BioE 374: Biodesign Innovation

Graduate or postdoctoral students from the schools of business, engineering, humanities & science, law and medicine are invited to participate in the Elective Course, BioE 374A (Winter) and BioE 374B (Spring). Undergraduates with exceptional background will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Note: Students who have completed the A quarter will be given preference for the B quarter.

Elective Course Structure

• Needs Assessment
• Research
• Intellectual property
• Biomedical ethics
• Brainstorming
• Assessing Clinical and Market Potential
• Developing patent strategies
• Prototyping

The two-quarter Elective Course series combines lectures from a diverse group of faculty with hands-on projects that expose students to the practical aspects of technology invention and development. The first hour of each class features a presentation or discussion from one of the guest speakers or faculty. In the second hour students work in small project teams in the Biodesign prototyping lab or bench space, collaborating with the Directors of the program.

A: Needs Finding and Concept Creation

The winter quarter includes an introduction to needs finding methods, brainstorming and concept creation. Students learn strategies for understanding and interpreting clinical needs, researching literature and searching patents. Working in small interdisciplinary teams coached by the Fellows, students gain exposure to clinical and scientific literature review, techniques of intellectual property analysis and feasibility, basic prototyping and market assessment. Students create, analyze and screen medical technology ideas, and select projects for future development.

B: Concept Development and Implementation

The spring quarter is focused on concept development and implementation. Continuing in small groups, students learn to identify important early factors for success, prototype their inventions and refine intellectual property. Lectures by a series of experienced medical pioneers and entrepreneurs cover strategic planning, ethical considerations, new venture management, and fundamental financing and licensing strategies. Students analyze cash requirements, create regulatory (FDA), reimbursement, clinical and legal strategies, and develop business or research plans.

Course Content

Course content (syllabus, homework assignments, etc.) is maintained on the Stanford Courseworks website. Once a student is enrolled in the course, access is given to the courseworks pages.

• A Quarter Coursework page (for students and faculty)
• B Quarter Coursework page (for students and faculty)

Some past video content is available on the video page.