Basic HTML Version
16
UCT RESEARCH REPORT 2012
Research Contracts and
Intellectual Property Services Office
One of the fruits of the university’s research activities is the
stream of ideas and inventions with commercial and social
potential. This year’s Innovation Evening and the associated
Innovation
brochure again left me amazed and proud – every
year we have so much to celebrate and are continually blessed
with new rising stars. For example, the 36 new disclosures
in 2012 included 14 brand-new UCT inventors. Similarly, 19
new UCT patent holders were among the recipients of the 26
patents granted in 2012.
PIET BARNARD
Director: Research
Contracts and
Intellectual Property
Services Office
2
012 also saw UCT taking equity in the printed silicon electronics spin-out, PST
Sensors (Pty) Ltd, and in the process assigning 13 patent families (with 19
patents being granted in that portfolio in 2012) to the company. Another spin-
out, Southern Access Technologies, now re-named Strait Access Technologies
Holdings (Pty) Ltd & Strait Access Technologies (Pty) Ltd, received extensive
support and investment from the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) and
Bidvest Ltd. In addition, CapeRay Medical (Pty) Ltd raised a second round of
funding through the IDC Venture Capital Fund.
Tuluntulu (Pty) Ltd was the only spin-out company formed in 2012 based on UCT
technology, following three in 2011. But a number are waiting in the wings and much
time has been spent on planning for the formation of several other companies that
are likely to be launched during the course of 2013. Tuluntulu (Pty) Ltd was formed to
commercialise intellectual property (IP) developed by a TIA-funded consortium led
by the CSIR, to which UCT had contributed IP. The technology, Adaptive Real-Time
Internet Streaming Technology (ARTIST) uses algorithms to adjust quality to available
bandwidth to ensure viewing continuity. The success of this technology solution
was recognised through an award from the NSTF-BHP Billiton for Outstanding
Contribution to Science, Engineering, Technology, and Innovation through Research
Leading to Innovation in a Corporate Organisation or Institution.
Probably one of UCT’s most successful social responsiveness projects, the Red
Cross Children’s Hospital Poison Information Centre, has launched its re-developed
30-year-old poisons information system on an Internet-enabled platform with
mobile device accessibility. The database, already in use at more than 30 centres
throughout South Africa, as well as Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Kenya, and
Nigeria, will, through this new platform, ’Afritox‘, become accessible to the broader
medical-practitioner community.
Research contracts to the value of R682 million were processed, which is slightly down
from the R722 million of 2011. This should, however, be seen in the context of the
dramatic increases that were experienced over the last few years – from R337 million
in 2006, to R550 million in 2010, and the exceptionally high R722 million in 2011.
RCIPS’s activities have been greatly enhanced following funding support
by the National
Intellectual Property Management Office (NIPMO). We were able to appoint new staff