Researchers recognised for business innovation successes

Media Release
The University of Auckland
21st June 2013

Researchers recognised for business innovation successes

An award that recognises outstanding contributions to business innovation by an entrepreneurial researcher was shared by two engineers from The University of Auckland this week.

At the KiwiNet Research Commercialisation Awards (on June 19th), Distinguished Professor Emeritus, John Boys and Professor Grant Covic (both from the Faculty of Engineering’s Electrical and Computer Engineering Department), were presented with the Researcher Entrepreneur Award.

The KiwiNet Awards are designed to celebrate success within New Zealand’s research organisations, bring together the innovation community to recognise and celebrate heroes in commercialisation, and encourage others to learn from and aspire to their success.

The Researcher Entrepreneur Award recognises an entrepreneurial researcher who has made outstanding contributions to business innovation or has created innovative businesses in New Zealand through technology licencing, start-up creation or by providing expertise to support business innovation.

This team, (nominated by UniServices) has been undertaking commercialisation for more than 25 years and has a passion for seeing their work used in the real world. It is a passion they instill in all of their students.

As a result of their work the Power Electronics Lab in Auckland is regarded as one of the leading centres of its kind in the world.

John and Grant are the inventors on more than 60 United States, European, and Japanese patents in several patent families. These patents have been licensed to six companies in a variety of different fields, including materials handling, electric vehicles, lighting and security. Their technology has had a global impact.

The pinnacle of their work came in 2010 when based on work that John and Grant did in the laboratory in response to the global car industry, UniServices formed Halo Induction Power Technologies together with the global engineering firm, Ove Arup and the TransTasman Commercialisation Fund.

Under contract with the company they continued to develop the technology and as a result in October 2011 Qualcomm purchased the assets of Halo for an undisclosed multi-million dollar deal.

ENDS

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