IV Lab (original) (raw)

Invention Brought to Life

We do research and development differently. We dream up advanced solutions to the most vexing problems we can find—then we roll up our sleeves and make those solutions a reality.

We

Investigate

Intellectual Ventures Laboratory (IV Lab) is where our scientists, engineers, and inventors translate scientific research into bold technological solutions for some of the world’s toughest problems.

Invent

With a broad array of technical capabilities under one very large roof—not to mention the Cooking Lab and a dynamic instrument fabrication shop—we fill the crucial gap between basic and applied research where invention flourishes.

Inspire

With the creative freedom to take risks, fail fast, and adapt quickly, cross-functional teams develop early-stage ideas into proofs-of-concept and prototypes, then work with partners to introduce our inventions to the world.

The iv Lab

What happens inside an 87,000+ square-foot facility that multidisciplinary teams call home? Brilliant minds commingle in specialized workspaces designed to support all phases of invention, from brainstorming and experimentation, to rapid prototyping and rigorous testing. Occasionally contrarian and always problem-centric, we invent, design, and build at the cutting edge of today’s technology with an eye to the future.

Our Work

Accelerating Technologies

The IV Lab is an inventor’s dream. From idea generation and prototyping to the development of commercial devices, IV Lab is also where our new spinout companies emerge and where our most impactful inventions to date have been born. Our scientists, physicists, and engineers who call IV Lab home collaborate with peers across a variety of disciplines to take invention out of the lab and into the marketplace. Home to several Invention Science Fund (ISF) spinouts and companies currently in incubation, IV Lab also provides valuable equipment, workspace, and inspiration.

Precision Instrumentation

If you can imagine it, we can build it. Our engineers bring decades of collective electrical engineering and manufacturing experience to this fully equipped shop, enabling rapid in-house prototyping. With a variety of machines and advanced capabilities available around the clock, our expert team can design and fabricate complex customized research instruments and quickly produce new prototypes.

Our Approach

Communications

• After two years of technical development inside the lab, the ISF team demonstrated the capability of metamaterials as a disruptive technology in satellite communications and quickly launched Kymeta to commercialize the project.
• Early-stage development of Kymeta’s Metamaterials Surface Antenna Technology led to other breakthroughs in communications—such as the ability to steer a radio frequency beam with no moving parts—and created new commercialization opportunities.

Cold-Chain Technologies

• The Arktek Passive Vaccine Storage Device is a super-insulated container optimized to safely store vaccines between 0 °C to 10 °C for 35 days or more using only ice packs in hot zone conditions.
• Next-generation cold storage devices like the MetaFridge which provides highly reliable vaccine cold-chain support for environments with unreliable power. Another invention, the Indigo cooler, keeps vaccines at the right temperature for at least five days with no ice, no batteries, and no power required during cooling.

Energy

• IV Lab supported the research and development of TerraPower’s sodium-cooled traveling wave reactor (TWR) since its inception, leading to key advancements in fuel, materials, and engineering.
• IV Lab’s instrument shop continues to play an important role in TerraPower’s testing efforts and was also the home of ISF’s other energy spinout, Modern Electron, during early-stage development.

Metamaterials

• A dedicated team has conducted extensive metamaterials research exploring innovative ways to control generation, propagation, and conversion of electromagnetic, acoustic, and other waves.
• The early-stage research and development enabled ISF to pioneer the commercial market for metamaterials, launching several metamaterials-based companies.

Global Development

• AI Shield™ improves cattle conception rates with cold-chain equipment innovations. Improved artificial insemination (AI) could enable more successful crossbreeding for farmers who want to obtain cattle with both locally resilient genetics and higher milk yields.
• The Mazzi Can created a clean, effective way to store milk to strengthen farmer linkages to formal markets. Use of the Mazzi™ milk container, less expensive than metal cans and readily cleanable, can improve the quality and quantity of milk that is successfully delivered to market, resulting in higher incomes for farmers.

Global Health Technologies

• The Automated Visual Evaluation for Cervical Cancer is an artificially intelligent (AI) algorithm that can inexpensively analyze digital images and accurately identify precancerous lesions better than a human expert.
• EasyScan GO is an automated microscope that can examine sample slides and provide diagnostic accuracy that meets the standards of WHO Level-1 expertise. Commercialization partner and global microscope manufacturer Motic is exploring additional applications including patient case management, drug effectiveness tracking, and drug and vaccine trials.

Capabilities

• 3D printing
• Water jet and laser cutting
• Electrical discharge machining
• Multi-axis CNC milling
• Welding

We Provide

• Rapid prototyping
• Precision engineering
• Unprecedented access