Introduction to noVRel
Pittsburgh startup noVRel won second place in Carnegie Mellon’s McGinnis Venture Competition, receiving $5,000. Students from the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) and Carnegie Mellon University are entering the augmented reality (AR) industry through their startup company, noVRel, which focuses on developing a hardware attachment for AR headsets that will be used during surgical procedures. Augmented reality is becoming increasingly relevant in the sphere of medication as physicians use it for each educational purposes and medical procedures.
The Idea Behind noVRel
The idea behind noVRel got here from Sejeal Katiyar, the chief executive officer of noVRel, who began the enterprise. Katiyar connected with Dr. Andrews, a neurosurgeon on the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), who provided clinical input obligatory for her to execute her project. But because the project progressed and other students joined in the trouble, the project took a lifetime of its own as a startup. Funded by the Center of Medical Innovation (CMI) at Pitt, noVRel aimed to integrate lights, visual magnification loupes, and a fluorescent-sided microscope into an AR headset to supply surgeons easy accessibility to patient data and increase the accuracy of routine procedures.
Development and Progress
To develop their product, the team, composed of seven members, needed to tackle several questions posed by Dr. Andrews and Dr. Paul Andrew Gardner, the Peter J. Jannetta Endowed Chair of neurological surgery on the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and director of the Center for Skull Base Surgery. “How can we attach those? How can we microsize them and fasten them to a headset while also providing surgeons with the entire augmented reality capabilities? How can we display real-time patient data, intraoperative streaming, and all of that in front of the surgeon while they’re performing the procedure?” said Tanvi Mittal, a senior at Carnegie Mellon majoring in mechanical and biomedical engineering and the chief operating officer (COO) of noVRel. Through labor and innovation, the team executed proof of concepts, made cardboard prototypes, isolated their minimum viable product, and now have a functional prototype on the Microsoft HoloLens.
Testing and Feedback
From there, the team invited neurosurgeons from UPMC to try on the functional prototype and provides their opinions on the product. “We’ve been in a position to put it on our clinical advisors and conduct mock studies with them to examine dexterity, efficacy, comfort, and value,” Mittal said. Although their product has not been utilized in the clinical context, the feedback the team obtained from the mock studies provided a number of quantitative and qualitative data. The product is targeted to the needs of neurosurgeons as the sphere is more open to innovations.
Benefits of noVRel
The product would give surgeons easy accessibility to essential patient information. “There are already so many screens that surgeons are being attentive to that we’re essentially just condensing those screens into one, relatively than having them crane their neck 4 different times or ask the scrub nurse if a patient’s vitals are okay.” But that’s not all. Because the team’s product integrates several medical tools, it could potentially lower the prices of apparatus purchased by hospitals, and reduce the period of time per surgery. “There’s an enormous equipment cost, but more importantly, our device can cut down the period of time spent per surgery,” Mittal said.
Future Plans and Recognition
Recently, noVRel placed second within the undergraduate track within the McGinnis Venture Competition. The team can be working on making a prototype for the Apple Vision Pro. Mittal joined noVRel through a mutual friend and commenced contributing ideas within the early stages of the product design. Now as COO, Mittal has expanded her work on the team beyond the technical side. Mittal is thankful for the support she and the remaining of the team have received from the Big Idea Center on the University of Pittsburgh and Project Olympus at Carnegie Mellon University.
Conclusion
In conclusion, noVRel is a promising startup that’s making waves within the medical industry with its modern AR headset attachment. With its potential to enhance surgical procedures, reduce costs, and increase efficiency, noVRel is an exciting example of how technology will be used to enhance healthcare. As the team continues to develop and refine their product, they’re sure to make a major impact within the medical field. With the support of prestigious institutions and the dedication of its team members, noVRel is poised for fulfillment and is certainly an organization to observe in the long run.
