Troy Tesmer, co-owner of Soul Mobility based in Oconomowoc, met Professor Brooke Slavens, mechanical engineering, in 2023 through a mutual connection. Now the two, along with Scientist Alyssa Schnorenberg in the Slavens’ lab, have teamed up to study a problem that all are interested in — making life easier for wheelchair users.
Their project, investigating solutions to the constant exposure to vibration that users often experience, is one of 12 funded in the college this year through the UWM Faculty-Industry Partnership Seed Grants (FIPS). Fifteen faculty members and two scientists from the college have earned the largest share of 20 grants awarded across UWM.
Designed to overcome the inertia of getting started with industry, the FIPS program helps faculty and industry partners move quickly from idea to application, with amounts ranging between $41,000 and $50,000 each. The grants support multidisciplinary research, early-stage product development, and preparation for larger external funding proposals.
Here’s a look at this year’s awardees and their partners:
Alyssa Schnorenberg, Brooke Slavens, Soul Mobility
“Comparing suspension and non-suspension power-assist technologies for reducing vibration and impact exposure in wheelchair mobility.”
Feng Guo, Rob Cuzner, Eaton
“Development of bidirectional-switch-based paralell SiC/GaN hybrid three-level, T-type active-front end for high-power and ultra-high efficiency, fast-charging stations.”
Qingsu Cheng, Exact Sciences
“Scalable automation for organoid-based cancer research.”
Junjie Niu, GE Appliances
“PFAS removal via electrochemical oxidation in water.”
Priyatha Premnath, (Sandeep Gopalakrishna), RxOS
“Engineering of selective p21 inhibition with radical scavenging hydrogel matrices: a strategic academic industrial partnership for regenerative wound therapy.”
Nikolai Kouklin, Konstantin Sobolev, Qcells, Silfab Solar, JincoSolar
“Polycrystalline zinc-phosphate thin films: multispectral low-cost solar energy photovoltaics for industrial deployment.”
Jian Zhao, Nathan Salowitz, Precast Engineering Company
“Nondestructive testing and field monitoring of adhesive anchors in precast concrete connections.”
Rani F El Hajjar, Tian Zhao, Carlisle Construction Materials
“Machine learning and acoustic methods for nondestructive characterization of thermoplastic polyolefin membranes.”
Yin Wang, Xiaoli Ma, (Shangping Xu), AO Smith
“Accelerating the development of next-generation membrane/composite water filters through an AI- driven digital twin framework based on pore-scale simulations.”
Konstantin Sobolev, Jian Zhao, Elastizell Corporation of America
“FireShield: development of an advanced cellular concrete system for wildfire protection.”
Woo-Jin Chang, Baker Manufacturing Co.
“Rapid characterization of the portable, minimum viable lead detection device for onsite drinking water quality monitoring.”
Zhen Zeng, Joe Hamann, Rockwell Automation
“Developing and validating multi-agent-assisted industrial robotics systems.”
Find out more about internal grant opportunities at UWM.