Vocal Health Screen, founded by UCD PhD student Rosalyn Moran, was last night declared the overall winner of the 10th NovaUCD Campus Company Development Programme (CCDP). The CCDP, which is sponsored and supported by BT Ireland and Enterprise Ireland, is a NovaUCD programme established to assist entrepreneurs in establishing new ventures to commercialise the output of UCD research programmes.
Rosalyn Moran
Rosalyn Moran is a PhD student working with Dr Richard Reilly, Senior Lecturer and Vice Principal for Research and Innovation at the UCD School of Electrical, Electronic and Mechanical Engineering. She is currently developing a unique remote screening tool for voice diseases for use by patients of Ear Nose and Throat Clinics worldwide. It is designed to replace screening and follow up endoscopy examinations and has the potential to generate significant savings for patient and specialist alike. Detection is carried out using a two second voice sample from a telephone call with results computed automatically and sent to a password protected web page.
The unique aspect of the project has been the development of specialist speech analysis research combined with a Web-based infrastructure based on the emerging telephony interface standard for voice/web communications, VoiceXML. Patients place a call from any telephone and are then guided through an on-line testing structure that acquires several voice samples. From there, analysis algorithms extract features from these samples and input the findings to an automatic classifier that produces a decision on the existence of a vocal pathology with an accuracy of nearly 90%. This information is then available to the Consultant or GP to combine with other patient information to form a diagnosis.
Currently, patients may be waiting up to three months following initial diagnosis in order to be considered for surgery, if required. This wait is due largely to the use of endoscopic exploration techniques that are time consuming and expensive with only specialised voice clinics provide testing. The Vocal Health Screen product requires no capital hardware investment and allows fast and objective measures of a patient’s vocal function.
In November 2004, Ms Moran also won Irish Software Association inaugural Student of the Year award for the most commercially viable software.
Congratulating all the participants on the CCDP Kevin Sherry, Manager of Enterprise Irelands High Potential Start Up’s division said, “Enterprise Ireland is delighted to continue to work closely with the team at NovaUCD in assisting individuals establish innovation led new start up companies. These businesses, which focus on the commercialisation of technology developed within the Universities, are an essential part of realising the full potential of the substantial investment being made in Research. Enterprise Ireland looks forward to continuing to work with the participants in helping them realise that potential."
Speaking at the award ceremony Leo O'Leary of BT Ireland said, "We are very impressed with the talent and innovation emerging from this year's NovaUCD programme. Partnership support is critical for this programme to develop and reach its full potential as it explores opportunities for commercial exploitation of innovative ideas. BT Ireland is delighted to be involved and would like to congratulate those who have been honoured this evening.”
Dr Pat Frain, Director of NovaUCD stressed the importance of the CCDP in reflecting the growing a spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship on the UCD campus. “This year a record number of CCDP projects involved new high tech ventures being established to commercialise the output of UCD research. NovaUCD is committed to the promotion of “Innovation through Cooperation” and we are delighted to be working with Enterprise Ireland and BT Ireland in this important venture.”
High-tech ventures are making an increasing contribution to sustaining Irish economic development. It is recognised that many of the most innovative new ventures originate in university research. The NovaUCD CCDP is an important support mechanism in the development of such ventures in UCD. Now in its tenth year the NovaUCD CCDP, which is delivered in association with BT Ireland and Enterprise Ireland, is aimed at supporting company promoters in the establishment and development of new business ventures to commercialise the output of their research and other innovative ideas.
In the last ten years over 115 projects and 160 individuals have completed the NovaUCD CCDP. Previous Programme winners include AV Edge, ChangingWorlds, Optigen Technologies, ProfExcel and BiancaMed. ChangingWorlds, the mobile software company and winner of 1999 Programme is now located in the South County Business Park in Leopardstown, employs almost 70 people and has raised EUR 6 million in venture capital funding. ChangingWorlds has deployed its flagship ClixSmart™ Intelligent Mobile Portal Platform with over twenty mobile network operators worldwide, including the Vodafone and O2 groups.
Two other companies participating in this year’s Programme, Protein Partners and SCREED, were short-listed for this year’s event and received runner-up awards.
Protein Partners is planning to be a key provider of custom solutions to the biopharmaceutical sector. The rapidly expanding area of Drug Target Identification and Validation Research in early drug development within the biopharmaceutical sector has created a requirement for the rapid provision of specialised custom reagents. Protein Partners will use a synthetic technology to provide these reagents in a time and cost-effective manner.
The promoters of Protein Partners, Dr David O’Connell, UCD School of Biological and Environmental Science and Dr Bernard Allan, UCD Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, are themselves active in the area of protein research in disease. They have an in-depth knowledge of the demand for these products within their own research and of the requirements of the biopharmaceutical sector. They have particular expertise in the use of this technology and of its competitive advantages over existing technology.
SCREED is planning to support drug discovery and the pre-clinical development of novel therapeutics in the area of neurological disorders.
Correct brain tissue architecture and connectivity between nerve cells defines normal functioning of the central nervous system. Architecture and connectivity patterns are aberrant in neurodegenerative diseases, and psychiatric or mood disorders. Current neurotherapeutics have side-effects and limited efficacy.
SCREED has a technology platform that can measure the efficacy of new neurotherapeutics under development. This will allow Multinational Neuropharma & Biotech companies to obtain more information out of their animal behavioural studies and use it in rational drug development.
The lead promoters of this venture, Dr Jennifer Craig and Dr Steven Verhaegen are currently involved in the Applied Neurotherapeutics Research Group (ANRG) at the UCD Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research. The ANRG is a unique research cluster based on a collaboration between academic research and an industry partner, Wyeth Discovery (Princeton, USA).
The next CCDP commences in Spring 2006 and applications are now being invited from prospective entrepreneurs developing new knowledge-intensive ventures. For further information, please contact Caroline Gill, NovaUCD, e-mail: caroline.gill@ucd.ie, tel: (01) 716 3715.
ENDS
18 November 2005
For further information contact Micéal Whelan NovaUCD, e-mail: miceal.whelan@ucd.ie, tel: (01) 716 3712
Editor’s Notes
NovaUCD is University College Dublin’s EUR 11 million Innovation and Technology Transfer Centre. This purpose-built centre, nurtures new technology and knowledge-intensive enterprises. NovaUCD has over 40 incubation units and provides innovators and entrepreneurs with the necessary support and knowledge to take their ideas from proof of principle to commercial success. NovaUCD has been funded through a unique public-private partnership that includes AIB Bank, Arthur Cox, Deloitte, Enterprise Ireland, Ericsson, Goodbody Stockbrokers, UCD and Xilinx. Eighteen knowledge-intensive companies are currently located in NovaUCD.
The NovaUCD CCDP is a 9-month, part-time enterprise support initiative designed to suit the timetable of busy researchers and academics. It comprises a mix of practical training and consultancy support including 10 half-day workshops, one-to-one advice and consultancy meetings and a series of networking events. On completion of the CCDP, participants will have developed an investor-ready business plan and presentation and a detailed business strategy. Participants on the Programme will have use of desk space facilities and guided access to financial support and information sources. They will also have an opportunity to access the incubation facilities and associated services of NovaUCD.
The NovaUCD Campus Company Development Programme Award Trophy has been designed by Colm Brennan, Sculptor of CAST Bronze Foundry. The award consists of a black Kilkenny limestone arrow-head form pierced by three metal bars, which radiate upwards from an imagined core. The bars carry the colour register analogous to 'gold’, 'silver and 'bronze'. The upward direction of the stone arrow-head is analogous with the drive or direction of a company while the three bars can be interpreted as flashes or streams brought to bear on a developing company.