Recent collaboration between Computer Science and Software Engineering faculty and Monmouth students results in the development of applications that are leading to patents.

Fludz:

Specialist Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering Raman Lakshmanan, Ph.D., and recent Computer Science graduate, Ava Taylor ’23, filed a non-provisional US patent (18/635,475) and trademark application for the Fludz™ app in April. Fludz is a crowd-sourced flood data distribution and analysis service that allows users to report and view local real-time data about flooding conditions.  The service came to fruition from Ava Taylor’s Honor’s Thesis research on the lack of flood data at a local level and finding a cost-effective way to report and track flooding. A provisional patent was first filed in April 2023 and was updated to a non-provisional patent in April 2024 with additional claims.

With Fludz service, users are able to report flooded areas, worsening conditions, road hazards, flood depth estimate, and more in real time, and get information on safe evacuation routes. According to Lakshmanan and Taylor, the current emergency alert systems are not as effective as they could be in protecting the public from dangers during flood events and this app aims to fill the void at a local level for the more than 167 million people in the United States that are exposed to flood risks – a number expected to increase as climate, urbanization, and land use changes progress. If approved, it will be the University’s first patent in the last 8 years. The system and method for local flood data collection and distribution developed for Fludz could be adapted for various other applications, such as pollution reporting, tree/plant disease tracking, reservoir overflow monitoring, and more.

ParkShark:

While working, Communication Assistant Professor Amanda Stojanov and student Gianna Piroso identified a need to have a more efficient system to assist college students to find parking spots on campus lots as they commute to campus. They approached Computer Science and Software Engineering Specialist Professor Raman Lakshmanan to develop their ParkShark app ideas into a viable product and service. CSSE department students Davian Albaran and Drew McGovern designed and developed an innovative combination of IoT (Internet of Things) hardware and software service to passively assist commuting students to find available parking spots.

Commuters can provide their class schedules, arrival times to campus, preferred lots, etc. to the ParkShark system. A geo-fenced service lets them know lot occupancy and available spots in their ParkShark app. As they park in an available spot, the service detects the spot as taken and updates to show the change to other commuters. When a vehicle leaves a parked spot, the service detects movement away from the spot and reflects the spot as available. Service also provides lot availability based on arrival time using historical data.

During the 2024-2025 school year, ParkShark Phase 2 work will test the product and service with 25 users, expanding to 250 users to perfect the technology before a non-provisional patent is filed in mid-2025. The goal in Phase 3 is to launch the service to all commuting students and faculty at Monmouth.

ParkShark service can be extended for use in commercial parking lots, city and town parking, and event parking.

On August 8th 10 groups of student researchers presented their faculty sponsored research in the School of Science’s 16th Annual Summer Research Program Symposium. A complete list of the the presenters and abstracts of their projects can be found in the 2024 Summer Research Program Abstract Book. To learn more about the Summer Research Program visit our site.

John Tiedemann, Assistant Dean of the School of Science and Director of the Marine and Environmental Biology Program, retired at the end of August. John contributed to the Monmouth University School of Science community as a teacher and scholar for 26 years, entering Monmouth University’s School of Science, Technology and Engineering dean’s office in 1999. John has been a mainstay of the School of Science Student Research Conference from its inception in 2001. The research conference has been a capstone experience showcasing student scholarship for over 24 years. For the last 16 years, John has contributed significantly to the school’s Summer Research Program, taking over the operation of the program over the last 9 years.

John taught a number of courses during his time here at Monmouth, always a student favorite in the classroom. He served as the inaugural instructor of the BY 317 Tropical Island Ecology course, traveling with students every January to the Cape Eleuthera Institute in the Bahamas. In addition, John’s project, Stripers for the Future, has educated fishermen on the proper catch and release practices to reduce mortality rates along with a tagging program to track movement and breeding grounds of these sport fish. We will miss being regaled with tales from John with outstretched arms of catching a “fish this big.”

John has always been an avid surfer and it was easy to take the time to hear him speak about the history of the Jersey shore whether it was beach access, the development of environmental policies, or how the waves would break in a particular area. His humor combined with thoughtful insight made him a valued colleague. We wish John happiness, fulfillment, and good health in his retirement from Monmouth, and joy in the company of his family and friends. Surf’s Up.

The 2023 Distinguished Teaching Award recipient is Dr. Kathryn Lionetti, Associate Professor in the Department of Biology, in the School of Science. Dr. Lionetti earned her Bachelor’s in Biological Sciences and Doctorate in Genetics from SUNY at Stony Brook. She has been an educator, mentor, and advisor for the Monmouth University community for over 30 years.

The Monmouth University Distinguished Teaching Award celebrates and encourages sustained excellence in teaching, with a commitment to providing Monmouth students with a transformative and engaging educational experience that promotes critical thinking and evidence-based pedagogical practices. Dr. Lionetti has taught and undertaken major revisions in teaching both general and applied microbiology for biology majors. When the COVID pandemic forced remote learning , She developed innovative ways to accomplish lab learning outcomes for students taking the General Microbiology (lab and lecture) remotely. Dr. Lionetti published on this work in the prestigious Journal of Microbiology and Biology Education in 2022 “Teaching Microscopy Remotely: Two Engaging Options”.

We are all very proud to recognize Dr. Lionetti’s accomplishment.