University of Alabama in Huntsville team develops patent search engine

(04/23/2012)

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- Just like a lot of great discoveries, a new Internet-based search tool was the result of work on another project.

And that new tool resulted in a $24,000 payday for a local company from the Alabama Launchpad Business Plan Competition.

Well, $24,620 to be exact.

"We were looking at something else" searching for patent information, said Tony Rainoldi of Arch Data Intelligence. "We were having trouble with some issues and talked to attorneys and asked what they do for patent searches."

Then, Rainoldi, who has a master's in electrical engineering from UAH, teamed with Jason Martin and Brad Chassee, who all also have engineering masters from UAH to find a better patent search engine.

UAHuntsville Joins Select Group of National Research Universities - Carnegie Foundation

(08/17/2011)

The University of Alabama in Huntsville has reached a major milestone in its quest to become one of the nation's leading research universities.

The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching has announced that UAHuntsville has been classified in the "very high" research category, placing it among an elite group of only 73 public universities in the United States. UAHuntsville's new classification was based on data from 2008, according to the Carnegie Foundation.

Malcolm Portera, President of UAHuntsville and Chancellor of the University of Alabama System, said the classification affirms the importance of research to the university.

"We are extremely proud of the world-class research that defines our campus," Dr. Portera said. "Achieving classification in this premier category recognizes the accomplishments achieved by our faculty, researchers, students and staff, and reflects the growth in the university's impressive research portfolio."

UAHuntsville had been classified as a high research activity institution for numerous years, but this new ranking puts the university at the highest category attainable in the Carnegie Foundation rankings. The classification is based on various criteria: R&D expenditures in science and engineering as well as non-S&E fields; science and engineering research staff; doctoral conferrals in the field of humanities; and social sciences as well as STEM areas.

A "very high" research activity classification places UAHuntsville in the top 3 percent of the almost 2,000, four-year accredited degree-granting colleges and universities in the United States. Only two Alabama universities are in this classification - UAB and UAHuntsville.

"The Carnegie ranking is extremely significant, and we are very proud to have achieved this level of research, especially when one compares the size of UAHuntsville to the other universities in our group," said Dr. John Horack, UAHuntsville's Vice President for Research. "And while it is an important milestone, it is not the objective. The goal is to bring UAHuntsville to the status of an exceptional research university. This ranking is an important external validation that our research faculty are doing the right things, moving UAHuntsville forward, and serving our students, our city, our region, and the people of Alabama."

The ranking is noteworthy in that it recognizes the high level of cutting-edge research being conducted by our faculty and researchers as well as the quality of our doctoral students, and will bring additional acclaim to the campus and could provide momentum in recruiting higher quality students and faculty, according to Provost Vistasp Karbhari.

He notes that recognition from the Carnegie ranking could assist the university by:

Attracting higher ranked students to our undergraduate and graduate programs
Bringing recognition to innovative and leading academic programs directed by our faculty that merge cutting edge research with leading edge classes, thus keeping our students at the forefront of science, technology, innovation and creative activity.
Assisting further in providing recognition for and enhancing our faculty's reputation, which will assist them in being even more competitive for national level grants/contracts and awards
Providing external recognition of our faculty's excellence and reinforcing that we are on the right track in enhancing our reputation and ability to join the top ranked universities in the nation.

UAHuntsville excels in numerous research areas that include: Earth system science and climate research, severe weather research, computer science and information technology, information assurance and security, astrophysics and space plasma physics, aerospace and systems engineering, electrical and computer engineering, optics, modeling and simulation, business, logistics and supply chain management, biotechnology and nursing. Major research funding at UAHuntsville comes from NASA, the Department of Defense, NOAA, the National Science Foundation, the state of Alabama, among others.

The Carnegie Classification was created to assist those conducting research on higher education, and provide a way for colleges and universities to be compared to institutions of similar qualities. The full database of universities and their Carnegie Classification can be found at http://classifications.carnegiefoundation.org.

For more information,

contact Ray Garner

256.824.6397

(256.UAH.NEWS)

ray.garner@uah.edu

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UAHuntsville Startup Decision Innovations Wins First Place in Alabama Launchpad

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (April 17, 2011)— A team from The University of Alabama in Huntsville has won the Alabama Launchpad Business Plan Competition for the second year in a row and for the third time since the competition was launched in 2006. The team, Decision Innovations, constructed a business plan for a health-information, decision technology company that integrates real time organizational data with research in order to optimize quality, patient satisfaction, and financial outcomes of hospitals.

The team is led by Dr. Karen Frith, a registered nurse and an associate professor of nursing at UAHuntsville. As a result of the first place finish, the team will receive $100,000 in seed capital, plus in-kind services. Other team members are Dr. Faye Anderson, Dr. Fan Tseng, Gregory Reed and Dr. Mikel Petty.

The prizes were awarded during the finale of the Alabama Launchpad Business Plan Competition, a program of Alabama Launchpad. The finale was held at the University of South Alabama campus in Mobile. The finale was the fourth phase of the competition, which began in October 2010 with more than 40 teams.

Formed in 2006, Alabama Launchpad is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the support and promotion of high-growth entrepreneurship in Alabama. The organization is a partnership between the Economic Development Partnership of Alabama, the business community, and six public universities in Alabama. The six universities are: Alabama State University, Auburn University, the University of Alabama, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, the University of Alabama at Huntsville, and the University of South Alabama.

The competition is a vetting process to evaluate high growth start-ups and provide seed funding. Competing teams must be affiliated with one of the participating institutions as either a current student, a current faculty member, or recent alumni. For more information, please visit www.alabamalaunchpad.com.

For more information, contact:

Ray Garner

256.824.6397

(256.UAH.NEWS)

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The Office of Technology Commercialization is involved in all aspects of technology commercialization at UAHuntsville. This includes everything from education of faculty, staff, and students, to protection and licensing of intellectual property, to assisting in the development of spin-off companies by providing the appropriate resources for UAHuntsville entrepreneurs.

Advantages of Technology Commercialization:

Better connect UAHuntsville research community to industry

More efficient introduction of innovation to the marketplace

Creation of jobs in the community

Inventors share in the royalty revenue

Commercialization benefits the UAHuntsville community, the greater Huntsville community, the state of Alabama, industry, and taxpayers!