The National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps) has awarded Dr. Luca Pollonini, assistant professor, and graduate student Bradford Day a $50,000 grant to expand the customer discovery of a skin-monitoring device for the prevention of pressure ulcers – a condition that affects millions of people each year. The NSF I-Corps program prepares scientists and engineers to extend their focus beyond the university laboratory, and accelerates the economic and societal benefits of NSF-funded, basic-research projects that are ready to move toward commercialization.
Through I-Corps, the team will learn to identify valuable product opportunities that can emerge from academic research, and gain skills in entrepreneurship through training, and guidance from industry and established entrepreneurs.
“This award is a recognition of our research idea and potential for bringing it to the market, which would be a success story and a mission achievement for our engineering technology department and the College of Technology,” said Dr. Pollonini.
Following an immersion in I-Corps training workshops, the team will travel nation-wide to test the validity of their innovation and establish connections with potential end-users, start-up companies, and healthcare industry professionals.