling and spin conversion Hydrogen is one of the most promising fuels for the future clean economy, as it does not produce harmful emissions and as a liquid, hydrogen is one of the most energy-dense carriers. However, conventional liquefaction and cooling systems for cryogenic hydrogen involve a number of moving parts and require passing through a catalytic bed to ensure spin conversion of hydrogen to bring it to the lowest energy state. The Technology: Thermoacoustic hydrogen cooling over spin conversion catalyst bed for maximum efficiency The inventors hav...

Polyols and Polyurethanes from Lignin

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 29 Apr 2022 08:02:53 GMT

Unmet Need: Successful production of lignin based Polyols Polyurethane (PU) is an important class of thermoset polymer with a $70 bn/year market, providing materials for many applications. PU materials are comprised of an isocyanate and a polyol; both of which are currently obtained from non-renewable petroleum resources, suggesting that the development of biobased alternatives is of utmost importance toward the national endeavor of net zero carbon emission by 2050. There has been development of lignin-based PU but due to the complex structural properties of Lignin, it remains a great challen...

Metal-Organic-Framework-based Electrolytes for Solid-state Batteries

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 29 Apr 2022 07:59:34 GMT

Unmet Need: Improved electrolytes for solid-state batteries Solid-state batteries show a great potential for practical application in energy storage devices. However, the ionic conductivity and interfacial properties of solid -state electrolytes still need to be improved for the wide commercialization of solid-state batteries due to insufficient ionic conductivity, narrow electrochemical stability window, poor mechanical robustness, poor compatibility with metal anodes, and instability under ambient atmosphere. The Technology: Metal–organic frameworks based solid-state electr...

Deep Eutectic Solvents based Electrochemical devices

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 29 Apr 2022 07:55:57 GMT

Unmet Need: Liquid electrolyte suitable for a range of electrochemical devices Liquid electrolytes are widely used in most electrochemical devices and should have wide operating temperature window, high ionic conductivity, low viscosity, wide electrochemical stability window, non-flammability, and low cost. However, conventional liquid electrolytes cannot meet all the requirements mentioned above. For example, commercial lithium-ion battery electrolytes are highly flammable, ionic liquid electrolytes have high viscosity and poor lithium-ion transference number, and high-concentration electrol...

Recovery of Valuable Bioactive Compounds from Potato Peels

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 19 Apr 2022 16:03:11 GMT

Unmet Need: High-yielding extraction of bioactive compounds without the use of toxic solvents The growing consumption of fresh potatoes in food processing industries has led to a fast-increasing generation of potato peels. More than 1.01 million metric tons of fresh peels were produced in the northwest of the United States in 2011. The lack of efficient way to handle these vast amounts of peels could cause severe environmental issues due to microbial spoilage. Additionally, limited storage options and high transportation costs of fresh peels with high moisture content prevent cost-effective u...

Foamed Drywall Waste Panels (FDWP): A fire-protective insulation technology

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 05 Jan 2022 16:21:49 GMT

Unmet Need: Environmentally friendly fire-protective insulation material Flammable plastic foam insulation (aka Styrofoam) has been under scrutiny in recent building fires. Noncombustible alternatives are costly & produced with carbon-emitting fuels. Concurrently, there is pressure to end landfilling of gypsum drywall waste from building construction & demolition since drywall waste decays and emits hydrogen sulfide gas, impacting quality of life & health. The Technology: Conversion of Gypsum waste into foamed insulation material The proposed invention is...

Graphene oxide nano-engineering for interfacial transition zone in cement composites

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 05 Jan 2022 15:12:45 GMT

Unmet Need: Mitigating weakness in the interfacial transition zone in cementitious composites. Cement composites are a type of affordable and versatile artificial building material that have been extensively used in modern civil engineering. However, their inherently quasi-brittle behavior has limited their structural applications, due to the associated crack propagation and poor tensile strength. For practical applications, cement is typically used as a binder for concrete, and it is well known that the interfacial transition zone (ITZ) between aggregates and cement matrix is the weakest zon...

Tailored, Non-linear Signal Modulation for Encoding Information in Multiple Dimensions

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 03 Dec 2021 14:02:41 GMT

Unmet Need: Fast, multidimensional analysis of the physical, chemical, and mechanical properties of gas-phase ions, molecules, and particles When coupling two or more stages of on-line or off-line analysis, the second stage of analysis must be much faster than the first to adequately sample information transmitted between dimensions. When the second dimension of analysis is slower than the first, modulation of information in the first dimension is necessary to effectively encode the first dimensions information in the second or higher dimensions. However, this modulation of data can co...

Rapid Electrochemical Assay for Detecting Antibiotic Susceptibility (READAS)

commercialization@wsu.edu — Sat, 20 Nov 2021 15:00:01 GMT

Unmet Need: Fast and effective technique to expedite antibiotic selection Studies show that each year in the U.S., at least 2.8 million people are infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria or fungi, and more than 35,000 people die as a result. According to the World Health Organization’s 2016 report, the number of drug-resistant infections is expected to reach a staggering ten million by 2050, making it one of the world’s most urgent public health problems. There is an unmet need for identifying etiological pathogens in order to determine which antibiotic should be used for...

Phase Shifter-Relaxed and Control Voltage-Relaxed Steerable Multibeam Forming Front End

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 03 Nov 2021 09:22:29 GMT

Unmet Need: Prevention of in band insertion loss during beamformingWith emerging 5G and 6G communication, the beamforming technique with steering capability attracts great interest to boost the channel capacity, support high data rate, and increase the spectrum reuse, especially for millimeter wave spectrum. The existing beam steering solution applies hybrid approach to overcome the drawbacks of both analog and digital beam steering. However, large phase tuning (360 degree) phase shifter causes in band insertion loss variation, and it requires complex control algorithm to compensate the phase ...

Recombinant Babesia Bovis Strain Expressing Glutathione S Transferase as a Vaccine Against Ticks

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 03 Nov 2021 09:00:42 GMT

Increasing B. bovis immunity in cattle at a reduced cost Parisitic infection of cattle by Babesia bovis can cause cattle loss, and as well poses a risk of infection to humans. This infection causes destruction of red blood cells which ultimately leads to hemolytic anemia. Although this parasite was eradicated in the US in 1943, there is significant risk of a B. bovis outbreak in the regions bordering Mexico, and endemic regions of the world are constantly plagued or at risk of outbreak. Currently, methods of conferring immunity by using tick subun...

Germline Ablation in Goats

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 08 Oct 2021 16:22:33 GMT

Unmet Need: Accurate and dependable breeding of desired traits While livestock all over the world exhibit a variety of traits that allow them to survive in different environments, they don’t always have other qualities breeders deem to be desirable, like high quality meat or growth potential. In the past, people would bring in a male – or sperm from a male – with these traits to mingle with the genetics of a female that was adapted to survive that environment. While this may help produce hybrid offspring with a combination of genetics that are both desirable and help the ani...

Wood-Based prepreg for downstream production of composite laminates

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 17 Sep 2021 13:54:09 GMT

Unmet Need: Need for biobased prepreg There has been a rapid growth in research and innovation in the natural fiber composites (NFCs) as part of reducing environmental impact. NFCs are renewable, lightweight, energy efficient, and environmentally friendly. Glass/carbon fiber reinforced plastics (GFRP/CFRP) are mostly used in modern aircraft structures. Considering disadvantage of these materials such as sustainability, CO2 emission, and recyclability, search for NFCs for aerospace industry has been initiated. The Technology: Wood-Based Prepreg and Laminates manufactured with the prepre...

Nano-Modified Waterproof Sealers and Methods for Concrete Preservation

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 01 Sep 2021 09:23:02 GMT

Unmet Need: Prevents aging of and damage to concrete in harsh environments Commercial surface treatments have demonstrated limited ability to protect concrete from salt scaling and thus extend the service life of concrete pavements, bridge decks, etc. Based on their functions, surface treatments are often divided into the following categories: barrier coatings, hydrophobic impregnation coatings, and pore blockers. Current curing aids, such as acrylics, tend to form a film on the surface of concrete, hindering the subsequent use of penetrating sealers for the preservation of concrete structure...

A Method For Assessing Neurodevelopmental Abnormalities

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 07 Jun 2021 10:49:15 GMT

Unmet Need: Technology to assist in clinical screening of neurodevelopmental abnormalities. There has been research to support clinical screening of neurodevelopmental disorders particularly ASD. The current technologies capture pupils, but does little to guide the user towards capturing the measurement in children. Also, it does not provide a comparative measure for interpretation in relation to developmental of the pupillary light reflex response/visual pathway over time. The Technology: Using pupillary light reflex measure to detect neurodevelopmental abnormalities. Proposed technolog...

Medium for Culture of Mammalian Cell Lines

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 01 Jun 2021 07:51:21 GMT

Title: Interstitial Fluid-modeled Medium (IFmM) for Culture of Mammalian Cell Lines Unmet Need: Novel Interstitial Fluid Media to Mimic Physiological Condition There exists a need for a nutrient medium media that mimics the qualities of interstitial fluid to allow for growth of tissue cultures under physiological conditions similar to those in live models. Therefore, a need exists for a eukaryotic cell culture media to provide for nutrient compositions that are better suited to physiological base line conditions. The Technology: Novel Nutrient Media The technology relates to a n...

Environmentally Friendly Method for Recycling Plastic Waste

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 28 May 2021 09:07:51 GMT

Unmet Need: Easy recycling of difficult to discard plastics Extensive use of plastics has led to waste disposal management difficulties and serious environmental problems such as intensive energy consumption, toxic gas emission, and occupying many landfills as synthetic plastics such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) do not rust and are not easily degraded in an outdoor environment. Therefore, there is a need to provide a high-efficiency, low-energy consumption, and environmentally friendly recycling technology for PET plastic waste. PET plastic accounts for ~8% of the total waste p...

Soil Health Sensor

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 26 May 2021 14:43:49 GMT

Unmet Need: Fast and accurate measurement of soil health Soil health is a complex phenomenon that reflects the ability of soil to support both plant growth and other ecosystem functions. Research on electron transfer processes in soil environments is limited and can provide novel knowledge and new ways of monitoring soil health. Electrochemical activities in the soil can be studied by inserting inert electrodes, and in turn these measurements can be used to determine soil health rapidly and requiring less expertise compared to current technologies. The Technology: Soil reactor to bette...

Low Cost and High Performance Transition-Metal-Based Electrocatalysts for Water Splitting

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 03 May 2021 13:49:01 GMT

Unmet Need : Accommodating the unpredictable and intermittent nature of renewable energy requires efficient energy storage and conversion devices. One of the most promising solutions is to convert renewably generated electricity into fuels, such as hydrogen, methane, and ethanol. Electrolysis of water is considered an easy and clean method to obtain hydrogen. Oxygen evolution reaction (OER), however, as one of the two important reactions (hydrogen evolution reaction as the other part) involved in electrolysis, is the bottleneck for practical water splitting applications. The sluggish kinetics ...

Cost-Effective Single-Step Process for the Catalytic Conversion of Methane to Methanol/Formaldehyde

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 03 May 2021 13:44:17 GMT

Unmet Need: Currently there is no technology available in the market capable of producing Dimethyl Ether (DME) from methane in a single reactor. DME is an attractive substitute for diesel due to its high cetane number, which is a measure of its ignitibility in compression ignition engines. In addition, DME’s quiet combustion and inability to form harmful particulate carbon matter make it suitable for high-efficiency diesel cycle engines. The industrial-scale production of DME requires a network of pipelines to introduce CH4 into the process. In remote areas, where no gas grid is a...

MICRONEEDLE ARRAY WITH A CONTROLLABLE LOCKING FEATURE

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 12 Apr 2021 09:04:48 GMT

Unmet Need: Easy fixation and removal of microneedle for drug delivery Microneedle (MN) arrays are medical devices used to deliver drugs to the human body via bypassing the skin barrier, namely the stratum corneum. Given MNs’ small size, they provide a less painful and minimally invasive approach to delivering via the skin. One challenge for using MNs for drug delivery is the fixation and removal of the MN. Existing methods, such as using an adhesive backing, face issues including scarring and tissue damage, limited adhesion, and complicate the manufacturing and application proces...

Additive Manufacturing of Ion Selective Membranes and Electrodes

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 15:04:03 GMT

Title: IDENTIFYING HYPOCALCEMIA IN DAIRY CATTLE Unmet Need: Increased availability of specific membranes and electrodes Ion-selective membranes and electrodes are ubiquitous in use and are a key component of diagnostics, research, and industry. However, improvements can be made to utilize ion-selective membranes and electrodes using 3D/additive manufacturing. Through the use of such techniques there can be a reduction of fabrication time, a decrease in production cost, and an increase in use and production. The current technology allows for development of cost effective and specifi...

A NATURAL ANTIMICROBIAL TO CONTROL PATHOGENIC E. COLI

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 11:08:49 GMT

AbstractHarmful strains of Escherichia coli bacteria, primarily found in cattle cause severe, sometimes life-threatening human illness. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 110,000 cases (due to specifically enterohaemorrhagic E. coli (EHEC)) occur annually in the United States, and is now plaguing more than 30 countries around the globe. The other E. coli virotype, enterotoxigenic E. coli (ETEC), according to the World Health Organization, causes more than 200 million cases of diarrhea and 380,000 deaths, mostly in children in developing countries.A tea...

Deep neural network a posteriori probability detector for magnetic recording

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 08:49:14 GMT

Unmet Need: Multi-track detection for two-dimensional magnetic recording Hard disk drives (HDDs) shipped currently use one-dimensional (1D) perpendicular magnetic recording. HDD industry is approaching an areal density limit for conventional 1D magnetic recording. HDDs store only binary data, hence equalization techniques such as OFDM are not suited. HDD recording channels have media noise. Currently trellis based Viterbi algorithm (VA) is used to detect coded data bits in presence of ISI and media noise. Two-dimensional magnetic recording suffer complexity with VA and it grows exponent...

Urotensin 2 and its Receptor as Candidate Genes for Beef Marbling Score and Subcutaneous Fat Depth

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 08:37:56 GMT

Significant improvements in animal performance, efficiency and carcass and meat quality have been made over the years through the application of standard animal breeding and selection techniques. However, such classical animal breeding techniques require several years of genetic evaluation of performance records on individual animals and their relatives and are therefore very expensive. Other efforts have been made to improve productivity and quality through the application of such management practices as the use of feed additives, animal hormonal implants and chemotherapeutics. However, there...

TFAM Gene Markers Marbling and Backfat in Beef Cattle

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 08:36:37 GMT

FABP4 Gene Markers for Marbling and Backfat in Beef Cattle

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 08:33:54 GMT

Abstract Significant improvements in animal performance, efficiency and carcass and meat quality have been made over the years through the application of standard animal breeding and selection techniques. However, such classical animal breeding techniques require several years of genetic evaluation of performance records on individual animals and their relatives and are therefore very expensive. Other efforts have been made to improve productivity and quality through the application of such management practices as the use of feed additives, animal hormonal implants and chemotherapeutics. How...

The UQCRC1 Promoter Polymorphisms with High Expression Activity Increase Muscle Lipid Accumulation & Subcutaneous Fat Depth

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 31 Mar 2021 08:33:01 GMT

Neutrophil Apoptosis induced by Nanoparticles Improved the Therapies of Inflammatory Diseases

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 01 Feb 2021 11:26:47 GMT

Unmet Need: Improved specific induction of neutrophil apoptosis through the use of nanoparticles to treat inflammatory diseases. Systemic inflammatory responses are a normal response to infections and tissue damage. However, when the expression of inflammatory cells is uncontrolled associated diseases occur. Through specific targeting of neutrophil by the current technology a return to homeostatic levels of neutrophils can be accomplished. This neutrophil apoptosis inducing drug however, does not suppress the entire immune system, allowing for patients to return to normal inflammatory le...

Treatment of Neurological and Inflammatory Conditions with Probiotics

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 15:01:28 GMT

Title: Treatment of neurological and inflammatory conditions with probiotics Unmet Need: Treatment of Neuroinflammatory Conditions Neuroinflammatory conditions lead to several ailments, including Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (ADEM), Acute Optic Neuritis (AON), Transverse Myelitis, Neuromyelitis Optica (NMO), and Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Neuroinflammatory diseases are generally treated with several treatment methodologies include medicinal drugs, however new pharmaceutical free treatment options are needed in addition to traditional treatments. This technology addresses a ne...

Interactive Therapeutic Booth with Real-time Emotional Monitoring to Improve Mental Health and Well-being

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 13 Jan 2021 14:24:12 GMT

Challenge: Automated emotional recognition and environmental adaptation Mental health challenges such as post-traumatic stress, autism spectrum disorders, and aging-related cognitive decline are difficult to treat, and access to trained therapists is limited. Existing sleep and meditation pods can sooth healthy individuals, but are not capable of recognizing and adapting to emotional responses. The Technology: Interactive Emotive Spaces Emotive booths, kiosks, and other adaptive structures interact with individual users by deriving a perceived emotional state associated...

Production of lignin with controlled structural properties

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 07 Jan 2021 13:41:34 GMT

Unmet Need: Production of high-performance composite materials using lignin The emerging biomass refinery industry generates an enormous amount of lignin as waste in biochemical biomass-to-biofuel conversion processes. No practical biorefinery lignin valorization process has been demonstrated so far. Given the potential volume of biorefinery lignin, diverting the majority for material production is a particularly appealing approach. Unfortunately, existing technologies cannot produce high-performance composite such as carbon fiber using lignin. The key to solving this technical challenge is t...

Origami structure as an expulsion bladder for a rocket tank

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 18 Dec 2020 15:39:22 GMT

Challenge: Supply of vapor-free cryogenic liquid propellant in a rocket tank The key to propellant transfer in microgravity is the propellant management device (PMD), which ensures that vapor-free propellant is supplied from a source tank (e.g. a fuel depot) to a receiver tank or engine. Failure to do so for engines will result in combustion inefficiencies and even engine failure. Most traditional surface-tension based PMDs face difficulties when handling cryogenic liquids, and thus primarily occupy low-to-mid technology readiness levels (TRLs). Bladders are an attractive alternative to surfa...

Ti-Ta-Cu alloys for Implants

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 15 Dec 2020 14:51:53 GMT

Unmet Need: Improved production methods and alloy materials for biological implants The growing need for implants is increasing with an aging national population, and an increase in the use of implants to treat a younger and younger range of patients. With the increased need for implants there is also a need for higher strength and affordable implants that resist bacterial growth, while promoting bone adhesion. Through the use of 3-Dimensional printing and other forms of additive manufacturing custom implants can be made of high strength materials. This technology addresses the need for novel...

QUICK TUBE CONNECTOR

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 07 Dec 2020 08:57:07 GMT

Unmet Need: Efficient mechanism for coupling tubes A variety of applications involve coupling tubes or other similar devices to facilitate the transport of various fluids. Existing mechanisms for coupling such components together include clamps, connectors, adhesives and are not efficient particularly in circumstances wherein access to the components being connected is restricted. One example: new construction or retrofit plumbing in tight spaces. The Technology: Apparatus for coupling tubes, pipes, conduits, ducts, or other similar devices The system for coupling tubes, pipe...

Production of composite wood-strand panels for construction applications

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 14 Oct 2020 11:46:22 GMT

Unmet Need: Enhanced performance and longevity of construction wood A challenge with current thin, wood-based construction panels is their performance and longevity when exposed to high moisture environments. Moisture infiltration and accumulation over time, poor maintenance, window and roof leaks, or condensation and plumbing leaks can render these products susceptible to biodegradation due to fungal decay or deformations such as cupping and warping, leading to performance degradation and undesirable visual defects. The Technology: Thermally modifying composite wood-s...

DLM-Desktop Learning Modules

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 06 Oct 2020 14:18:19 GMT

Desktop Learning Modules for Fluid Mechanics and Heat Transfer The Desktop Learning Module (DLMX) is a powerful new hands-‐on educational system that will enable instructors to transform traditional lecture-‐centered classrooms to include hands-‐on active learning pedagogy. These enhanced interactive environments revolve around miniaturized industrial fluid mechanics and heat transfer equipment. A Base Unit provides a fluid reservoir and digital readouts of temperatures, differential pressures, and flow rates. The Base&n...

Making DREAMs Come True: A Workbook to Help DREAMers Thrive in College

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 06 Oct 2020 14:12:22 GMT

An estimated 200,000 college students, or 2% of all college students in the United States, are undocumented immigrants. Undocumented students experience greater anxiety and stress compared to their peers and face unique challenges that can jeopardize completion of their education. WSU researchers have developed a self-help workbook, Making DREAMs Come True: A Workbook to Help DREAMers Thrive in College to help undocumented students gain psychological resilience in facing their unique challenges. This workbook is based on years of research by Dr. Paul Kwon and his team, and has been tested and ...

BLINK™: Quickly Enhance Your Success to Map Genes

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 15 Sep 2020 13:40:47 GMT

BLINK™ implemented state of art algorithms developed by Zhiwu Zhang Lab, a lab of Statistical Genomics at Washington State University for the development of statistical methods and computing tools to promote genomic research. BLINK™ was designed to conduct Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) in a timely fashion to fully realize the potential values of your data. Both real and simulated data analyses demonstrated that BLINK improves statistical power compared to existing methods and also achieves an extremely high computing efficiency. Please see the details of the method publi...

Time-based Circuits and Systems for Wideband Spatial Signal Processing

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 09 Jun 2020 14:00:17 GMT

Unmet Need: Competent spatial signal processing for large modulated bandwidths Next-generation phased-array systems with large modulated bandwidths and high energy efficiency will enable wireless communication at the speed of Gigabyte/second such as in 5G communications. The state-of-the-art phase-shifter based arrays and true-time-delay based spatial signal processing at this large scale cause unsolved challenges such as beam-nulling with a swept single tone in a baseband to radio-frequency (RF) impedance translation, frequency-dependent filtering for applications at lower RF carrie...

One-step one-pot synthesis of aliphatic amine and nitriles

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 04 Jun 2020 09:00:30 GMT

Unmet Need: Single-step synthesis of aliphatic amine and nitriles With a growing market of high-quality surfactant and emulsifiers, global demand for amine and nitriles is growing rapidly. Traditionally, aliphatic amine are synthesized in multi-step process that treat feeds of multiple components like alcohols, olefin, nitriles etc. Current synthesis routes employed to produce aliphatic amine and nitriles have drawbacks like use of expensive reagents, multi-step process, formation of toxic by-products and poor selectivity to primary amine and nitriles. The Technology: Nitrog...

Renewable Energy Storage via Efficient Reversible Hydrogenation of Piperidine captured Carbon Dioxide

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 02 Jun 2020 10:15:59 GMT

Unmet Need: Using heterogeneous catalysts for hydrogen storage The worldwide installed solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind energy capacity have surged exponentially for the past decades.1 However, renewable power generation is highly intermittent and seasonal, resulting in serious issues including grid capacity/stability, curtailment, and supply/demand mismatch. The storage of renewable energy is the major hurdle during the transition of fossil resources to renewable energy. One possible solution to the storage challenge is to use a regenerative hydrogen fuel cell (RHFC), which converts e...

Conversion of co-mingled waste plastics to monomers and fuels

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 19 May 2020 16:41:46 GMT

Unmet Need: Better management and utilization of waste plastic accumulated in landfills Huge amounts of plastics is produced every year and es expected to double over the next two decades. A vast majority of waste plastic is accumulated in landfills sloughing off in the natural environment as litter. The degradation of plastic polymers in landfill may take hundreds of years. The waste accumulated eventually ends up in oceans and has resulted in an ecological crisis. This waste poses a threat to marine and freshwater organisms and humans. These reasons make it imperative to develop alte...

Vocal monitoring and biofeedback device.

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 13 May 2020 10:49:33 GMT

Unmet Need: Personal therapeutic device for speech therapy. Speech pathologies affect millions of Americans, and are characterized by symptoms such as variable speech rate, voice problems (hoarseness, tremulousness, etc.), as well as reductions in vocalization and respiratory capacity as it relates to volume and vowel articulation. Management for such disorders typically consists of multiple commutes to in-office therapy from a speech-language pathologist, which can mean expensive sessions. Regaining vocal presence can be a pivotal milestone in regaining the ability to communicate, socializ...

Grid Control for Unknown Resonance Events (CURE)

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 29 Apr 2020 13:40:48 GMT

Unmet Need: Detection and damping of resonance events in a power grid Complex electric distribution systems cannot be perfectly modeled to reflect every duty cycle and configuration of each component which might come on-line. Recent instances of forced oscillations in wide area networks illustrate the difficulty in quickly locating their causes, and the danger of widespread service disruptions. Along with ongoing research aimed at speedy localization and targeted disconnects, operators and power users can benefit from active measures aimed at stopping forced oscillations of unkn...

Smartphone App for automated in-tree crop load estimation of apples

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 20 Apr 2020 09:13:31 GMT

AbstractCrop-load or yield estimation is an important management tool for growers of fresh market fruit crops such as apples. Estimation of expected harvest volume is crucial for efficient management of pre- and post-harvest operations such as acquiring desired equipment and labor force for harvesting and transporting fruit from orchards to packing houses. There are no commercial equipment or platform that can automatically estimate the total number of fruit and fruit size in orchards. Washington State, which is the top producer and supplier of apples in the United States, produces 15-18 billi...

Use of Photosynthetic Pigment Stabilizing Chemicals to Regulate Ripening and Quality in All Fruits and Vegetables

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 16 Apr 2020 17:05:44 GMT

Abstract 1-Methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) is used in various agricultural commodities to slow the ripening process of fruit while in storage and therefore extend their shelf life. MCP sometimes works in pears and sometimes does not, because pears oftentimes never resume ripening. Studies on d'Anjou pears, for example, showed that pears could be kept immature (maintaining the brix and firmness levels) on a post-harvest basis by spraying them with a particular organic compound. Initial studies on Bartlett pear, sprayed post-harvest, showed similar results. The benefits of spraying with the organic c...

Host-free culture medium for ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 16 Apr 2020 11:50:39 GMT

Unmet Need: Effective strategies to cure Huanglongbing (HLB) HLB, also known as citrus greening disease, is an extremely destructive disease of citrus trees. The disease is a great threat to the citrus industry. Currently, three species of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter’ have been described as main cause of HLB. Among them, ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’ (C.L. asiaticus) has been described to be a major threat for America’s citrus industry. It is critical to obtain a host-free culture to study and develop long term strategies for curing the deadly disease. ...

Pneumatic spray delivery reservoir

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 13 Mar 2020 14:10:13 GMT

Challenge: Pressure drop in fixed sprayers for high density trellised orchards Farmers are pursuing increased crop density in orchards using trellised trees. Existing irrigation and agrochemical applicators are not optimized for such orchards. Challenges with mobile pesticide sprayers include operators’ proximity to concentrated chemicals, excess resource use, and narrow operating conditions. Fixed plumbed sprayers known as solid set canopy delivery systems (SSCDS) provide benefits over mobile sprayers for higher density crops, but existing hydraulic spray delivery (H...

The Professional Handbook of Cider Tasting

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 10 Feb 2020 09:36:31 GMT

The Professional Handbook of Cider TastingUnmet Need: Standardized Guide for effective sensory evaluation of Cider in the US.In the last decade, with the rise of the craft beverage movement, the cider industry has experienced an annualized growth rate of 27.3 % reaching $300.4 million in revenue from 2012 to 2016. For the next five years, cider sales are projected to continue growing at a more sustainable rate of 1.2%. In the midst of the industry's rapid growth in the U.S., there are insufficient publications for understanding both the theory and practice of effectively evaluating the sensory...

Software Application for Crop and Pest Management in Africa

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 04 Feb 2020 08:45:09 GMT

Challenge: Update farmers about emerging management techniques and pest controlFarmers in Africa are sometimes uninformed on modern farm practices and technologies. Language and literacy challenges make it difficult to spread information on pests and the results of academic research. Existing information tools often rely on active internet access and reading skills, leaving farmers behind and food production stunted.The Technology: A software application acting as virtual assistant to farmersResearchers at WSU present an audio-visual mobile application called CornBot.&n...

Single-atom nanozyme

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 14 Jan 2020 08:57:16 GMT

Unmet Need: Use of single-atom catalysts as nanozymesNanomaterial-based enzymes referred as nanozymes are promising alternatives to natural enzymes. Based on their properties of higher stability and lower cost, nanozymes are synthesized and applied in various applications. Iron oxide nanozyme has been a classical research model, but is still weaker and inferior to natural enzymes. Efforts have been made to decrease the size of nanoparticles leading to rising surface free energy of the nanozyme which further leads to serious aggregation and rapid catalytic activity loss. The Technology: Single ...

Trackable, implantable medical device for diagnostic data delivery.

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 14 Jan 2020 08:54:52 GMT

Unmet Need: Accurate and efficient wireless communication with instrument in human body. Minimally invasive catheter based endovascular and intracardiac procedures play an increasingly critical role in modern medicine and are used to treat a wide array of medical conditions encompassing the clinical fields of interventional radiology (IR), cardiology (CC) and electrophysiology (EP). Instrument tracking or navigation capabilities and ability to deliver therapy and retrieve diagnostic information are essential components required for this technology. The Technology: System and method of wir...

Night Out Task: Psychological Assessment of Everyday Functioning

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 10 Jan 2020 14:06:11 GMT

Unmet Need: Better Assessment of Everyday FunctioningWell-established existing psychological tests allow for measurement of behavior and memory capacity, but providers have few tools to predict everyday functioning ability. Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and other conditions impacting autonomy present with a spectrum of challenges, and a new test is needed to provide a standard gauge which correlates to common tasks of independent living. This Test: The Night Out Task (NOT)Individuals are given standard instructions to complete a set of tasks in preparation...

Size-Adjustable Functional Maternity Hospital Gowns

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 17 Dec 2019 17:27:30 GMT

Unmet Need: Comfortable Maternity Hospital Gowns Labor and delivery are important markets in healthcare and there is increasing demand for quality maternal health services. There is particular interest in the availability of functional, comfortable, and aesthetically pleasing maternity hospital gowns. According to a survey of over 500 postpartum women conducted by the inventors, currently available gowns are considered uncomfortable and in great need of improvement. Providing superior hospital gown options for women would greatly improve patient experience, comfort, and well-being. ...

Cellulose Dispersions for Reducing Cold Damage in Tree Fruit

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 20 Nov 2019 11:55:49 GMT

Unmet Need: More cost-effective and less labor-intensive cold damage protection technology Economic loss from cold damage is one of the most prevalent recurring production issues in temperate fruit industry, and poses a significant challenge to profitable and sustainable production. Each year, the U.S. produces >15M tons of deciduous fruit crops that have a combined value of >$11B. These crops are susceptible to cold damage, and the effects of unpredictable/unseasonable cold are a major threat to the profitability of the industry. The current methods of cold damage protection are unde...

Activity Learning ("AL") Application for Real-Time Generalizable Activity Recognition

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 04 Nov 2019 09:54:43 GMT

Unmet Need: Sensor Data Recognition and Analysis Strained care providers and an increasing elderly population need additional non-invasive human behavior analysis and intervention to increase independence and autonomy of individuals with decreased memory and mental capacity. The Technology: Activity Learning ("AL") Application AL provides improved activity recognition using mobile device sensor data and machine learning. It runs on iOS and Android platforms, automatically labels collected data, and can produce time usage reports. AL includes optional us...

Generating Ammonia Excreting Mutant Bacterial Strains

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 25 Sep 2019 11:20:43 GMT

Generating Ammonia Excreting Mutant Bacterial StrainsUnmet Need: Effective Nitrogen-fixing Symbioses of Non-Legumes.Legumes have been an integral part of sustainable agricultural systems for thousands of years due to their ability to form nitrogen fixing symbioses with diazotrophic bacteria. Unfortunately, many important food species including the grasses, maize/corn, rice, and wheat cannot establish effective nitrogen-fixing symbioses with diazotrophs, which means that they are largely dependent on nitrogenous fertilizers to increase yields. The Technology: Creation of Ammonia Excreting ...

Real-time PCR primers for native yeasts of grape

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 16 Sep 2019 10:08:27 GMT

Monitoring Native Yeast Populations in VineyardsUnmet Need: Effective strategy to identify and quantify native Yeast populationsNative yeasts are part of the microbial community in grape vineyards and play roles in alcoholic fermentation and wine quality. Monitoring their populations during fermentation and after bottling is important as it will provide viticulturalists and enologists with information needed to help control spoilage and to enhance desirable wine properties. Saccharomyces cerevisiae and wine fermentation. Photo credit: iStock.The Technology: Real Time PCR for rapid quantificati...

Whole transcriptome start site sequencing (WTSS-seq) method

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 13 Aug 2019 15:12:11 GMT

Unmet Need: Effective methods for genetic profiling RNA contributes significantly to the complexity of information transfer from genome to phenome. Alternative transcripts have been considered as biomarkers for improved early diagnosis of diseases, and as targets for designing novel treatment options. Recent studies have revealed that the transcriptome diversity was largely due to usage of alternative transcription start and termination sites, rather than the alternative splicing. There is a need to find effective methods of genetic profiling to capture alternative polyadenylation sites (...

Bacterially secreted immunostimulants to protect plants against pathogens

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 08 Aug 2019 09:57:58 GMT

Unmet Need: Effective strategies to protect plants from root knot nematode Root-knot nematodes (RKN, Meloidogyne spp.) are major agricultural pests on a global scale and can cause billions of dollars in yield loses each year. The temperate root-knot nematode Meloidogyne chitwoodi is endemic to the potato growing regions of the Pacific Northwest of the USA, as well as areas of Europe, Asia, and Africa. This species is important in potato production because it can infect the tubers, causing unsightly galling and brown spots to form under the tuber skin. Commercially available potato cultivars ...

BLINK-genome analysis tool

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 06 Aug 2019 11:42:34 GMT

SummaryBig data accumulated from biomedical and agronomic studies provides the potential to identify genes controlling complex human diseases and agriculturally important traits through genome-wide association studies (GWAS). However, big data also poses tough computational challenges, especially when complex statistical models are employed to simultaneously reduce false positives and false negatives. The newly developed Fixed and random model Circulating Probability Unification (FarmCPU) method uses a bin method under the assumption that Quantitative Traits Nucleotides (QTNs) are ...

Wheat Variety 'Net CL+' (WA8280), Hard Red Spring Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 05 Aug 2019 11:43:40 GMT

Net CL+ is a broadly-adapted hard red spring wheat with two-gene tolerance to BeyondTM herbicide for use in rotation in ClearfieldTM production systems in all production zones of the Pacific Northwest. It has an excellent yield record, with above average grain protein, good adult resistance to stripe rust, medium height with very good straw strength, very good test weight, and Hessian fly resistance in low, intermediate, high rainfall production areas. Net CL+ combines top-end yield potential, high test weight, and above average grain protein compared to most hard red spring wheat variet...

Wheat Variety 'Stingray CL+' (WA8275), Soft White Winter Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Sun, 04 Aug 2019 21:31:08 GMT

Stingray CL+ (WA8275CL+) is a soft white winter wheat with 2-gene resistance to the herbicide Imazamox, developed and released in 2019 by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Stingray CL+ has excellent resistance to Imazamox herbicide applications under recommended label rates. This cultivar provides a combination of broad adaptability, excellent grain yield potential, high test weight, good end-use quality, and disease resistance. Stingray CL+is adapted to the broad dryland production regions of Washington and Northern Oregon. The excellent agronomic and dise...

Wheat Variety 'Resilience CL+' (WA8187), Soft White Winter Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 24 Jul 2019 14:38:12 GMT

Resilience CL+ is a soft white common winter two-gene Imidazolinone tolerant (ClearfieldTM) wheat variety developed and released in 2016 by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Compared to the single-gene, the two-gene technology provides significantly better tolerance to Imidazolinone group of herbicide imazamox. Resilience CL+ was developed using marker-assisted background selection approach. Compared to popular wheat varieties including that with ClearfieldTM technology, Resilience CL+ has higher yield potential, excellent stripe rust resistance and foot ro...

Wheat Variety 'Curiosity CL+' (WA8143), Soft White Winter Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 24 Jul 2019 14:32:38 GMT

Curiosity CL+ is a soft white common winter two-gene Imidazolinone tolerant (Clearfield) wheat variety developed and released in 2013 by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. It’s the first two-gene Clearfield (CL+) wheat variety released by WSU. Compared to the single-gene, the two-gene technology provides significantly better tolerance to Imidazolinone group of herbicide imazamox. Curiosity CL+ was developed using marker-assisted background selection approach. Compared to popular wheat varieties including those with Clearfield technology, Curiosity...

Wheat Variety 'Mela CL+' (WA8155), Soft White Winter Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 24 Jul 2019 14:25:18 GMT

Mela CL+ is a soft white common winter two-gene Imidazolinone tolerant (Clearfield) wheat variety developed and released in 2013 by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. It’s the second two-gene Clearfield (CL+) wheat variety released by WSU. Compared to the single-gene Clearfield, the two-gene technology provides significantly better tolerance to Imidazolinone group of herbicide imazamox. Mela CL+ was developed using marker-assisted background selection approach. Compared to popular wheat varieties including those with Clearfield technology, Mela CL...

Wheat Variety 'Purl' (WA8234), Soft White Winter Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 24 Jul 2019 14:13:45 GMT

Purl (WA8234) is a soft white winter wheat developed and released in 2018 by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Purl provides a combination of excellent yield potential, high test weight, good end-use quality, and disease resistance. Purl is best adapted to the intermediate to high rainfall dryland production regions of the inland Pacific Northwest. The unique disease resistance package and high yield potential of Purl makes it an ideal cultivar for growers looking to minimize risk and maximize profit on their farms.

Barley Variety 'Survivor' (07M-203), Two-row Spring Barley

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 24 Jul 2019 14:00:53 GMT

Survivor is a two-row, hulled, spring feed barley developed by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Survivor is the first barley variety in the U.S. that possesses tolerance to IMI-herbicides in a high yielding genetic background. Survivor is adapted across all rainfall zones in dryland farming systems in eastern Washington. It is moderately resistant to stripe rust and has high protein and test weight in the feed barley market class. Survivor is not intended to be sprayed with IMI herbicides; rather it was developed to withstand residual herbicides in th...

Wheat Variety 'Pritchett' (4J071366-1), Winter Club Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 24 Jul 2019 13:54:48 GMT

Pritchett, a winter club wheat developed by Washington State University and the USDA-ARS, is targeted to the traditional low-intermediate rainfall club wheat growing region. Pritchett was named in honor of John Pritchett, who served the USDA-ARS wheat breeding program from 1957–2000. Pritchett has excellent emergence from deep sowing, excellent club wheat quality, and excellent resistance to stripe rust and Cephalosporium stripe disease. Pritchett should replace Bruehl in low rainfall areas due to superior yield, test weight, milling quality, eyespot tolerance, earlier maturit...

Barley Variety 'Havener' (09WA265.5), Two-row Spring Barley

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 24 Jul 2019 13:49:29 GMT

Havener is a two-row, hulless, spring food barley developed by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Havener is named in honor of Robert and Elizabeth Havener, long- time champions in the effort to eradicate hunger and malnutrition worldwide. Havener, developed specifically for human consumption, contains 50 to 75% higher β-glucan (a heart-healthy soluble dietary fiber) than common Washington-grown varieties Lyon, Muir, Champion, Bob and Baronesse. Havener has higher yields and test weights across all eastern Washington rainfall zones than the hulless...

Wheat Variety 'Sequoia' (WA8180), Hard Red Winter Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 24 Jul 2019 13:42:12 GMT

Sequoia (WA8180) is a hard red winter wheat developed and released in 2015 by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Sequoia provides a combination of superior emergence, excellent yield potential, and desirable end-use quality for dryland winter wheat production areas in the Inland Pacific Northwest. Data indicate Sequoia emerges faster than comparison varieties such as Finley and Farnum. Sequoia is best adapted for regions in Washington and Oregon receiving less than 12 inches average annual precipitation in a deep-furrow planting system, where the varieties F...

Methods and Compositions for Prevention and Treatment of Apicomplexan Infections

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 15:33:06 GMT

Unmet Need: Effective treatment options to combat Apicomplexan parasitic infectionsDiseases caused by apicomplexan parasites, such as cryptosporidiosis and malaria are among the most devastating to humans and their domestic animals. Ongoing discovery and development of new drugs to treat these diseases is a medical and veterinary imperative. For example, cryptosporidiosis causes severe diarrheal disease in young children world-wide and is a major challenge to the beef and dairy industries as a primary cause of neonatal calf diarrhea, yet to date there are no drugs to control this i...

Identification of Cats at a High Risk for Developing Chronic Kidney Disease

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 14:46:41 GMT

Unmet Need: Effective strategies to identify cats that will benefit from early intervention to prevent onset of CKDChronic Kidney Disease (CKD) is the most common metabolic disease of domesticated cats and a clinically important cause of mortality in aged domestic cats. Despite the high prevalence of kidney disease, the underlying reasons why some cats are remarkably prone to this disease are still unknown. Availability of a method to identify cats at a high risk to develop CKD would allow for early intervention through dietary and lifestyle changes and could greatly improve a cat’...

Wheat Variety 'Ryan' (WA8214), Soft White Spring Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 14:42:10 GMT

Ryan is a broadly-adapted soft white spring wheat released in 2016 by Washington State University that may be grown in all production zones of the Pacific Northwest. It has early maturity, very good adult resistance to stripe rust, shorter height with very good straw strength, good test weight, Hessian fly resistance, aluminum tolerance, and excellent yield potential in low, intermediate, high rainfall, and irrigated production areas. Ryan uniquely packages early maturity, top-end yield potential, and yield protection traits compared to soft white spring wheat varieties including Whit, B...

Wheat Variety 'Tekoa' (WA8189), Soft White Spring Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 14:37:03 GMT

Tekoa has top-end yield potential, combined with desirable yield protection traits, and excellent quality. Tekoa is a soft white spring wheat variety released by Washington State University that may be grown in all production zones of the Pacific Northwest. It has later maturity, very good resistance to stripe rust, medium height with very good straw strength, very good test weight, Hessian fly resistance, aluminum tolerance, and excellent yield potential in low, intermediate, high rainfall, and irrigated production areas. As a later maturity variety with high test weight, it may provide...

Wheat Variety 'Melba' (WA8193), Soft White Spring Club Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 14:31:36 GMT

Melba is intended as a replacement for JD club spring wheat in intermediate, high rainfall, and irrigated production areas of the Pacific Northwest. Melba has similar maturity as JD, with shorter plant height, lower protein content, excellent resistance to stripe rust, very good test weight, and superior yield potential in intermediate, high rainfall, and irrigated production areas. Like JD, Melba is susceptible to Hessian fly. Melba is broadly adapted and has performed well in all production regions in the PNW.

Wheat Variety 'Jasper' (WA8169), Soft White Winter Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 14:23:34 GMT

Jasper, (WA8169) is a soft white winter wheat developed and released in 2014 by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Jasper is named after the first wheat breeder at WSU, William Jasper Spillman, and is the 100th release from WSU. Jasper provides a combination of excellent yield potential, great end-use quality, and good disease resistance for many production regions of the inland Pacific Northwest. Jasper is broadly adapted to many dryland and irrigated areas in the states of Washington and Idaho, and has maintained high yield potential across locations ...

Barley Variety 'Muir' (07WA-601.6), Two-row Spring Barley

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 14:21:31 GMT

Muir is a two-row spring feed barley developed by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Muir is named in honor of Carl Muir, a former graduate student of Orville Vogel and a long-time field supervisor with the WSU Barley Breeding Program. Muir is a high yielding variety adapted to low to intermediate rainfall zones of the Palouse. Muir provides an excellent multi-disease resistance package, has reliably plump kernels and high protein, and performs well in low-input and organic systems.

Barley Variety 'Lyon' (05WA-316.K), Two-row Spring Barley

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 14:15:53 GMT

Lyon is a two-row dual-purpose malt and feed barley developed by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Lyon is named in honor of Steven R. Lyon, a farmer and long-time wheat researcher at Washington State University. Lyon is a high yielding, broadly adapted variety particularly well suited to intermediate and high rainfall zones of the Palouse where Bob, Baronesse, Lenetah, and Champion are currently being grown. Lyon has excellent stem rust resistance, high protein, and plump kernels across a wide range of environments.

Wheat Variety 'Chet' (WA8165), Hard Red Spring Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 14:00:29 GMT

Chet, a tall hard red spring wheat from Washington State University, is our best variety option for low-rainfall areas of eastern Washington and Oregon. Chet has very good adult plant stripe rust resistance, Hessian fly resistance, excellent test weight, very good aluminum tolerance, tall plant height with good straw strength, and very good-to-excellent yield potential across low rainfall areas of the PNW. Chet should replace Hollis and Kelse acres in low rainfall areas due to superior yield, test weight, protein content, and stripe rust resistance.

Wheat Variety 'Seahawk' (WA8162), Soft White Spring Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 13:53:51 GMT

Seahawk uniquely packages outstanding defense traits and very good yield potential—a winning combination. Seahawk is nearly immune to stripe rust based on a combination of seedling and adult plant resistance genes and holds-up without fungicide application under the most severe epidemics. Seahawk genetics are mainly based on Whit and Alpowa backgrounds—proven across the PNW over the past 20 years. Hessian fly resistance, superior test weight, very good aluminum tolerance, Fusarium head scab tolerance, shorter plant height with good straw strength, and very good-to-excell...

Wheat Variety 'Puma' (WA8134), Soft White Winter Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 13:46:08 GMT

Puma, (WA8134) is a soft white winter wheat developed and released in 2013 by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Puma provides a combination of excellent yield potential, test weight, end-use quality, and disease resistance for intermediate to high rainfall dryland winter wheat production areas of the inland Pacific Northwest. Puma is best adapted to regions of Washington, Idaho, and Oregon where Madsen, Brundage 96, WB-528 and Tubbs 06 are currently under production. Puma has a unique disease resistant package for areas where low pH, Cephalosporium str...

Wheat Variety 'Glee' (WA8074), Hard Red Spring Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 13:25:11 GMT

Glee, is a hard red spring wheat developed by the Agricultural Research Center of Washington State University. Glee was named in honor of Virginia Gale Lee, an inspiring graduate student in the WSU Spring Wheat Breeding program who died from a rare, aggressive form of cancer in 2010. Glee provides a combination of high yield potential and excellent disease resistance in dryland spring wheat production areas of the inland Pacific Northwest. Glee’s five-year yield average is significantly higher than all comparison hard red spring varieties in WSU Variety Testing Trials from 12&...

Wheat Variety 'Alum' (WA8166), Hard Red Spring Wheat

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 22 Jul 2019 12:19:33 GMT

Alum, a newly released hard red spring wheat from Washington State University, is intended to provide growers with low soil pH and aluminum toxicity; a very solid and broadly adapted hard red spring wheat variety. Alum has very good adult plant stripe rust resistance, Hessian fly resistance, above average test weight, very good aluminum tolerance, medium plant height with good straw strength, and very good-to-excellent yield potential across the PNW. Alum should be of particular interest to growers in Spokane, eastern Whitman, Columbia, and Walla Walla counties in Washington, and in...

Anisotropic fabric for thermal face mask

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 19 Jul 2019 15:39:05 GMT

Face masks currently on the market, especially those used for exercising in cold weather, have many limitations. Lack of ventilation in the face mask causes moisture accumulation inside, build-up of bad odor, and fogging up of goggles and sunglasses. An inventor at Washington State University’s Department of Physics invented an anisotropic face mask for use in cold and windy environments, which allows air flow in one direction but not the other. This provides protection from extreme weather conditions and allows for moisture to effectively escape to the outside. Using one-way...

Wheat Genotype(s) with Genetic Tolerance to the Soilborne Pathogens Rhizoctonia solani, Rhizoctonia oryzae, Pythium ultimum, and Pythium irregulare

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 03 Jul 2019 14:11:49 GMT

Abstract The invention is a new genotype of wheat with tolerance to the root pathogens Rhizoctonia solani, Rhizoctonia oryzae, Pythium ultimum, and Pythium irregulare group IV. This genotype was originally generated by screening mutagenized seed of the spring wheat for increased tolerance to Rhizoctonia solani. Later experiments determined that tolerance is due to a transmissible semi-dominant, single gene trait. This wheat genotype represents the first case of genetic tolerance to the Rhizoctonia root rot in wheat. Rhizoctonia root rot is an imp...

Aryl Propenal Double Bond Reductase

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 03 Jul 2019 14:01:02 GMT

Inventors: Norman Lewis, Laurence Davin, and Hiroyuki Kasahara. This disclosure descrbies a novel protein able to engender the reduction of aryl propenal side chain of aldehydes to generate the corresponding saturated aldehydes. The invention claims all related conversions utilizing a range of substrates from monomeric, dimeric to higher oligomeric substances known as phenylpropanoid matebolites. This is the first report of such a conversion in phenylpropanoid metabolism; the only distantly related transformation is in the reduction of enoyl acyl carrier protein reductase ...

Sampled time delay based multi input multi output baseband receiver

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 18 Jun 2019 16:14:21 GMT

Unmet Need: Wideband interference cancellation for wide modulated bandwidth The announcement on opening mm-wave bands for 5G by the Federal Communications Commission has intensified research in academia and industry on commercial mobile networks using mm-wave multi input multi output (MIMO) supporting wide channel bandwidths. However, as next-generation networks progress towards ultra-dense small cells, the dramatic shortening of inter-cell distances will result in both line-of-sight and non-line of-sight interference channels. While interference mitigation using electronic phased-a...

Behavioral Assessment within Smart Homes using Activity Curves

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 13:39:56 GMT

Challenge: Longitudinal assessment outside clinical environment Traditional individual behavioral health studies require a controlled laboratory or clinical environment distinct from an individual's usual living space. This can be costly, induce artificial stress on vulnerable subjects, and impact observed behavior. The Technology: Environmental sensor-based cognitive assessment This demonstrated method and implementation provides an alternative or additional tool for unobtrusive activity-based behavior and wellbeing monitoring, using data from pervasive computing and...

Knowledge Transfer in Smart Environments

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 13:38:14 GMT

Unmet Need: Simplified Training for Assistive Artificial Intelligence in New Sensored Environments Data mining and pervasive computing technologies found in smart homes offer unprecedented opportunities for providing context-aware services, including health monitoring and assistance to individuals experiencing difficulties living independently at home. However, activity recognition necessary to provide these services has typically involved gathering and labeling large amounts of data in each setting to learn a model for activities in that setting. This Te...

Electrochemical Scaffold for Wound Healing

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 17 Jun 2019 08:58:26 GMT

This technology establishes a novel foundation as an alternative to antibiotic-free wound dressings to eliminate infectious species from tissue via the continuous delivery of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Considerable attention is being focused on alternative, antibiotic-free biofilm removal strategies and the concept of electrical stimulation as a wound treatment has been advocated for over a century. While electrochemically-generated hydrogen peroxide near biofilm surfaces could potentially eliminate the biofilm, this requires continuous delivery at low concentrations in clinical settings. Our t...

Anti-inflammatory activity by Doxorubicin-Conjugated Nanoparticles

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 07 Jun 2019 13:41:56 GMT

Unmet Need: Effective therapy for inflammatory disorders. Inflammation is a key physiological response to bacterial and viral infections. Neutrophils are an important part of the innate immune response and normally maintain a constant population by undergoing spontaneous apoptosis after a short lifespan of 8-20 hours. However, it is well known that neutrophils display exaggerated activation and inefficient clearance in response to insults such as microorganisms and damaged cells. This results in excessive inflammation that can contribute significantly to pathology. ...

Performance Analysis of Power Grid Monitors

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 03 Jun 2019 10:25:19 GMT

Abstract: WSU has developed and continues to research tools for power grid management by generation and distribution system operators, to increase electrical security, reliability, and resilience. Power management tools rely on continued accuracy of distributed monitoring equipment. This invention includes systems and methods to test and analyze accuracy of power grid monitors (e.g., phasor measurement units (PMUs)). Includes comparison of time-stamped monitor and reference data and capable of operating in various steady state and dynamic grid conditions. Ap...

Power Supply Modulators with Voltage and Frequency Partitioning

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 03 Jun 2019 09:27:02 GMT

Abstract:Efficiency improvements of power amplifiers in wireless communication devices. Envelope tracking is a popular technique to improve efficiency of power amplifiers in current 4G LTE communication systems. However, next-generation wireless communications will feature ultra-high bandwidth, such as 250 MHz, to support the increasing demand for higher data rate. Existing envelope tracking supply modulators cannot support such high bandwidth, and extending the bandwidth of supply modulators results in significant loss of efficiency. This invention describes ultra-high...

Treatment for aggressive chemotherapy-resistant prostate cancer

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 09 May 2019 16:06:56 GMT

Unmet Need: Treatment of aggressive chemotherapy-resistant prostate cancer Prostate cancer (Pa) is a current epidemic that affects roughly 1 in 9 men. While treatment of early stages of this disease are very successful, a small percentage of patients have a recurrence of the disease that is much more aggressive. Current second line therapies include anti-androgens and chemotherapy yet eventually the disease becomes resistant to both therapies. Chemotherapy-resistant prostate cancer (ChRPC) remains a leading cause of cancer-related deaths in men as there are currently no therapeutics for PCa...

Small-World Network-on-Chip (SWNoC) Routing Methods and Systems

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 26 Apr 2019 13:21:21 GMT

Abstract: Millimeter(mm)-wave wireless Small-World NoC (SWNoC) is an enabling interconnect architecture to design high performance and low power multicore chips. SWNoC has an overall irregular topology, making it important to design suitable deadlock-free routing mechanisms. This technology incorporates irregular network routing strategies. Tested against benchmark, the variation in latency and energy dissipation is small. However, the network hotspot temperature can vary considerably depending on the exact routing strategy. Applications and Improvements: • &n...

Power Grid Voltage Stability Monitoring

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 26 Apr 2019 10:05:31 GMT

Abstract:Grid management ensures voltage stability and resilience upon disturbance. Earlier iterative tools could not provide real-time calculations. RT-VSMAP Engine: Real Time Voltage Stability Monitoring and Prediction allows for more proactive management of electric power systems. This tested technology provides continuous analysis of system topology and measurement inputs, such as synchrophasor data from phasor measurement units (PMUs) and phasor data concentrators (PDCs), supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) facilities, and other sensors. Applications an...

Network-on-Chip (NoC) Hardware Accelerators

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 25 Apr 2019 14:34:41 GMT

Abstract: This patented technology describes various configurations of Networks-on-Chip (NoCs), such as those with multiple wired and wireless links and dynamic node allocation. In some embodiments, a torus interconnect structure is employed. Advantages: Reduced network latency by offering multiple alternative communication nodes. Increased throughput. Intellectual Property Protection: Issued Patent, US 9,608,684

Automated Pain Detection in Pediatric Care

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 16:14:03 GMT

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Carbon-rich micro-particles for protecting bees and overcoming colony collapse disorder (CCD)

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 16:08:59 GMT

Unmet Need: Protection of honeybees from the effects of pesticides. The total economic value of honey bee pollination worldwide has been estimated to be around 10% of the global food production. Pesticides are a serious hazard to the honey bee industry, contributing to recent declines in honey bee colonies. The health of a honeybee has harmful effects after consumption of contaminated nectar or exposure to pesticides and/or other chemicals. At sub-lethal levels of pesticides, for example, honeybees develop abnormal behavior, foraging failure, and abnormal physiology, which n...

System for a Low Cost, High Fidelity Veterinary Simulation and Related Methods

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 16:03:26 GMT

Unmet Need: Teaching veterinary operative techniques in a low-risk environment Various learning methods are required to increase veterinary students’ comfort with surgical procedures before they work on live animals. Experiencing surgical procedures in a low-risk setting before performing a procedure in a real-life situation is very beneficial to the students. Recent studies have proposed the use of a simulation skills lab to address this need. This approach would promote the health and wellbeing of animals by reducing the need to use live animals to practice surgery in veterinary teachi...

Post-consumer Cotton Waste Recycling for High-Quality Brand New Fibers

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 15:59:18 GMT

Unmet Need: Efficient use of textile waste The worldwide fiber consumption for consumer textile products has been growing steadily in the past several decades due to population growth and living standard improvement. Given the fact that only about 15% of the post-consumer textiles are recycled, the number of textiles that contribute to the municipal solid waste (MSW) increases accordingly. Statistics from EPA shows every American adult averagely abandons 31 kilograms (i.e., 68 pounds) textiles each year, which account for 5% of MSW. Approximately two-thirds by weight of the textile wa...

Additive Manufacturing of Ceramic Composites

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 28 Feb 2019 11:30:32 GMT

Unmet Need: Efficient build and repair method for high temperature materialsIn many industries there are service parts that undergo material loss due to wear, erosion, corrosion, cavitation, and more. These damaged parts cost industries a lot to replace and time to repair them. Parts are constantly damaged and broken due to abrasives water flow and cavitation. The Technology: Additive manufacturing process for ceramics, metals, alloysWSU inventors propose using additive manufacturing to process parts directly for high temperature and ultra-high temperature ceramics having composition and/...

Home Orderliness Technologies

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 28 Feb 2019 11:15:34 GMT

Unmet Need: Detection of hazards based on map of location for elderly and disabled The user experience of care givers and home maintainers of seniors raised the need of designing a system to detect tripping hazards. They often face the issues of clutter, hoarding, fire hazards, tripping hazards, daily activity issues, and home usability when helping seniors care for themselves or help run large scale care facilities. A sensor source in the home is required to map out the shape of the space and/or vision processing technologies to determine the kinds, quantity, and placement of items around ...

Molecular Supracence based technologies

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 28 Feb 2019 11:02:11 GMT

Unmet Need: Enhanced spectral resolution in fluorescence imaging Fluorescence based technologies are the current method of choice for minimally invasive imaging. However, the fluorescence imaging is limited to about four colors since it lacks wavelength multiplexing due to exceedingly broad bands. This issue is unresolvable within the fluorescence principle due to the multiple pathways for emitting fluorescence within a single molecule. There is a tremendous need for technologies which can offer superior spectral resolution in molecular spectroscopy and microscopic imaging. T...

Body-worn camera for Police-citizen interaction validation

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 05 Nov 2018 14:32:36 GMT

Unmet Need: Automated detection and validation of Police-citizen interactionCurrent events demonstrate that there is a resurgence of interest in police behavior – namely disproportionate use of force, including lethal force by police officers. This renewed interest surrounds high profile events. These incidents, and a myriad of others, focus attention on if and when biased use of force is present in an agency. It indicates that a substantial number of studies seek to understand use of force and the situational and dynamic factors associated with that force. Policing scholars have long ar...

Data-Driven Activity Prediction

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 18 Oct 2018 09:24:48 GMT

Unmet Need: Simple and reliable approach to activity prediction An individual’s activities affect that individual, society, and the environment. Over the past decade, maturing of data mining and pervasive computing technologies have made it possible to automate activity learning from sensor data. To observe and understand individuals' activities and their effects, and predict activities that will occur in future, baseline methods exist, but are not reliable and accurate. The Technology: Activity predictor in a prompting application T...

Self-weighing, self-powered smart diaper

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 16:12:15 GMT

Unmet Need: Hygienic continuous monitoring of urinary output in babies. Urinary output (UO) is an important metric in the diagnosis, monitoring and treatment of many disorders including kidney disease, heart failure, dehydration, and shock. Premature infants suffer from several factors that make them especially vulnerable to fluid and electrolyte imbalances. The current measurement for UO involves diaper removal, movement to a common area for weighing, zeroing the scale with an unused diaper, and weighing of used diaper. The clinician documents the output, date, and time, and then cleans the ...

Masonry Blocks using Recycled Gypsum Wallboard

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 08 Oct 2018 15:04:21 GMT

Low Power Local Oscillator Distribution and Phase Shifting Circuits

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 28 Sep 2018 10:08:42 GMT

Abstract:Wireless communication devices often require incoming high frequency radio signals to be shifted and converted from analog prior to digital processing. This demands high power use, and circuits are sensitive to effects of parasitic capacitance. This patented technology offers improved performance and includes a sub-harmonic injection-locked local oscillator (SILO), which may be configured for mm-wave with coupled phase shifter, matching filter, resonance tank, and transformer-coupled oscillator.Applications and advantages:Lower power consumption facilitates high data rates...

High Resolution Focusing and Separation of Proteins in Nanochannels

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 27 Sep 2018 16:50:42 GMT

Abstract Development of device and methods to concentrate, separate and characterize low-abundance proteins with high resolution for diagnostic detection of trace biomarkers and treatment of economically important human diseases has always been desired. Commercially available, polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE), has been the widely used tool for protein separations, but this technique has multiple downsides: long separation time, large amount of sample required, low reproducibility, breakdown under high electric field, and low dynamic range. A number of separation platforms, i...

Production of Complex Flavonoids

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 14 Aug 2018 10:49:07 GMT

Unmet Need: Production of lipophilic methoxylated flavonoids Numerous methoxylated flavonoids exhibit pronounced bioactivities. Their biotechnological production and diversification are therefore of interest to pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries. Efforts to engineer flavonoid mechanisms have been conducted earlier but there has not been much progress in production of lipophilic (poly) methoxylated flavonoids The Technology: Engineering yeast cells for production of methoxylated flavonoids Researchers at WSU selected a set of enzymes to construct five yeast strains that p...

Biopsy device for improved tissue yield and selectivity

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 13 Aug 2018 09:29:01 GMT

Unmet Need: High efficiency Biopsy Devices Biopsy procedures are widely used for cancer diagnosis and monitoring. Out of currently available biopsy techniques, surgical biopsy is most accurate but it is highly invasive and expensive. The other techniques like fine needle aspiration (FNA) cytology and core needle biopsy (CNB) are less invasive but have their own limitations. There is a need to find a Biopsy technique which is efficient and yet less invasive. The Technology: Biopsy Needle Researchers at Washington State University’s School of Mechanical and Materials Engineerin...

Environmentally-Friendly Cement Binder

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 11 Jul 2018 12:36:11 GMT

Vortex tube lined with magnets for liquid oxygen separation

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 20 Jun 2018 12:03:42 GMT

Unmet Need: Alternative method for the separation and liquefaction of gases A widely used method for the liquefaction of gas includes compression of gas in a compressor, preliminary cooling in a heat exchanger and further cooling it in an expander with subsequent expansion of the gas through a throttle valve to cause cooling and condensation. Subsequently the liquid phase of the gas is selected and separated. While this method is widely used it does have the disadvantage of the implementation complexity in operation, and the associated cost. The Technology:&...

Acidic organophosphorus separation of americium and curium

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 14 Jun 2018 11:05:17 GMT

Unmet Need: Acidic separation of americium from curium for closing fuel cycleThe separation of americium from curium has been a challenging step for completely closing the nuclear fuel cycle. Both elements are most stable in the trivalent oxidation state in acidic solution. Compounding this issue is their nearly identical ionic radii. The identical charge and nearly identical ionic radii of trivalent americium and curium give rise to very similar chemical behavior in solution which makes separation by solvent extraction difficult. Insoluble bismuthate powder is used to oxidize amer...

New Design for Magnetorheological (MR) Brake

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 08 Jun 2018 11:55:54 GMT

Unmet Need: MR Brakes with Low Off-State Friction MR brakes are viable options for implementations in robotics and haptics since they have large force-to-volume ratios. Such applications require MR brakes that are capable of high force output with compact size. Existing linear MR brakes have limited strokes, are relatively large, and have high off-state friction forces mainly due to the piston-cylinder internal design. The Technology: Alternate new Interior Design for Linear MR BrakesResearchers at WSU have developed a new alternative internal design for linear magnetorheological brakes. ...

Drowsy Driver Detection

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 08 Jun 2018 11:48:55 GMT

Unmet Need: Effective prediction of loss of driver alertnessIn the U.S., falling asleep at the wheel is believed to cause at least 100,000 crashes annually. As many as twenty eight percent of polled American drivers have admitted to nodding off at the wheel at least once. Various techniques, which typically rely upon monitoring lane departure, large lateral deviations within a lane, etc., have been studied. However, no consensus is known regarding which metric or a combination of metrics is a more reliable indicator of driver alertness than other metrics.The Technology: Recording s...

Implementation of ACRT in Czochralski growth of Doped Single Crystals from Melt

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 01 Jun 2018 15:22:50 GMT

Unmet Need: Homogeneous doping is hard to achieve by traditional methods Crystal growth using conventional methods such as Czochralski (CZ), often suffer from core breakdown and low uniformity. This was shown especially for those crystals grown with low temperature gradients and those grown from highly viscous melts, in which natural convection does not provide enough stirring and forced convection is necessary.The Technology: Can grow high quality homogeneously doped single crystals This invention implements ACRT in Czochralski or vertical crystal pulling technique apparatuses to gr...

Conversion of Terpenoid Biomass to High-Density Jet Fuel by Highly Efficient One-pot Catalytic Process

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 18 May 2018 12:10:21 GMT

Unmet Need: Demand for bio-jet fuelsThe demand for bio-jet fuels to reduce carbon emissions is increasing substantially in the aviation sector, while the scarcity of high-density jet fuel components limits the use of bio-jet fuels in high-performance aircrafts compared with conventional jet fuels.The Technology: Novel biphasic tandem catalytic process (biTCP) for synthesizing cycloalkanes from renewable terpenoid biomassThe production of renewable jet fuels from biomass is in high demand due to global petroleum politics and climate change concerns. The current issues associated with bio-based ...

Micro Heat Engine/Refrigerator

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 23 Feb 2018 11:07:37 GMT

Abstract WSU inventors have developed micro-transducers with piezoelectric properties for converting energy in one form to useful energy in another form. Piezoelectric thin films have been used for years as power transducers in micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) and micro-electronic devices. Piezoelectric films are an attractive option for power transduction because of the relative ease with which such devices can be produced using conventional micro-machining methods.This WSU invention details the design and fabrication of a micro sized heat engine as alternate portable power supply (e.g...

Novel Anti-tick vaccine target

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 22 Feb 2018 10:31:12 GMT

Unmet Need: Efficient Anti-Tick VaccineThere are approximately 1,076 million head of cattle in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Australia and at least 80% of them are infested by ticks. In the Americas, around 326 million head of cattle in Brazil, Mexico, Venezuela, and Colombia are exposed to tick infestations. When ticks feed, they attach to the hide of an animal resulting in hide damage at the attachment site. Furthermore, ticks act as vectors for many diseases, such as babesiosis. These factors both play into the global financial impact that ticks have on cattle production...

Calcium/Calmodulin-Regulated Plant Immunity

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 22 Feb 2018 10:08:38 GMT

Unmet Need: Understanding the mechanism of regulation of salicylic acid by Ca2+ signaling Intracellular calcium transients during plant-pathogen interactions are necessary early events leading to local and systemic acquired resistance. Salicylic acid, a critical messenger, is also required for both these responses, but whether and how salicylic acid level is regulated by Ca2+ signaling during plant-pathogen interaction is unclear. The Technology: Study of novel of regulatory mechanism linking Ca2+ signaling to Salicylic acid level.Here a novel mechanism connecting Ca2+ signal to salicyli...

Novel P450-overexpressing cell lines

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 14:24:39 GMT

Unmet Need: Current market do not have P450-overexpressing cell lines Cytochromes are the major enzymes involved in drug metabolism, accounting for about 75% of the total metabolism. Most drugs undergo deactivation by Cytochromes P450 (CYPs), either directly or by facilitated excretion from the body. CYPs is a superfamily of are highly polymorphic enzymes, which participate in a lot of bio reaction in human body. For example, exemestane(EXE) is a third-generation steroidal aromatase inhibitor used in the treatment and prevention of breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Although seve...

Natural medicinal compounds coated porous ceramic scaffolds to enhance bone healing

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 12:45:46 GMT

Abstract Researchers at WSU have produced a 3D printing curcumin coated porous tricalcium phosphate scaffolds enhanced bone formation for faster healing. Curcumin, derived from the rhizomes of the turmeric plant, regulates the expression of genes involved in metastasis, cell proliferation, angiogenesis and osteoclastogenesis. However, its poor bioavailability and rapid rate of metabolism restrains its application in practical studies. Calcium phosphate ceramics have been used extensively for bone tissue engineering. Fabrication of calcium phosphate scaffolds with complex architectural fea...

Sulfur dioxide releasing agents

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 12:36:00 GMT

Abstract Sulfur dioxide has long been considered a toxic environmental pollutant and byproduct of industrial processing. But, more recently it has become evident that sulfur dioxide may also have a regulatory role in mammalian pulmonary systems. Researchers at WSU have discovered novel pharmaceutically relevant compounds that take advantage of this observation. This novel composition of matter demonstrates both site specific release of the sulfur dioxide and is readily biologically available due to its preferable water solubility and its ability to be formulated as a salt. Applications fo...

Fluorescent probes for the detection of hydrogen polysulfides

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 12:35:16 GMT

Abstract Endogenous hydrogen polysulfides have recently been recognized as important regulators in sulfur-related redox biology. H2Sn can activate tumor suppressors, ion channels, and transcription factors with higher potency than H2Sn. But, a major hurdle in this field is the lack of reliable and convenient methods of H2Sn detection. Researchers at WSU have developed a series of reaction-based fluorescent probes for H2Sn detection, which takes advantage of a unique dual-reactivity of H2Sn as both nucleophiles and electrophiles. This inventionopens a door for better understanding b...

A Two-Phase Approach for Time-Domain Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometry

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 12:34:54 GMT

Summary Drift-tube ion mobility spectrometry (DT-IMS) is largely unmatched in its ability to rapidly screen passengers, cargo, and the surrounding environment for narcotics, explosives, and chemical warfare agents. However, DT-IMS are limited by duty cycle. Most experiments are on the order of < 1%, and this limitation impacts sensitivity. In addition, existing Fourier transform (FT) IMS cannot fully realize multiplexing gains, due to the need for two physical ion gates and most importantly, the need for apodization function to recover IMS spectra from raw frequency-encoded ion signals. M...

Network-on-Chip (NoC) Systems with Wireless Interconnects

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 12:34:35 GMT

Abstract: This is an enabling technology to design energy efficient and high bandwidth multicore architectures with improved thermal profile over conventional wireline. Evaluation yielded lower latency and energy dissipation compared to a conventional wireline mesh. Network-on-chip (NoC) or network-on-a-chip is a communication subsystem on an integrated circuit (IC), typically between cores in a system on a chip (SoC). NoC technology applies networking theory and methods to on-chip communication and brings notable improvements over conventional bus and crossbar inte...

3D Printed Flexible Antennas

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 12:15:29 GMT

Abstract: Method to create three dimensional sub-mm wavelength, and sub-THz frequency antennas on flexible and in-situ cured dielectric material along with directly printed metallic antenna elements over the dielectric. The three dimensional sub-mm wavelength antennas have applications in wearable flexible electronics as well as ultra-high speed chip-to-chip communication. Reliable antenna designs with three dimensional curved geometries can provide significant area/volume compaction and directionality to the signal propagation. ...

Breathalyzer for Psychoactive drugs

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 12:14:41 GMT

Unmet Need: Lack of reliable on site detection method for psychoactive drugs Rapid detection of drugs of abuse in the field requires innovative approaches for collection and detection. Current approaches such as collection of blood, saliva, urine, sweat, or other bodily fluids may seem attractive but also have the potential to collect identifying biological materials. As such, there exists a need for reliable, fast, and non-invasive devices and methods for detecting psychoactive drugs in a subject that can be used in the field and/or in the workplace. The Technology: Breatha...

Novel agents for smoking and tobacco cessation

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 10:17:25 GMT

Abstract Nicotine is the molecule responsible for the psychopharmacological effects and the addictive properties of tobacco use and cigarette smoking. Researchers at Washington State University have developed an orally-available nicotine derivative that can be prescribed for the cessation of cigarette smoking and tobacco use. It specifically inhibits the major nicotine-metabolizing enzyme in the body and in some cases, another enzyme important in alternative nicotine metabolism. When administered in cigarette smokers and tobacco users, these agents will inhibit enzymes, resul...

System and Methods for Monitoring Edema

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 10:10:52 GMT

Abstract This invention presents a system and associated algorithms for monitoring edema. Edema is considered, clinically as a diagnostic symptom for many medical conditions. It can be present in various body locations such as lower limb, ankle, and abdominal area. The current invention, in particular, provide a means to measure edema continuously and in real-time to provide an objective assessment of the patients conduction which can be used as a basis for clinical interventions. Edema is often an early sign of significant fluid retention, which could eventually result in significant cardia...

Acid Labile Linker for Cancer-Targeted Drug-Conjugates

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 10:10:05 GMT

AbstractControlled chemical release is an increasingly critical characteristic in targeted therapy. Controlling chemical release via selective drug delivery has been the focus of significant research efforts to reduce off target effects associated with therapy, especially with regards to cancer chemotherapy. In many controlled release applications, it is desirable for a chemical structure to allow little or no chemical release at normal physiological conditions but, allow for the release of the active compound from the carrier only in the presence of a disease state. The ideal characteristics ...

Disturbed Self-assembly: Growing Block Copolymer Nanosheet (BCNS) Densely and Naturally

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 10:08:52 GMT

AbstractNanosheet plays an important role in the development of clinical therapeutics and diagnostics e.g., bioimaging/sensing, drug delivery systems and tissue engineering. As one of the most important approaches to preparing nanomaterials, self-assembly is able to give rise to various nanostructures from zero-dimension nanoparticles to three-dimension nano-architecture.WSU researchers have developed a technique to efficiently produce growing block copolymer nanosheets (BCNS). A new nanofabrication technology for growing new nanostructure, polymer nanosheet, based on self-assembly of copolyme...

Functionalized Porous Polymer Nanocomposites via Introducing Functional Components into Emulsion Systems

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 10:07:56 GMT

AbstractFunctional porous polymer films are of great interest to academia as well as industry for a variety of applications, such as gas separation, water purification and sensors. A porous structure can not only reduce the density of the material, but can also remarkably increase the surface/interface area, which can be used for various functionalizations. There are several ways to fabricate porous films, such as the self-assembly of water droplets known as the ‘breath figure’ (BF) technique, water/oil emulsion technology, and stretching techniques. This invention is on developmen...

Implants with attached drugs/topological features for bioavailability

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 10:04:56 GMT

Specific OpportunityNew and improved structural materials and surface modifications for load bearing human medical implants resorbable, biocompatible ceramics and engineered tissues for spinal fusions, maxillo-and cranio-facial implants and bone defect applications. Modification of existing implant and bone replacement materials to enhance bone healing with therapeutics and trace metallic improve biocompatibility of Ti (widely used metal in implants) and its alloys for faster osseo-integration, improved healing time, and reduced post-surgical infections. Intellectual Property Status: PCT...

Growth of Cerium Doped Yttrium Aluminum Garnet from an Alumina Rich Melt

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:58:16 GMT

Abstract This WSU invention concerns the growth of Cerium Doped Yttrium Aluminum Garnet (Ce:YAG) from a melt containing aluminum oxide with known amounts of YAG. Ce:YAG is a phosphor, when in its pure single-crystal from, with a wide range of uses. Notably, crystals can be used in white light-emitting diodes, as a coating on a high-brightness blue Indium Gallium diode, converting part of the blue light into yellow, which then appears as white. We have observed a consistent increase in yellow light emission and therefore better energy resolutions when growing Ce:YAG from and alumina rich melt. ...

Systems and Methods for Probability-Based Prediction of Fatigue and Fatigue Risk

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:57:02 GMT

Abstract Fatigue is a safety risk in aviation because of performance deficits in flight crews that have been shown to be correlated with fatigue. At FedEx, owing to the around-the-clock and across-time-zones nature of its operations, the development of a science-based system for tracking and managing fatigue risk is critical for safe operations and operational flexibility going forward. To improve upon existing, proactively implemented fatigue-limiting scheduling policies, therefore, FedEx is developing science-based rostering and scheduling software to further minimize fatigue risk and enhanc...

CaP-Ti6Al4V Composite Surfaces and Lubricated Hip Stem Surfaces Using Laser Re-melting on the Microstructure of Ti6Al4V

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:52:15 GMT

Abstract Recently there is a growing interest in the fabrication of novel structures to mimic multiple tissues and tissue interfaces on the same implant, such as implants with gradients in porosity and pore sizes that will allow on one side of the implant high vascularization and direct osteogenesis, while promoting osteochondral ossification on the other. In the current context, innovative designs such as functionally graded acetabular shells with open porosity on one side (in contact with the bone) to improve cell-material interactions and a hard ceramic coating on the other side (in conta...

Hydrogen Sulfide Detection

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:49:58 GMT

Abstract Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has been known as a toxic pollutant for years. However, H2S, has been recently recognized as an important signaling molecule of the cardiovascular system, the inflammatory system and the nervous system. H2S is now known as the third endogenous gaseotransmitter, alongside nitric oxide (NO) and carbon monoxide. There is rising interest on H2S research; however, questions still remain on how to regulate H2S production, its mechanism of action, and destruction. Understanding these processes and the function of H2S require accurate and reliable measuremen...

Power Systems Global Voltage Security Assessment

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:47:58 GMT

Abstract: WSU has developed and continues to research tools for power grid management by generation and distribution system operators, to increase electrical security, reliability, and resilience. Beyond the traditional voltage security assessment methods like V-P curve and Q-V curve, this invention provides a fast computation method based on power flow to indicate a global voltage security assessment index. Built on the understanding of line sensitivity, this kind of index is able to describe the current system operation status and mark the weakest bus for remediation. Applica...

Cardiac Biomarker Sensing Based on Nanofluidic Amplification and Resonant Optical Detection

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:47:46 GMT

Abstract This invention relates to a compact, lab-on-a-chip sensor platform to detect multiple cardiac biomarkers from microliter bloods samples. Optical characterization of cardiac biomarkers in will lay the groundwork for development of novel optical devices for detection and analysis of biomedically important molecules important for disease diagnosis. This platform integrates sample preprocessing through a nanofluidic field effect transistor (FET) electrofocusing unit with resonant optical detection based on silicon microrings. The combination of immunoaf...

Separation and Extreme Size-focusing of Nanoparticles Through Nanochannels Based on Controlled Electrophoritic pH Manipulation

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:47:08 GMT

Abstract Extreme size-focusing of nanoparticles, for instance, enables systemic studies of their physical properties, such as emission, absorption, photoelectric conversion, and photothermal conversion. This WSU invention relates to nanoparticle separation strategies based on pH manipulation in nanofluidic channels by surface charge control and controlled electrolysis. Flow control and focus molecules in nanochannels are shown to be easier with lower electric field and small amount of samples. This separation strategy has wide applications in many areas of science, including photonics, biomedi...

In-vitro Biocompatibility of Laser Processed Ta Coatings on Ti (former title: Bone Replacement Materials)

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:46:55 GMT

AbstractLow density, low stiffness load-bearing implant structures are a dream for orthopedic surgeons. In total hip replacements (THR), dense metals with higher density, stiffness, and strength than natural bone are traditionally used to replace the diseased or damaged hip, and help restore the natural hip function of the patient. Typical lifetime of a THR, however, is only seven to 12 years, and this lifetime has remained constant over the past 50 years. Low density and low stiffness implants are believed to increase the lifetime of THRs, and while researchers have attempted to produce impla...

Method of overcoming electrostatic repulsion when storing large densities of charged particles such as positrons

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:46:30 GMT

Abstract WSU inventors have developed a prototype trap that can store significant quantities of positrons that can create a tremendous amount of energy. Particles of antimatter, positrons, probes the basic interactions and properties of matter and has broad potential applications, including development of a new and high quality computer microchips, detecting atomic size defects in thin layers or surfaces of materials, etc. Applications and Advantages § Provides a stable method to store positrons hence prevent premature annihilation. IP Status US patent applic...

Biobased Epoxy Resins and Curing Agents using Rosin Acids as Building Blocks

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:46:10 GMT

Abstract WSU inventors have developed epoxy resin systems and carboxylic terminated polyesters using rosin acids as building blocks. This provides a method to make epoxy resin systems that do not contain Bisphenol A (BPA). Current powder coating polyester resins are built largely on tere-or isophthalic acid and trimellitic anhydride as rigid monomers together with other reactants. The epoxy resin is either diglycidyl ethers of bisphenol A or epoxy-novolac resin, both are based on the phenol building block. Rosin and derivative as adhesive tackifier is a well-established practice, and they have...

Rostering on the Basis of Sleep/Wake-Based Performance Prediction

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:45:05 GMT

Abstract Personnel rostering in operational settings -- e.g., air, road, rail and sea transportation, first responders (police, fire, and rescue), medicine, power generation, resource extraction, and military operations – has, thus, far centered on the logistics of resources and availability of employees, largely ignoring the performance capability of the employees as driven by their sleep/wake biology. Thus, rosters involving shift work and periods of extended wakefulness often cause individuals to work at times of increased sleepiness and reduced alertness and performance due to ...

Resorbable Ceramics with Controlled Strength Loss Rates

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:44:46 GMT

Abstract The WSU researchers have developed calcium phosphate-based resorbable ceramics with select dopants, optimized for in vitro degradation and cell-materials interactions as a function of time. This technology is an advanced resorbable biomaterial that allows for quicker restoration of functionally loaded natural bone. This synthetic calcium phosphates demonstrates properties similar to natural bone, but they lack the mineral content inherent to bone. This novel ceramic based calcium phosphates with different dopants allows for a number of applications but the most prominent is in c...

Low Density, Low Stiffness Load-Bearing Implant Structures

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:44:34 GMT

Abstract This invention relates to implants for total hip replacements or fixing physical hip joints damage. Using metal-based rapid prototyping process, WSU inventors have developed a process to create functional load-bearing implants yet low density and low stiffness. Low density, low stiffness load-bearing implant structures are a dream for orthopedic surgeons. In total hip replacements (THR), dense metals with high density, high stiffness, and strength than natural bone is traditionally used as implant to replace the disease or damaged hip and help restore the natural hip funct...

Liquid Phase Ion Mobility Spectrometry (LPIMS)

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 09:42:57 GMT

Abstract The present choice of analytical separation methods that occur under ambient pressure conditions are generally limited to gas chromatography(GC), liquid chromatography (HPLC), capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) and ion mobility spectrometry (IMS). IMS is about 3 times more efficient than HPLC, 130 times more efficient than GC and almost as efficient as CZE. The utility of these applications largely depends on the size of the equipment. Small high-resolution devices would make these applications more practical and allow for many new applications. While gas IMS methods ha...

Methods for chemical degradation of epoxies using organic salts as catalysts

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 14 Feb 2018 16:29:07 GMT

Unmet Need: Environmental friendly and cost-effective degradation of epoxies Recycling of thermosetting polymers is both economically and environmentally important due to the prevalence of polymers in landfills. Strong alkali or acid have been used for this purpose. Harsh chemicals would result in environmental pollution as well as it would turn the thermosetting polymer in to complex mixture rendering it to be a secondary waste The Technology: Using organic salts as catalyst for the chemical degradation Researchers at WSU have proposed use of a series of organic salts as effective catalys...

Real-Time Control for Actuators

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 08 Feb 2018 10:48:35 GMT

Unmet Need: Hysteresis free ActuatorsMagnetorcheological (MR devices - also called actuators) employ MR fluids that change their viscosity upon exposure to the magnetic field. Thus these devices have great applications in civil engineering, automobile suspensions etc. The major drawback of these devices is the hysteresis behavior that they exhibit which makes it difficult to control them and thus affects the overall performance. It also needs to go through extensive testing before an accurate and repeatable response. Current mathematical models require constant magnetic field assumption. The T...

3D tissue matrix scaffold for tumor modeling, biomarker/drug screening and tissue regeneration

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 30 Nov 2017 10:43:17 GMT

Unmet Need: Lack of tissue culture models that resemble native microenvironmentMammalian extracellular matrix (ECM) is comprised of a labyrinth of interconnected architecture that provides mechanical support and optimal tissue microenvironment for cell survival, growth, signal transduction and interactions. The currently available scaffold and planar tissue culture models using synthetic polymers or a single component of ECM do not resemble this native living microenvironment. Therapeutic studies and preclinical applications based on these methods have failed to provide consistent data and acc...

Smart Home Technologies to Support Adults with Cognitive and Physical Limitations

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 28 Nov 2017 14:16:42 GMT

Unmet Need: Sensor Data Recognition and Analysis In today’s connected world, businesses and individuals are more interested in capturing and understanding the data our smart phones, smart speakers, even smart refrigerators transmit. This data-mining craze has created a proliferation of sensor data and we are finding it difficult to track all of these smart devices in a given environment. There is an increasing likelihood that data is available from smart home technologies within our everyday environments but we are not effectively using that data. Many of these technol...

Underactuated, Tendon-Driven End-Effector for a Robotic Apple Harvester

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 04 Oct 2017 15:34:42 GMT

Abstract Apple picking is very labor intensive and expensive. Between 15-18 billion apples are harvested every year in Washington state alone for fresh market consumption, but often farmers can’t find enough people to pick the fruit. Furthermore, laborers are hard to acquire as apple picking is seasonal. This presents an urgent need for improved harvesting techniques. Apples require a system that is delicate enough to pick the fruit without bruising it, while also maneuvering around tree branches, leaves and other obstructions. Apple-picking robots can potentially save the apple indust...

Synthesis of Mesoporous Calcium Silicate for Controlled Release of Protein or Drug

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 09 Jan 2017 16:08:28 GMT

Abstract This WSU invention relates to mesoporous calcium silicate compositions and methods for producing mesoporous calcium silicate for controlled release of bioactive agents. Bioactive agents can include protein growth factors, pharmaceutical drugs, antibiotics, antimicrobial agents, and polypeptides just to name a few potential agents. With this technologies, novel method of controlled release coupled with the pluripotency of available bioactive agent, make it so this technology has multiple applications. The mesoporous calcium silicate is modified via acid to generate calcium silicate par...

Anti-Microbial Silver-Doped Stainless Steel Implants/Nails

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 09 Jan 2017 16:07:11 GMT

Abstract For many years silver has been used as a broad spectrum antimicrobial agent, applied towards reducing infections of burn victims, water treatment, treating textiles, among others. With an increasing amount of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, the utility of silver coatings and treatments are again being recognized as a cost- effective way to prevent bacterial infections such as for medical implants. This is especially crucial when surgeries are performed in environments where sanitation is not ensured. This WSU invention relates to the use of silver coatings...

Ultra-Trace Level F-element Pre-concentration Sensor/Electrode

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 09 Jan 2017 16:06:31 GMT

Abstract The ability to identify and quantitate the relative abundance of f-block elements present in environmental and industrial samples is of critical importance to national security. Current methods are slow, labor intensive and cannot be easily integrated into industrial systems. As reprocessing technologies become common within the nuclear industry the ability to accurately inventory materials on site in real time represents a key enabling technology for safe and secure operations. With over 400 nuclear power plants in operation, another 60 under construction and 500 in planning worldw...

Protein-based Superabsorbent Hydrogels

commercialization@wsu.edu — Mon, 09 Jan 2017 16:05:11 GMT

SummaryResearchers at WSU have produce a novel superabsorbent material prepared by a macromonomer approach which provides for a superabsorbent hydrogel. Additionally, due to the method of manufacturing the hydrogel is biodegradable. Superabsorbent hydrogels are water-absorbing polymers that can absorb 10-1000 times their weight in water. Currently, superabsorbent materials are mostly made of...

Stretch-able Metallic Interconnects

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 06 Jan 2017 13:50:17 GMT

AbstractThis invention comprises a novel architecture for thin or thick-film circuitry on a flexible or soft or stretch-able substrate composed of metallic elastic-plastic highly ductile materials, which enables the circuitry to sustain significant strains without breaking, and yet adhere to the substrate while it is stretched, bent, twisted or otherwise deformed.Flexible electronics are critical to a host of internet-ready devices including wearable sensing, biometric and communication devices, implants, roll-to-roll manufactured panels, etc. Flexible electronics are at the heart ...

Mitigation of whisker growth in electroplated tin coatings by alloying with Indium

commercialization@wsu.edu — Fri, 06 Jan 2017 11:20:15 GMT

AbstractWe have demonstrated that an electroplated tin coating containing a small amount of indium leads to a total elimination of tin-whisker formation. Because of the small amount of indium involved, this breakthrough whisker-elimination approach proffers a cost-effective, lead-free tin-plating approach for electronics packaging applications that require Level II or Level III reliability (i.e., high to very-high reliability and/or lifetime). We are currently forming partnerships for the development and manufacture of commercial electroplating baths and expect these to become commercially ava...

Chemical Ligation

commercialization@wsu.edu — Sat, 31 Dec 2016 20:55:45 GMT

Researchers at Washington State University Department of Chemistry have invented an improved method of native chemical ligation. The method involves the ligation of a peptide thioacid with an aziridinyl peptide to yield an aziridinyl peptide ligation product without the use ofprotecting groups. Ring opening of the ligation product ultimately yields the linearized peptide. Advantages:This method does not require the presence of a cysteinyl peptide for the reaction to occur and thus, it is not limited to proteins that contain or can tolerate the presence of a cysteine residue This meth...

Adhesive Conductive Binder for Battery Electrodes

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 22 Dec 2016 13:54:54 GMT

Abstract Researchers at WSU have developed a high-performance hybrid conductive adhesives (HCA), which showed strong adhesion properties, high ionic and electric conductivities and good elasticity. Energy storage devices are in desperate need of high-performance binder materials that can maintain good/stable contact among all the components and at the same time, transport ions and/or electrons efficiently. The properties of HCA was demonstrated to solving the interfacial issues for not only the current commercial electrode materials, but also the new high-performance electrode materials, ...

OK Medium: A Fluorogenic Selective and Differential Medium for Isolation of Enterobacter sakazakii

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 14 Dec 2016 11:46:31 GMT

Unmet Need: Method to isolate and differentially identify a single type of bacteria from a mixtureDue to the extensive quantity and variety of bacteria present in the clinical environment, it is desirable to have methods for isolating and differentially identifying a single type of bacteria from a mixture of bacteria. A common approach to identifying bacteria is based on their appearance and/or growth characteristics in different types of culture media. To aid in bacterial isolation and identification, a growth medium may be both “selective” and “differential”. A select...

A prism array based portable microplate reader

commercialization@wsu.edu — Tue, 13 Dec 2016 17:33:43 GMT

Unmet Need: Portable and low-cost point-of-care smart phone reader Traditionally, microplate based assays rely on laboratory microplate reader for data reading and analysis. This greatly limited the application of microplate based assays to laboratories and well-trained professionals. For on-field applications that require rapid and immediate, low-cost, and accurate analysis, traditional method cannot meet these needs outside the laboratory. A portable and low-cost microplate reader is in demand for point-of-care (POC) and mobile health (mHealth), in-field applications, and low resou...

Hybrid Nanoflowers for Bioassay

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 08 Dec 2016 17:17:52 GMT

Researchers at Washington State University’s School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering have developed new approaches to increase the sensitivity of sandwich-type immunoreactions by 1000-fold and allow the visualization and quantification of target pathogens through color intensity detection. These approaches can be developed as universal signal amplification techniques and applied to the detection of a myriad of pathogens and protein biomarkers. The researchers have developed a three-in-one nanocomposite as a novel enzyme-labeled antibody which can be easily synthesized in...

Control of plant fatty acid biosynthesis pathways through controlled degradation of selected target proteins

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 08 Dec 2016 17:04:15 GMT

Researchers at Washington State University have discovered a novel regulatory mechanism, which notonly significantly increases seed oil production in seeds of plants, but can also improve plant stresstolerance as well as modify a broad range of other developmental aspects. The approach focuses on modifying the ability of a group of proteins called BPMs to recognize and triggerthe degradation of a wide range of substrate proteins. These substrate proteins are differenttranscription factors and each one is responsible for regulating developmental aspects such as root andshoot growth, flower...

Apple harvesting machine for formally trained orchards

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 08 Dec 2016 16:47:26 GMT

Unmet Need: Improved mechanical harvesting techniques for apples and other specialty crop orchards Harvesting labor accounts for 50% of the total tree fruit production cost and this is expected to continue to rise as labor shortages increase. This presents an urgent need for improved mechanical harvesting techniques in apple and other specialty crop orchards. In addition, growers are adopting new horticulture practices that allow for tree limbs to be trellised to a post or wire because, among other benefits, these trellised systems will be ideal for automated and mechanized harvesting techni...

Printed Three-Dimensional (3D) Passive Integrated Circuit (IC) Components

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 17:08:27 GMT

Challenge: Traditional IC manufacturing methods require separately manufactured components, limiting efficiency in manufacture and size. Technology Abstract: Printed 3D IC passive component architectures, nano-powder inks and composite material used to make them, and the associated direct-write manufacturing methods with jetting of nano-powder inks. This invention enables critical system level integration, compaction, and components with reduced parasitics. Applications and Advantages: Enables low parasitic components and system level compaction by 3-D components. ...

Self-Operable Non-Invasive Fully-Automated Biomedical Device for Vital Signs Monitoring

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 17:07:28 GMT

Abstract According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an average of 600,000 people die of heart disease in the U.S. every year (1 in every 4 deaths). Similar statistics are present globally, where about 35 percent of deaths are due to cardiovascular diseases. More than half of those deaths occurred in a hospital emergency room or before the patient reached the hospital. Many lives can be saved by providing patients and doctors with cardiovascular activity data; however, the current process is cumbersome to patients and time consuming to doctors. Researchers at WSU ha...

Fracture-Directed Steerable Needles

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 16:59:12 GMT

Unmet Need: Current steerable needle designs rely on beveled needle tips to determine the direction of tissue fracture. Reliance on on interactions between the tissue and needle bevel type results in inconsistent results due to variation within and between tissues, and makes actualization of a desired bend across a range of tissues difficult. In addition, current designs only allow a 12-20cm radius of curvature of the needle. This uncertainty of bending and limited curvature is hindering potential medical needle applications. Technology: This novel steer...

Protein-based Nanofabrics as Multi-functional “Green” Air Filtering Materials for High Efficiency Particulate and Toxic Chemical Filtration

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 16:57:25 GMT

AbstractAir filters currently in the market cannot simultaneously purify the air from particles and chemicals effectively. The non-degradable synthetic nature of existing products also creates environmental issues. To solve these problems, researchers at Washington State University have developed a green multi-functional air filter. This filter is comprised of biodegradable materials and has been shown to not only filter particulate material out of the air, but also remove malicious toxic chemicals. This innovation is unique to the marketplace because it is comprised of biomaterials and ...

Dual Ionophore Ion Selective Electrode for Detecting Non-Ionic Molecules, Macromolecules and Cells

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 16:55:30 GMT

Abstract The ability to screen for cancer cells quickly and accurately is desirable in diagnostic medicine. Researchers at WSU have developed a biomolecule detection system able of detecting in near real-time (within seconds) the presence of prostate cancer cells in a biological sample of interest. This technology is able to detect binding between prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) expressing cells and a ligand developed to bind the PSMA receptor. The detection of the binding event happens in near real-time when a biological sample is added that contains prostate cancer cell...

pH-Controlled Hydrogen Sulfide Donors

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 16:54:08 GMT

Unmet Need: Current Market Lack controllable H2S donorRecent studies suggest that the production of endogenous H2S and the exogenous administration of H2S can exert protective effects in many pathologies. For example, H2S has been shown to relax vascular smooth muscle, induce vasodilation of isolated blood vessels, and reduce blood pressure. H2S can also inhibit leukocyte adherence in mesenteric microcirculation during vascular inflammation, suggesting that H2S is a potent anti-inflammatory molecule.The Technology: Able to release H2S controllably, slowly and sustainably Researchers at WSU hav...

Enzyme-Directed Pro-lmmunostimulants for Cancer Therapy

commercialization@wsu.edu — Wed, 07 Dec 2016 16:48:21 GMT

Targeting of pro-immunostimulants to tumor environments Cancer treatments could be optimized through more effective ways of targeting immunostimulants to tumor environments. Current immunotherapies are limited to direct intra-tumoural infusion, due to severe inflammatory toxicity that results from systemic routes of administration. Directed Enzyme Prodrug Therapy (DEPT) is an approach that couples a drug with a substrate, together the prodrug, where the drug is not active until the substrate has been cleaved off. A DEPT approach for the delivery of a...

Voltage Sweep Ion Mobility Spectrometry

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 27 Oct 2016 10:30:59 GMT

Abstract Ion mobility spectrometry (IMS), is a powerful tool commonly used for security applications (e.g. search for explosives, narcotics, and other trace contrabands) but it doesn’t achieve optimal separation power with both small and large ions simultaneously. Similar to the general elution problem of chromatographic experiments, small ions are well resolved using a low electric field, whereas large molecules are best separated using a higher electric field. While using a low electric field, IMS systems tend to suffer from low ion transmission and low signal-to-noise ratios. Washi...

A New Gas-Phase Atmospheric Pressure Ion Detection Mechanism

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 27 Oct 2016 10:30:05 GMT

Abstract Researchers at WSU have produced a novel Radiative Ion-Ion Recombination: A New Gas-Phase Atmospheric Pressure Ion Detection Mechanism. All the present atmospheric ion detectors including flame ionization detectors and ion mobility spectrometers utilize Fraday plate designs for ion detection. These plates collect charge and convert it to amplified current. The sensitivity of these plates is limited by the thermal noise in association with the electrons. Approximately 106 ions per second are required for a minimal detection. The WSU technology by comparison, combines photomultiplie...

Detection of androgen-independent prostate cancer progression and resultant treatment

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 27 Oct 2016 10:12:05 GMT

Unmet Need: Reliable biomarker and therapeutic targets for androgen-independent prostate cancerProstate cancer (PC) is the second most common cause of cancer related deaths in men in the United States. PC is initially androgen-dependent, making androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) the first line of defense in combating the disease. Though this treatment initially reduces tumor size, almost all patients eventually develop androgen-independent prostate cancer (AIPC), which is resistant to this primary form of therapy and is ultimately lethal.The Technology: Late stage prostate cancer diagnostic an...

Apparatus and Process for Preparing Reactive Lignin with High Yield from Plant Biomass for Production of Fuels and Chemicals

commercialization@wsu.edu — Thu, 27 Oct 2016 10:11:39 GMT

Unmet Need: A cost-effective and efficient methodology to convert lignin into high-value productsConversion of biomass derived lignin to liquid fuels has the promising potential to significantly improve carbon utilization and economic competitiveness of biomass refineries. The current challenge, however, is the propensity of the aromatic lignin macromolecular assembly to condense and degrade, thereby producing high amount of relatively intractable solid residues in bio refineries. This invention relates to improving the method of pretreating lignocellulosic biomass to maximize the yields of fe...