Web 'spider' links industry, experts

he University, in partnership with the Rochester Institute of Technology and the University of Buffalo, is coordinating a trial run of a new online database that is designed to link local industry to regional experts in science and engineering.

To be called the University Spider for Upstate New York, the Web search engine soon will allow companies to locate experts at local universities within specific fields for consulting help, sponsored research projects, and technology licensing. The system also will allow researchers to link to potential collaborators in other institutions.

"Faculty, the University, and the community as a whole will benefit from this search engine," says Jack Fraser, senior manager of technology licensing at the River Campus Office of Technology Transfer. "The system will help faculty connect with businesses where their expertise can be used to solve real-world problems and will provide businesses access to those at the top of many high-tech fields. This is a win-win situation, where local businesses gain tools to give them a competitive edge and the University gains income from licensing agreements as well as a more visible presence in the region."

Created by the NSF-funded university coalition called the Upstate Alliance for Innovation and managed by the University's Office of Technology Transfer, the search engine works by "spidering" into existing departmental and faculty Web pages that are indexed to identify research interests.

For more details, contact Jack Fraser at x3-3250 on the River Campus or Claudia Stewart at x3-3743 at the Medical Center.

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