{"id":2168,"date":"2025-05-30T14:55:00","date_gmt":"2025-05-30T18:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/?p=2168"},"modified":"2025-07-08T15:19:08","modified_gmt":"2025-07-08T19:19:08","slug":"carleton-celebrates-real-world-innovation-and-impact-with-inaugural-ip-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/2025\/carleton-celebrates-real-world-innovation-and-impact-with-inaugural-ip-award\/","title":{"rendered":"Carleton Celebrates Real-world Innovation and Impact with Inaugural IP Award"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n Carleton Celebrates Real-world Innovation and Impact with Inaugural IP Award\n <\/h1>\n \n <\/header>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n\n \n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

On May 15, 2025, Carleton University celebrated its inaugural Intellectual Property (IP) Impact Award at CU@Kanata<\/a>\u2014bringing together researchers, students, and industry partners to honour Carleton innovations making waves beyond academia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Presented by the Carleton Innovation Transfer Office (CITO)<\/a> within Industry and Partnership Services (IPS)<\/a>, the newly launched award recognizes Carleton experts whose high-impact research extends beyond the scientific community, fostering real-world economic, social, and environmental impacts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The morning celebratory event featured lively and interactive demonstrations from nominees and showcased the diversity of research impacts being produced across campus. From 17 nominations representing 11 departments across the university, four standout projects were selected as finalists and invited to present about their innovation and journey to date\u2014highlighting advances in education technology, next-generation satellite communications, artificial intelligence in therapeutics, and environmental engineering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Demo
A demo of Assistive and Adaptive Music Technologies from the We Are All Musicians Lab<\/a> and the Abilities Living Laboratory (ALL)<\/a>\u2014led by Professors Jesse Stewart and Adrian Chan\u2014was featured among the celebration\u2019s interactive displays.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Recognizing Innovation with Impact<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis award is about more than recognizing a single breakthrough,\u201d said Chris Lannon, Director of IPS. \u201cIt\u2019s about celebrating the full spectrum of innovation happening at Carleton\u2014across disciplines, in collaboration with partners, and with the potential to create lasting impact in the world beyond campus.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following a morning of networking, project displays, and finalist presentations, Carleton\u2019s inaugural IP Impact Award was presented to Professor Halim Yanikomeroglu from the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering<\/a>, together with former Postdoctoral Fellow Mohammed Abdelsadek and Adjunct Research Professor Gunes Karabulut Kurt, for their patented system that enables distributed multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) communication between low earth orbit (LEO) satellites and handheld devices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Developed in Carleton\u2019s Non-Terrestrial Networks Lab and now purchased by an internationally leading Canadian aerospace firm MDA Space<\/a>, this innovation marks a major step forward in the pursuit of satellite-direct-to-smartphone connectivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Mohammed
Professor Halim Yanikomeroglu (right) and former Postdoctoral Fellow Mohammed Abdelsadek were awarded Carleton\u2019s inaugural IP Impact Award, alongside Adjunct Research Professor Gunes Karabulut Kurt, for their patented satellite communication technology\u2014now licensed by Canadian aerospace firm MDA Space.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis unique technology, developed in collaboration with the Optical Satellite Consortium and now being commercialized by Canadian-born MDA Space, truly embodies the spirit of the Carleton IP Impact Award,\u201d said Rafik Goubran, Carleton\u2019s Vice-President (Research and International).<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cIts potential to transform global connectivity through sustainable, low-orbit satellite systems represents the very best of Carleton innovation.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

A Diverse Showcase of Meaningful Research<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Finalist nominees were selected based on four key criteria: the novelty and fit of their solution and intellectual property to a real-world problem, the extent and progress of mobilization or commercialization efforts, demonstrated success in working with external partners to translate research into impact, and the current\/potential for future economic, social and\/or environmental impacts. Consideration was also given to the innovation\u2019s current reach and its potential for future growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTrue innovation requires a creative and collaborative process that transforms great ideas into real solutions,\u201d said Chris Lannon.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cBy highlighting these efforts, we aim to showcase the journeys of Carleton experts\u2014and the partnerships that make meaningful impact possible.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Jo-Anne LeFevre, Chair of the Department of Cognitive Science<\/a>, and Adjunct Research Professor and Postdoctoral Fellow Heather Douglas were also recognized for their development of the Early Math Assessment (EMA)<\/a> tool\u2014a evidence-based numeracy screener that helps educators identify young students who may need additional support in mathematics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Professor
Professor Jo-Anne LeFevre presented a specialized Early Math Assessment (EMA)<\/em> tool, developed with fellow Cognitive Science professor Heather Douglas in partnership with Alberta Education. The evidence-based screener helps educators identify young students in need of additional math support.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Created in partnership with Alberta Education, the tool leverages mathematics cognition research to deliver a scalable, classroom-ready solution aimed at closing early math achievement gaps. Together with education technology company Vretta<\/a> the creators are now converting EMA@School into a digital platform, making it even more accessible for teachers and students across Canada and the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Professor Kyle Biggar of the Department of Biology<\/a> and his team were also named finalists for their development of DarwinAI\u2014an artificial intelligence platform designed to accelerate peptide drug discovery. The project is the result of a cross-disciplinary collaboration with Professor James Green of the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering<\/a> PhD student Fran\u00e7ois Charih.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Commercialized through the innovative startup NuvoBio<\/a>, DarwinAI enables biopharmaceutical companies to predict drug safety profiles earlier in development, helping to reduce time, costs, and reliance on animal testing. The platform is already supporting the design of new peptide-based treatments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Professors
Professors James Green (left) and Kyle Biggar (right), along with PhD student Fran\u00e7ois Charih (center), were named finalists for their development of DarwinAI<\/em>\u2014an AI-driven platform that accelerates peptide drug discovery and improves early-stage safety prediction.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Rounding out the list of finalists, Professor Mohammad Rayhani from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering<\/a>, in collaboration with Edwin Safari, a former visiting professor with Carleton\u2019s Geoengineering Research Group<\/a>, were recognized for their development of Graphene-based Adsorptive Filter for TerrAqua Solutions (GRAFTATM<\/sup>)\u2014a patented filtration material that uses sugar-derived graphene nanosheets coated onto recycled glass to treat industrial wastewater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GRAFTATM<\/sup> represents a cost-effective and scalable solution for removing persistent contaminants from mining and industrial runoff. Now being commercialized through GRAFTA Nanotech Inc.<\/a>, the technology is attracting growing interest in both Canadian and international markets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Growing Culture of Collaborative Innovation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The celebration also showcased the role of CU@Kanata, Carleton\u2019s collaborative research hub in the heart of the Kanata North Tech Park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cImpactful research doesn\u2019t materialize in a vacuum\u2014it depends upon sustained effort and strong ties between academia and industry,\u201d said Travis Flieler, CU@Kanata\u2019s Director of Operations.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cThat\u2019s exactly the kind of work CU@Kanata is designed to support\u2014by embedding Carleton researchers, students, and faculty within Canada\u2019s largest technology hub, we\u2019re creating the conditions for innovation to take root and thrive through meaningful collaborations.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Event participants from across faculties and sectors found the celebration both inspiring and motivational. Carleton\u2019s IP Impact Award is expected to return next year with an expanded nomination window.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On May 15, 2025, Carleton University celebrated its inaugural Intellectual Property (IP) Impact Award at CU@Kanata\u2014bringing together researchers, students, and industry partners to honour Carleton innovations making waves beyond academia. Presented by the Carleton Innovation Transfer Office (CITO) within Industry and Partnership Services (IPS), the newly launched award recognizes Carleton experts whose high-impact research extends beyond the scientific community, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":2174,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2168","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2168","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/39"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2168"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2168\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2177,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2168\/revisions\/2177"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2174"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2168"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2168"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/kanata\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2168"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}