Riverside, CA, February 12, 2019 – Globe Biomedical has been awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant for approximately $225,000, to conduct research and development (R&D) work on a Wearable Blindness Prevention System.
The system being developed will provide real-time monitoring of eye pressure, thereby tracking a patient's risk of glaucoma. Glaucoma, which is the most common cause of irreversible blindness, is associated with increase in pressure within the eye. Globe’s technology uses high-accuracy analysis of images captured by a wearable system to determine the pressure and to alert wearers and caregivers of potential increase in risk. This system is based on patent-pending technology developed at California Baptist University in the Gordon and Jill Bourns College of Engineering. “
The National Science Foundation supports small businesses with the most innovative, cutting-edge ideas that have the potential to become great commercial successes and make huge societal impacts,” said Barry Johnson, Director of the NSF’s Division of Industrial Innovation and Partnerships. “We hope that this seed funding will spark solutions to some of the most important challenges of our time across all areas of science and technology.”
“This exciting technology has real promise to make a dramatic impact in the lives of millions of people dealing with or at risk of glaucoma”, said Dr. Matthew Rickard, CEO of Globe Biomedical. “This grant from the National Science Foundation will allow us to move the wearable system closer to commercial availability. We are grateful for the invaluable assistance provided Martin Kleckner and the team at University of California Riverside’s EPIC Small Business Development Center in support of Globe’s commercialization strategy.” Globe Biomedical is currently an incubated company at ExCITE Riverside where they will be working towards building their company and submitting a Phase II grant.
Once a small business is awarded a Phase I SBIR/STTR grant (up to $225,000), it becomes eligible to apply for a Phase II grant (up to $750,000). Small businesses with Phase II grants are eligible to receive up to $500,000 in additional matching funds with qualifying third-party investment or sales.
NSF accepts Phase I proposals from small businesses twice annually in June and December. Small businesses with innovative science and technology solutions, and commercial potential are encouraged to apply. All proposals submitted to the NSF SBIR/STTR program undergo a rigorous merit-based review process.
To learn more about America’s Seed Fund powered by NSF, visit: https://seedfund.nsf.gov/
About the National Science Foundation's Small Business Programs: America’s Seed Fund powered by NSF awards $200 million annually to startups and small businesses, transforming scientific discovery into products and services with commercial and societal impact. Startups working across almost all areas of science and technology can receive up to $1.5 million in non-dilutive funds to support research and development (R&D), helping de-risk technology for commercial success. America’s Seed Fund is congressionally mandated through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The NSF is an independent federal agency with a budget of about $7.8 billion that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering.