Clemson I-Corps Teams march to the head of the pack

Published: October 11, 2012

Clemson’s award-winning I-Corps teams include, (from left), Timothy Burg, principal investigator; Ravi Singapogu, entrepreneurial lead; Lisa Perpall, team mentor; Cody Reynolds, entrepreneurial lead; Douglas Hirt, principal investigator; and Matt Gevaert, team mentor. image by: Clemson University

CLEMSON — Clemson University College of Engineering and Science I-Corps teams took the top two spots in a presentation competition in Atlanta.

The National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program fosters entrepreneurship that could lead to the commercialization of technology that has been supported by NSF-funded research.

Timothy Burg, associate professor in the Holcombe Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, led the first-place team; and Douglas Hirt, chairman of chemical and biomolecular engineering, captained the second-place team.

I-Corps teams are composed of three primary members: the principal investigator (in these cases, Burg and Hirt), an entrepreneurial lead and a mentor. The principal investigator serves as the technical lead and project manager. The entrepreneurial lead, typically a postdoctoral researcher or graduate student, possesses relevant technical knowledge and a commitment to investigate the commercial potential of the innovation. The mentor brings entrepreneurial experience and serves as the principal guide in determining the technology disposition.

The entrepreneurial lead for Burg’s team was Ravi Singapogu, a post-doctoral student, and the team mentor was Lisa Perpall, the technology commercialization officer from the Clemson University Research Foundation. 

Burg and Singapogu have developed a new method to train surgery residents via a novel surgical simulator for force-based (or haptic) laparoscopic skills.  

Acquiring the skills needed for proficient laparoscopy is challenging because of the surgeon's "remoteness" from the surgical site. Most surgical errors during laparoscopic procedures are caused by their application of excessive force on tissues. Initial studies of the simulator with experienced surgeons and novices demonstrated its effectiveness at developing and evaluating the laparoscopic skills of users. 

The entrepreneurial lead of Hirt’s team was Cody Reynolds, a postdoctoral fellow, and the mentor was Matt Gevaert, the CEO of KIYATEC of Greenville. The team's project focused on drug-eluting fiber applications. There are many instances where a drug-eluting — or drug-delivery — sutures can prevent infection and ultimately save lives.

The team's initial target application was a cervical suture (cerclage), which is used to prevent premature birth by bolstering the strength of a mother's weak cervix from the beginning of the third trimester. The team discovered an additional market opportunity and focused on hernia meshes, which also could benefit from drug-eluting fibers.

“As a land-grant university, Clemson has technology transfer in its DNA,” said Larry Dooley, interim dean of the College of Engineering and Science. “The I-Corps program provides an avenue for making an impact in the commercial world, and our teams have developed technologies that offer outstanding benefits for society and the economy.”

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