|
BOZEMAN, Mont. – Companies considering licensing software from the Department of Defense can now ‘try before they buy’ at Montana State University (MSU). A newly established software “test bed” at MSU helps companies to determine if new DoD software can make their existing products better or be used to develop promising new products. The test bed offers a unique combination of opportunities to DoD labs, industry, and computer science students. It is the brainchild of TechLink technology managers, Sean Patten and Nick Zelver, who saw the test bed as a way to significantly increase TechLink’s ability to license DoD software to industry. TechLink is funded to help license DoD technology to the private sector. “The test bed solves a major problem for both DoD and industry,” according to Will Swearingen, PhD, TechLink executive director. “DoD software inventors don’t have the time to help companies evaluate how well DoD software will work for commercial applications. On the other hand, companies won’t seriously consider licensing unless they can first test drive the software. The test bed solves these related problems by providing the third-party personnel and expertise to run industry data on DoD software.” For MSU computer science students, working under close faculty supervision, the test bed provides valuable, real world, professional experience. Students get to work with cutting-edge software developed by DoD and also gain experience interacting with DoD inventors and industry. According to Patten, “The test bed provides a fantastic way to harness the ingenuity and energy of students to assist in evaluating DoD software for companies.” Software for the test bed is being obtained through educational partnership agreements (EPAs) between MSU and DoD labs, including the National Security Agency (NSA), the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC), and the Air Force Research Laboratory – Information Directorate (AFRL/IF). TechLink identifies software invented by DoD researchers that has high commercial potential. It then introduces the technology to industry. If companies want to try out the software, TechLink arranges for companies to provide relevant data to the test bed for a trial run. Examples of software programs that have already been evaluated for specific companies include a Bayesian data reduction algorithm (BDRA) from NUWC, which can be used for diverse classification problems ranging from credit scoring to analysis of health risks, and a method of summarizing text using just the text, commonly known as KODA, from the NSA. CONTACTS: Nick Zelver
MSU Technology Transfer Office
406-994-7706
nzelver@montana.edu
Sean Patten
TechLink
406-994-7721
spatten@montana.edu
Back to Top
|
