November 21, 2019
Jeffrey Bennighof, a research professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, was honored with The University of Texas at Austin’s Commercialization Success of the Year Award as part of the university’s 2019 Top Inventions and Innovations program.
The story of this year’s biggest commercialization success started in 1986, when Bennighof joined UT's ASE/EM department with a curiosity about how to predict vibration in complex structures. In the 1990s, Bennighof received funding from the Navy to develop a new method for analyzing vibration of submarines, but the end of the Cold War brought a decline in federal funding. At the same time, the auto industry became increasingly interested in making cars quieter.
Bennighof’s research group produced commercial software to analyze vibrations, and licensing revenue from industry supported ongoing research and improvement. In the 18 years since the software first became commercially available, it has become the standard in the industry for ensuring quality beginning at engineering design stages. This has resulted in widespread use of two software packages: AMLS and FastFRS. Revenue to UT during the past three years has exceeded $6.5 million.
Bennighof is one of four researchers selected for a UT Austin Invent and Innovation award for 2019. Read the full UT Austin news release to learn more about this year’s top UT inventions and innovations of 2019.
