Cybernet
Systems Corp. is a profitable, rapidly growing research and development
company focused on commercializing technology that combines software
intelligence, Internet connectivity and man-machine interaction.
The company has an experienced staff of information technology-focused
engineers and computer scientists constantly working to advance
the "state of the art" of user interface design and Internet applications,
with the ultimate objective of blurring the lines of human interaction
with devices (and through them, the Internet) to the point where
such interaction ultimately becomes transparent. Its projects originated
under research and development contracts with various branches of
the U.S. Government, and through work with leading corporations
such as Ford Motor Company and the A.I. du Pont Institute.
Cybernet's
goal is to successfully develop and commercialize technology that
combines its engineering and computer science prowess with Internet
and/or electronic device capabilities. Unlike pure research companies
or universities, Cybernet is driven to leverage intellectual property
into increased shareholder value through its focus on commercially
attractive innovations - in other words, to successfully bring its
research to market.
The
company is well on the way to developing an attractive track record
for its technology and vision. Cybernet has already spun off its
Force Feedback technology through an agreement with Immersion Corporation,
which recently completed an initial public offering. The company
is now in the process of commercializing its Linux Internet thin
server appliance software through its NetMAX division, and it continues
to innovate in the areas of large-scale distributed network training
and gaming, gesture control interface technology and intelligent
networked medical systems. Technologies for these markets will soon
enter the commercial pipeline.
Moving
Innovative Technology to Market
Cybernet
seeks to multiply the value of its developments by owning all of
a given market or technology, protecting it through patents, trademarks
and copyrights. In this regard, the company is invention and intellectual
property driven. Certain well-known companies such as CMGI focus
on funding information exchange and e-commerce, while others, such
as IdeaLab, focus on developing new economic and business models.
In contrast, Cybernet focuses on cultivating a depth of knowledge
in specific fields of research, incubating the resulting creations
to the point of commercial value, then developing funding, partnerships
or financial relationships to move that technology to market. Cybernet
limits these efforts to broadly applicable and defensible intellectual
property positions, creating a high barrier to competitive entry.
In
order to remain focused on its core strengths in technology development
and innovation, Cybernet seeks the fastest, most highly leveraged
means to move a commercially viable technology to market. Where
beneficial, as with its Force Feedback technology, Cybernet leverages
partnerships for effective long-term market commercialization. Doing
so enables the company to remain focused and to quickly reallocate
key engineering resources to continue innovation.
The
Business of Innovation: Cybernet
Business Units
Force
Feedback -
Enhancing
Interaction Between User and Device Cybernet's Force Feedback technology
revolutionized user interaction with computer-input devices and
game controllers. Cybernet invented and patented the technology
behind Force Feedback controllers, using intelligent robotics to
dramatically enhance the interaction between user and device. In
fact, this Force Feedback technology represents the first commercially
successful attempt to have a computer or gaming console give tactile
feedback to the user. The company joined forces with Immersion Corporation
to implement a successful centralized design and licensing strategy
(licensees now include Microsoft and Logitech). Immersion recently
went public with Cybernet as a major shareholder.
NetMAX
- Simplifying Linux
Cybernet's NetMAX product line represents both the first business-ready
Linux server and the first step in evolving an inexpensive/flexible
software platform for easy-to-use Internet appliances. NetMAX leverages
the power, reliability and flexibility of Linux to deliver a simple,
inexpensive software system for controlling Internet appliance hardware.
The first products in the NetMAX thin server series - FileServer,
WebServer and FireWall - are focused on simplifying Linux set-up
and management for business thin servers. Future developments will
focus on driving the technology into ever more compact and/or embedded
Internet appliance applications, along with e-commerce functionality.
NetMAX products are delivered to market through constantly expanding
retail and OEM relationships, including CompUSA, Fry's, Ingram Micro,
Tech Data, LinuxMall, LinuxCare, NetMachines, etc.
The
true power of NetMAX lies in its ability to shield the user from
the complexities of the underlying Linux operating system and related
applications, while still offering all the robustness, flexibility
and power that has made Linux the biggest phenomenon in the software
industry. NetMAX pushes the Linux envelope through custom intelligent
configuration code, tight integration and a graphical HTML interface.
While setting up a Linux Web server, for example, takes significant
technical depth and potentially several days of configuration and
"tweaking," a NetMAX Web server can be set up through simple mouse
clicks in as little as 15 minutes by a relatively unsophisticated
user. If you can use a Web browser, you can set up NetMAX. NetMAX
also integrates the most popular brand of Linux (based on Red Hat
OS) and proven applications such as the Apache Web server, Sendmail,
Samba and others, all of which are addressable directly at the click
of a mouse.
Medical
- Linking the Internet with Outpatient Care
Cybernet Medical is using the Internet to augment the way doctors
monitor and diagnose patients, as well as the way in which doctors
and patients interact with technology. As part of this objective,
Cybernet Medical is implementing a nationwide Internet-based telemedicine
service that enables physicians to remotely gather and review outpatient
physiological data via the Internet. Such data includes heart rate,
blood pressure, electrocardiograms, electroencephalograms, etc.,
as well as medical imagery and video.
This
outpatient monitoring is used to gather physiological data over
an extended period of time without hospitalization. Doctors then
utilize the collected information to better grasp patient symptoms,
make a diagnosis and monitor conditions. While there is already
a thriving market for collecting, compiling and transferring this
data, the Cybernet Medical service will enable physicians to access
the data more quickly and from any Internet connection - whether
at the office, hospital, home or traveling - and to share this data
with colleagues or specialists in a speedy, secure fashion.
This
convergence of the Internet with existing medical business practices
promises to revolutionize the gathering of outpatient data, and
Cybernet Medical's intellectual property is broad enough to encompass
all Internet-based medical instrumentation, monitoring and records
management.
Gesture
Recognition Technology - Changing the Way People Control Devices
Cybernet's gesture recognition technology will radically alter the
way people interact with devices from computers and information/Internet
kiosks to consumer electronics. The underlying technology observes
human hand and body motions and interprets gestural signals in order
to control devices. This gesture recognition will ultimately remove
the need to command devices either through physical contact, such
as keyboards and mice, or remote controls.
The
system tracks a user's movements, identifies specific gestures (typically
easy-to-make hand motions) and initiates commands associated with
those gestures. Users can issue commands from anywhere within the
line of sight of the device to be controlled. This gesture recognition
technology can reduce maintenance costs typically associated with
remotes, touch-screen controlled kiosks and other common consumer
electronic devices. The technology is an excellent complement to
speech recognition technology (also under development at Cybernet),
because it allows device control in environments with noise interference
or constraints.
Open
Skies - Using the Internet as an Open Environment for Simulation
and Gaming
The Cybernet Open Skies project will deliver the first state-of-the-art,
open three-dimensional simulation environment for both training
and recreational/gaming activity. Originally developed to meet military
training requirements, Open Skies will deliver a fully three-dimensional,
immersive indoor/outdoor environment that supports a virtually limitless
range of ground-based vehicles, flight simulation and first-person
action.
Internet/network
gaming will leverage realtime multicasting technology and voice
over IP communications, as well as the inclusion of outside data
types, such as video and web connectivity. Moreover, Open Skies
will be the first gaming and simulation system to allow user manipulation
of the simulation environment, including changes to scenery, weather,
aircraft, vehicles, etc., which can then be shared with other users
over the Internet.
Cybernet
Systems Corporation is located at 727 Airport Boulevard, Ann Arbor
MI 48108. Phone: 734-668-2567. More information about the company
is available at www.cybernet.com.