The following is the text of a July 12, 2021, from Diné College.

TSAILE, Arizona — A Diné College professor has received a patent from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that would make it easier for doctors to diagnose disorders in the brain, heart, intestines, or uterus. 

The patent, “Concentric ring electrodes for improved accuracy of Laplacian estimation,” was issued on June 29, 2021. “The patent can be used for various kinds of electrophysiological measurement, such as recording electric signals from brain, heart, muscles, intestines, uterus, etc., for diagnostic purposes,” said Associate Professor Oleksandr Makeyev, who has taught math at the College since 2014. 

“While I’ve worked on the concentric ring electrode technology for over a decade now, the research that went into this particular patent was the culmination of several different projects, grants, publications, etc.” said Dr. Oleksandr Makeyev. The results were obtained about a year ago in the middle of the pandemic and then submitted as a patent application on October 9, 2020. 

“This could be a first-ever patent for a tribal college,” said Diné College President Charles “Monty” Roessel. “The approval of this scientific patent shows our growth and entrance into academic entrepreneurship field as an institution of higher education and exhibits the highly qualified and esteemed faculty we have educating our students.” 

Dr. Makeyev has a second patent application pending, as well as a third one in the preparation stages. “I believe that this pursuit of intellectual property and technology transfer on part of Diné College reflects the institution’s high regard for cutting edge research and innovation,” Dr. Makeyev said.

“We are very grateful for the support of the National Science Foundation (NSF) Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP) since costs and fees associated with this pursuit were covered under two research grants. We are also very grateful to Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP for their help and legal support that was absolutely vital to the success of this effort,” he added.   

James Tutt, Dean of the School of STEM said Diné College recently broke ground for a $7.4 million STEM building which will create more opportunities for students and faculty to conduct research. “Diné College’s School of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) is paving a way for the future,” said Dean Tutt.  

Dr. Makeyev has a Ph.D. in engineering science from Clarkson University. In 2014, after completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Rhode Island, he joined Diné College. He has authored and co-authored 77 scientific publications including 34 papers in peer-reviewed journals. In 2017, he was elevated to the rank of a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the world’s largest technical professional organization.

Diné College is a four-year tribal college located on the Navajo reservation with six campuses and two microsites across Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah and primarily serves Navajo students. The school offers 13 bachelor’s degrees, 20 associate’s, and 9 certificate programs. The school is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. The college, established in 1968, is the first tribal college and was formerly named Navajo Community College.

View the patent at uspto.report.