WARF and Echometrix Sign Exclusive License Agreement for Use of Proprietary Ultrasound Technology (Aug 24, 2009)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 24, 2009
Contact:
Janet Kelly
jkelly@warf.org
608.890.1491
Barbara Israel
608.513.5740
bisrael@echometrix.com
Madison, Wis . . .Echometrix, a developer of proprietary ultrasound technology, and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF), the private, non-profit patent and licensing organization for the University of Wisconsin-Madison, announced that they have signed an exclusive license agreement that provides Echometrix the rights to make, use and sell ultrasound software and devices based on its innovative technology in the United States, Europe and Japan.
"The addition of the intellectual property developed by my co-founders, Dr. Hirohito Kobayashi and Dr. Ray Vanderby at the University of Wisconsin—Madison, will create a sustainable competitive advantage in the underpenetrated and growing musculoskeletal ultrasound market," stated Barbara Israel, company co-founder and chief executive officer. "We also believe that this is the beginning of an important research and development collaboration between Echometrix and the Vanderby lab."
Echometrix's technology is designed to improve the speed, convenience and ability to evaluate musculoskeletal conditions at a lower cost than current methods. The company's ultrasound technology is uniquely able to assess the functional status of soft tissues and to identify conditions such as stretched ligaments, torn tendons, micro tears, and tissue inflammation. It also may prove valuable in assessing common conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome and damaged rotator cuffs.
Israel believes that her company's proprietary technology will create rapid growth in the musculoskeletal ultrasound market. The company recently completed its first prototype ultrasound image processing software and plans to roll out a beta product to a group of pilot customers in the fall.
WARF's licensing manager for start-ups, Craig Heim, believes that Echometrix's innovative ultrasound technology has the potential to positively impact patient health. "The technology will offer orthopedics, sports medicine, physical therapy and rheumatology practitioners a new tool to quantitatively assess the function of ligaments and tendons, which could both improve patient outcomes and lower the cost of assessing musculoskeletal injuries."
About Echometrix LLC
Echometrix is a Madison-based developer of proprietary ultrasound technology focused on creating rapid growth in the market for musculoskeletal ultrasound. The company's products will improve the speed, convenience and efficacy of musculoskeletal injury analysis, while lowering cost. Early studies have demonstrated both improved injury assessment and superior resolution for injury detection when compared with traditional ultrasound. The company is well-positioned to address opportunities at the nexus of three growing markets: portable ultrasound, musculoskeletal imaging and orthopedics. For more information, visit www.echo-metrix.com.
About the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF)
WARF was established in 1925 as one the world's first university-based technology transfer office. It is a private, non-profit supporting organization to the University of Wisconsin-Madison, one of the top-ranked public research universities in the U.S. WARF supports research at the university by protecting the intellectual property of its faculty, staff and students, and licensing their discoveries to companies for commercial use to benefit humankind. It is known for its commercialization of Vitamin D therapies, the anticoagulant Coumadin®, medical imaging and cancer radiation systems, and its patents for human embryonic stem cells.
