2012 McMaster Innovator Awards Announced

The 2012 McMaster Innovator Awards were presented at McMaster Innovation Showcase 2012.

 From a pool of outstanding nominees, Simon Haykin Distinguished University Professor, and Professor  of Electrical & Computer Engineering, was honoured with the 2012 McMaster Lifetime Innovator Award, and Heather Sheardown, Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering, was chosen as the McMaster Innovator of the Year. VitaSound Inc. received the McMaster Industry Partner Award.

 To acknowledge their achievement, Mo Elbestawi, Vice-President, Research and International Affairs, presented the three award recipients with sculptures by local glass artist Kelly Lowe.

 The McMaster Innovator Awards recognize researchers who contributed to McMaster University’s ongoing efforts to build a culture of innovation, commercialization and entrepreneurship by creating a product or service to transfer their research discoveries and inventions to society.

 Professor Haykin was awarded the McMaster Lifetime Innovator Award for his work inventing the field of cognitive radio, which has significant potential for making a difference in wireless communications. McMaster has filed eight patents based on Haykin’s research. Both military and consumer oriented companies are interested in his work and some have already agreed to licence it. Notably, he also contributed to the work that this year’s McMaster Industry Partner Award licenced from the University.

 Professor Sheardown’s Innovator of the Year Award recognizes her work using hydrogels in biomaterial development for ophthalmic applications. Two of her inventions have significant promise. The first is a new materials for intra-ocular lens for the treatment of cataracts that promises enhanced performance compared to current technologies. The second material is designed to deliver therapeutic drugs to the back of the eye in a controlled and sustained manner, reducing the need for drug injections into the eye using needles.

VitaSound Inc was awarded the 2012 McMaster Industry Partner Award. This award provides recognition to corporations who have made a significant contribution to developing the University’s research mandate. VitaSound was recognized for its role in commercializing NeuroCompensator based hearing aid technology. NeuroCompensator technology was developed by Suzanna Becker, a professor in the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour. This technology grew out of earlier research performed at McMaster by Ian Bruce, Associate Professor, Electrical & Computer Engineering, and Simon Haykin, along with Becker. VitaSound is an Ontario-based early stage company that is using patented technologies to create a new generation of hearing solutions.  Focusing on the complete spectrum of customer hearing needs, the Company is developing products that enhance how hearing devices perform.