21 June 2014

On June 16, 2014, the Université de Sherbrooke announced the creation of a new institution-specific grant program to accelerate the development of prototypes and proofs-of-concept for technological inventions stemming from the work of its professors. The goal is to help them quickly convert their strokes of genius into a marketable product.

Through the program, this year the Université de Sherbrooke will grant a total of $49 000 divided among six different projects, including the project of Professor Pierre-Marc Jodoin and his team. The latter are working on the adaptation of an automated brain tumour segmentation method using software that will make it possible to map lesions within a few seconds rather than 30 to 45 minutes.

“The seemingly small amounts allocated will expedite a key step in the marketing process, and the anticipated results will have a genuine leverage effect in attracting the attention of investors, finding partners, and promoting entrepreneurship,” noted Jacques Beauvais, Vice-President of Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Funding for the program, an initiative carried out in collaboration with the Société de commercialisation des produits de la recherche appliquée (SOCPRA – applied research product marketing society) and the Accélérateur de création d’entreprises technologiques (ACET – technology-based company start-up accelerator), is sourced from the General Research Fund (GRF) of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC). 

“The Université de Sherbrooke has long been known for innovation and business partnerships,” noted France Vaillancourt, Manager of the Innovation Portfolio at the NSERC.

Sources: La Tribune et Université de Sherbrooke