The patents granted to University faculty members and students
encompass the majority of the University’s scientific areas including
engineering, computer science, biomedicine, pharmaceuticals, health sciences,
materials, water and renewable energy. The pace of innovation has been
increasing steadily: last year BGU filed three times more patent requests than
a decade ago.
The young University, counting up to its jubilee, has become a
leading innovative force in recent years, establishing itself in key scientific
fields including cyber security, renewable energy and biomedicine. In recent
years, the University was listed among the top 100 worldwide universities
granted US patents (according to a report published by the US National Academyof Inventors and Intellectual Property Owners Association).
“We are committed to translating the discoveries of our
researchers into commercial technologies that can benefit society”, says BGU
President Prof. Rivka Carmi. Many patents issued to the University have
resulted in successful companies, and others have contributed to products developed
by international companies in cooperation with BGU.
One example is ElMindA, the first company to create an
FDA-approved neural assessment tool for brain trauma and illnesses based on a
visualization rather than invasive technology. The tool, which measures the
brain’s electronic activity and has been proven to detect early stages of
degenerative brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s, was developed by Prof. Amir Geva of BGU’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Another example is Botanocap, which produces green bio pesticides
for crop protection, based on nano micro encapsulation of volatile compounds.
The technology was developed by Prof. Arie Markus, from the Institute for
Applied Research at BGU.
A recent example is Xact Medical, a company founded last month,
which will develop a robotic tool for accurate placement of a needle tip at an
ultrasound-imaged point in the body. The tool, which greatly reduces patient
discomfort and procedure time, was co-invented by Prof. Hugo Guterman, from BGU's Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
According to Mr. Netta Cohen, the CEO of BGN Technologies, the
technology company of BGU, patenting inventions is only a first step to
commercialization. “Just as the University seeks to innovate, here at BGN
Technologies we have developed a number of tools to help our researchers create
successful technologies and companies. These tools include startup incubators,
technology accelerators, innovation hubs and a fast growing High-Tech park
adjacent to the University’s campus."
“We have also forged strong partnerships with leading
international corporations,” adds Mr. Cohen, “some of which have opened local
co-research centers on campus. Multinationals such as Deutsche Telekom, PayPal,
Oracle, Lockheed Martin-Leidos, IBM and Dell-EMC are located in the
University’s High-Tech Park".
“Cooperation with industry is our main goal, and in 2016 alone we
signed about 100 cooperation and mutual research agreements,” he notes.
BGU’s use of patents is not limited to commercialization.
According to Prof. Rivka Carmi, “It is important for us to leverage our
intellectual property in order to help advance the Negev region and the local
community.”
“We founded academic centers, such as the Bengis Center forEntrepreneurship and Innovation and the Cyber Security Research Center, and
established the University High-Tech Park, in order to foster a thriving
High-Tech cluster that would draw business and employees to the region. It is our
mandate to develop the Negev region and we are always realizing opportunities
to do so.”
