Kalenian Award
"The highest and best use of a WPI education is to invent, and patent, then create an invention-based business and employ."
– Aram Kalenian, ’33, inventor, businessman
Aram Kalenian, inventor and businessman
The Kalenian Award, established in 2006 through the generosity of Alba Kalenian in memory of her late husband Aram (Class of 1933), provides seed funds to support and advance the ideas and inventiveness of WPI students, faculty and alumni(ae). Aram Kalenian was an inventor who had numerous useful ideas and reduced many of them to practice. The purpose of the Kalenian Award is to encourage similar innovation and entrepreneurship at any stage of development from the WPI academic community. This award’s focus is to fuel the entrepreneurial spirit through annual funding of a single viable invention.
Aram Kalenian’s inventions and hard work have provided the perpetual funds for this award, and in this same spirit we hope that award recipients will succeed so well in life, as to provide WPI with future award funds to encourage invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship in their own names.
The Award
This single award will be given annually or every other year on a competitive basis and the recipient(s) will be the holder(s) of the 'Kalenian Award' in the year given. The award may be given to support innovative ideas or the development of commercial products. Ideally, the recipients should be either a part of an existing small business enterprise or in the process of trying to establish a small business. The duration of the award shall not exceed 18 months.
"Nine out of ten ideas may well be patentable, but only one in ten will create a viable business."
- Patent Attorney, David Wolf
The award will be in the form of an 18 month grant of $25,000 which may be given to an individual or group involved in the invention of a product in order to assist in the process of moving the invention toward commercialization.
First Step: Intent to Compete
Please submit this short form any time prior to delivering your three-page proposal.
Second Step: Proposal Submission Instructions
This is not only a nice monetary award, it is a good exercise to improve communication skills. A very concise " who am I--- this is my idea---this is how it will benefit society---this is what I need to achieve my goals " would be much appreciated. We will not accept CVs, full patent documents, business plans, or unwieldily appendices. Drawings/images are welcome and are not counted in the three-page limit.
Proposals are encouraged for projects that:
- demonstrate the need to provide proof of concept,
- show that an idea requires reduction to practice, or
- involve products that are in the early stages of commercial development
Cover Page contents:
- Kalenian Award Proposal
- Name of company, product, or project title
- Name of applicant(s)
- If alumni(ae): Year Graduated, WPI Major(s); If faculty: Department and title; If student: Major and anticipated year of graduation
- Business name, address, web site - if any
-
Applicant(s) address, telephone, and email
Maximum 3-page narrative outlining:
- the activity to be undertaken
- the expected outcome in the 18-month time frame of the award
- the perceived importance and/or market value of the product, and
- longer-term anticipated outcomes
Kalenian Award proposals should be clearly marked as such and directed to the Collaborative for Entrepreneurship & Innovation at WPI. Please email your application following these simple, but very important, instructions.
Email instructions: Type "Kalenian Award Proposal" in the subject line, attach your proposal, and email to: Gina Betti at gbetti@wpi.edu.
Deadlines
The deadline for proposals to be received in the Collaborative for Entrepreneurship & Innovation office is Monday, March 31, 2010 by 5:00 PM Eastern Standard Time. Extensions to this deadline will not be made. Please contact Gina Betti at gbetti@wpi.edu or 508-831-5761 with any questions. The announcement will be made at the May 11, 2010, WPI Venture Forum program in the WPI Campus Center Odeum Room.
Proposal Review
Proposals will be reviewed by judges with varied professional business backgrounds. Selection of the award recipient will be based on some or all of the following criteria:
- novelty of the idea
- commercial potential, including market opportunity
- demonstration of a viable business plan evolving from the idea, product, or process
- likelihood of success
2009 Award Announcement
The winners of the 2009 Kalenian Award were announced at the June 9, 2009 WPI Venture Forum program. Judges Paul Kalenian, McRae Banks and Jerry Schaufeld were present. The winning team was headed by WPI Professor James Van de Ven and Allan Katz 07 (BS), 09 (MS), who are advancing a valve for switch-mode control, a new method for controlling hydraulic systems that use a hydraulic valve to rapidly switch between efficient on-and-off states. This technology gives hydraulic hybrid vehicles a performance and cost advantage over electric hybrid systems. Switch-mode hydraulics is also applicable to alternative energy technologies such as wind turbines, improving efficiency in a smaller, lighter, and more economical package. The award will support the team's technical and entrepreneurial plans, which include further testing of the prototype, designing and building a second-generation prototype, creating performance specifications, obtaining a full patent, developing a marketing plan, and licensing the technology for further development and production.
Receiving an honorable mention was the Neuron Robotics team, comprised of Robert Breznak (CS '09), Kevin Harrington (CS '09), Alex Camillo (ECE '09), and contributor Mark Mordarski (RBE '11). Their system of interconnecting modules, software, and parts that work together will allow researchers, hobbyists, and developers to increase their productivity while reducing costs and waste. Breznak's goal is to become the commercial leader in robotic module development and to sell his company's products through an online store and by creating distribution channels through similar vendors. For information on this year's proposals, please contact the office of the Collaborative for Entrepreneurship & Innovation.
Paul and Cathy Kalenian
Paul Kalenian
2006 Winners Professor Allen Hoffman, Michael Scarsella, and Stephen Toddes with Paul Kalenian
2007 Winner Albert G. Prescott with David Wolf and Paul Kalenian
2008 Winner Professor Dalin Tang
2009 First Place: WPI Professor James Van de Ven with Paul Kalenian, David Wolf, and WPI alumni Allan Katz '07, '09.
2009 First Honorable Mention: Robert Breznak '09, Mark Mordarski '11, Paul Kalenian, David Wolf, Kevin Harrington '09, and Alex Camillo '09
Last modified: November 09, 2009 18:26:52