Jian Chen and Thomas "Tico" Hannan of the University of Houston Cullen College of Engineering were awarded the inaugural university-level Genspiration Prize at the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) 13th Annual Conference in Raleigh, North Carolina this summer. Created in partnership with the Genspiration Foundation, the Genspiration Prize recognizes outstanding innovation "with the potential to benefit society and the economy" by K-12 and university level teams or individuals.
The UH team was celebrated for their Revolutionary Sensing Technology and received an oversized check for $2,500 during the ceremony, highlighting their significant contribution to the field.
"It is so exciting to develop a novel health monitoring method for Lithium-ion batteries under the supervision of Dr. Yan Yao and Dr. Gangbing Song," said Chen, who was also recognized earlier this year with the Cullen College of Engineering Young Innovator Award. "It is a great honor to win the first place in National Academy of Inventors Genspiration Prize competition. As a Ph.D. student, I am eager to continue the research on applying machine learning to monitor lithium-ion batteries and improve this sensing technology."
NAI boasts over 4,600 individual members across U.S. and international universities, governmental agencies, and non-profit research institutes. The organization was founded "to recognize and encourage inventors with U.S. patents, enhance the visibility of academic technology and innovation, encourage the disclosure of intellectual property, educate and mentor innovative students, and create wider public understanding of how its members' inventions benefit society."
"I was thrilled to be invited to present our team's efforts developing this game-changing battery monitoring technology to the National Academy of Inventors, and I am delighted that we won the final Genspiration Prize!" said Hannan. "I have learned so much working with Jian Chen, Dr. Song, and Dr. Yao throughout this project. Having the significance of our innovation's societal impact recognized and awarded in a national competition is a great honor personally as well as a testament to the strength of Cullen College of Engineering, the power of interdisciplinary collaboration, and the value of creativity and curiosity."
The experience has inspired Hannan to pursue a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering.
"I'm enthusiastic to continue this research and enable improved battery safety, reliability, re-use, and lifespan," he said.
Chen and Hannan's research was recently published in Energy Storage Materials – a high impact factor journal in the field. This link provides free access to their article until October 24, 2024.