Informação, Tecnologia e Desenvolvimento (IT&D)
Inventor says that system that transmits images from swimmer
underwater hasn’t been built yet but interests a multinational

Evanildo da Silveira

The device called Izzy Car moves along tracks built on a laboratory bench. The tracks simulate the edge of a swimming pool. Coupled with an adjustable arm, the robot carries a video camera that may be placed in different places and depths. The robot’s machinery is mounted inside a trapeze-like metal box; the camera goes inside a glass tube with conical tips, which reduce water resistance. When the swimmer dives in and begins to swim, Izzy captures the images. A computer, which processes the data and commands the operations, is also part of the system. The data is transmitted wireless by a VHF video transmitter.

The system is still a prototype, but already has a commercial name — it’s called Velaqua — and a patent request registered at the National Institute of Intellectual Property (Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial, INPI). The device is aimed at responding to the need for the continuous improvement of top professional swimmers. The images that Velaqua transmits live give swimming coaches the chance to “see” the athlete’s movements underwater – and to correct them right away.

Velaqua was invented, and is being developed, by a small company that is part of the Innovation in Small Businesses Program (Programa Inovação Tecnológica em Pequenas Empresas, PIPE), of the State of São Paulo Research Foundation (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo, Fapesp): Informação, Tecnologia e Desenvolvimento (IT&D) – Information, Technology & Development –, the commercial name of the H. R. de Souza Informática ME (H. R. de Souza Computing). But what’s the invention here? Computing engineer Humberto Ribeiro de Souza, the company’s young founder — he’s just 28 years old —, is the first to point out that the system’s inventiveness is the fact that the company’s team put together already existing devices and gave them a new use. There’s no innovation in a translation vehicle that moves like the Izzy Car; nor in the wireless short distance video transmission, or in the wireless control of the vehicle proper. Combining all those techniques – that’s the gimmick. The patent request for the system was deposited in September of 2005.

Interest from a multinational and the Chilean market

According to its creator, although it is still in the prototype stage Velaqua has already caught the attention of a European multinational that manufactures watches. He won’t disclose the company’s name, but says that representatives of it have been to IT&D headquarters in Santos, Brazil’s main port, on the State of São Paulo coast, to check Velaqua out. “Their idea is to put the product in the European market through Britain. It’s going to be a test before trying to take the system to the U.S.,” explains Souza. The company has already contacted the Centro São Paulo Design, a branch of the State of São Paulo’s Institute for Technology Research (Instituto de Pesquisas Tecnológicas do Estado de São Paulo, IPT), for the adjustments required to comply with the international standards. The center is already working on the device’s design, appearance and packaging. An important problem is the tracks’ weight – the lighter they are, the better it is for exporting the Velaqua. To pay for the adjustments, the company got funding from the Sebraetec line of the Brazilian Service for the Support of Micro and Small Businesses (Serviço Brasileiro de Apoio às Micro e Pequenas Empresas, Sebrae).

In Chile, where he was recently, Souza examined the possibility of using his system in salmon breeding tanks. The underwater camera system could monitor the behavior and the growth of the fish in the tanks. He came home with proposals for technical-scientific development, professional exchange and presence in an emergent region of the country – which region is another of Souza’s secrets. He is going to Europe this month in search of new deals focused on niches such as Chile’s salmon.

There are no estimates regarding the specific market for Velaqua. What is known is that the segment of equipment for pools and swimming was worth US$ 1.6 in Brazil in 2006. Souza believes that the business model for the equipment in the country won’t be direct sales, but services. The company is going to rent the Velaqua to swimming centers, clubs and gyms. In the international market, however, IT&D intends to adopt a different strategy and sell the device.

The market voice

Swimming experts bet on Velaqua chances. Marcio Latuf, for example, who is one of Brazil’s national swimming team’s coaches, is familiar with IT&D’s product. “The system will make easier sub-aquatic analysis, which is the crucial point for the application of force in swimming,” explains the expert, who is also technical supervisor and coach of the main team, the male and the female swimming teams of the University Santa Cecília (Universidade Santa Cecília, Unisanta), from Santos, where Souza got his degree in engineering. “There is similar equipment available, but not with robot signal to move the cameras and precise data sent in real time to the computer. With Velaqua the data analysis is direct and may be carried out immediately after the data is gathered,” he says enthusiastically.

According to Souza, the product will reach the market in three versions: A50, B50 and B25. The first, designed for 50-meter (58 yards) pools, is the most complete – the system follows the swimmer on its own. The B50 and B25 lines are simpler and require an operator to control the robot and make it move and follow the athlete. “Both are designed for large gyms, with 50-meter (29 yards) (the B50) and 25-meter (14 yards) (the B25) pools,” explains the engineer. “For the future other application forms and areas are planned. For instance, in physiotherapy.”

IT&D, a child of Infotech — which was born in a shared apartment

IT&D came to life as a spin-off of another company, Mateus Rodrigues & Ribeiro de Souza Ltda., better known as Infotech, which Souza founded with his friend Carlos Alexandre Rodrigues in 1998. “At the time Infotech operated out of a bedroom in the apartment in which we both lived,” he recalls. “In 1999 it moved to the garage. In 2000 its first store and the maintenance laboratory were opened. The company had two divisions: one performed the preventive maintenance of computers and printers and the other developed customized software for small businesses.”

Infotech grew fast. By 2002 it already had customers in the industrial area of neighboring Cubatão, particularly in the highway transportation sector. So the company created a structure with two cars, one motorbike and a staff of five. It was also in 2002 that the Sistema de Medição de Velocidade em Tempo Real para Nadadores (System for Speed Measurement in Real Time for Swimmers) — the name of the project that resulted in the Velaqua — won the award of best work of the National Scientific Initiation Contest (Concurso de Trabalhos Nacionais de Iniciação Científica of the Brazilian Computing Society (Sociedade Brasileira de Computação, SBC). At the time, in order for the system to work a wire had to be connected to the swimmer. The award encouraged the two friends to create the spin-off, in order to intensify their research ability and capacity-building and prepare their definitive entry in the automation market with focus on sports technology. In the meantime Infotech continued to work with computer equipment maintenance for its customers, which included large companies and institutions such as the State of São Paulo Federation of Industries, as well as the Santos municipal government and Unisanta.

Souza spent the next two years looking for a way to develop or transfer the technology of its award-winning product. Difficulties included his lack of experience in general and with negotiations in particular, but eventually IT&D found the right place in Santos’ Business Incubator. Because of the difference in focus of the two companies, Infotech and IT&D split in 2004.

PIPE comes to the scene

It was at that time, November of 2004, that PIPE approved the Velaqua research project, directly for Phase II. By March of 2005 the money was available. “We got approximately US$ 31,000, plus fellowships for the coordinator and two assistants. In June of 2007 we got additional US$ 16,000,” says Souza.

The money was used for the basic set up of the laboratory. IT&D purchased a workstation with operational system and software licenses, as well as electronic equipment; it built prototypes; it took part in conferences. Even a portion of the international standardization that IPT is carrying out has been paid with resources from PIPE. That’s why, according to Souza, the funds were crucial for the decision that made possible the effective start off of the project’s development. “We faced a set of new situations that are common to this kind of funding, and that improved our management and planning ability,” he explains.

In mid-2005, already with PIPE’s money, IT&D took the difficult decision of transferring its customers from the areas of transportation and energy to Infotech — although independent, the companies continue to relate. After that the company, already incubated and with its equipped laboratory, began to dedicate itself entirely to its technical-commercial capacity-building and to the development of Velaqua.

Setbacks

It was a tough period: with little experience with funds and management, IT&D had a number of setbacks. It failed to combine the project’s activities with the chronogram of funds from Fapesp. To make things worse, in February of 2007, four months before the deadline for presenting Velaqua’s final prototype, a theft took place at the Santos incubator. Measurement and assembling equipment, tests and the prototypes that had already been developed – the thieves took everything. The company’s reaction was swift, but the project was delayed in at least one year. “In March, following the advices of more experienced researchers, we quickly changed the strategy for getting the data for the product so that we could have it ready by December of 2007,” says Souza. But that wasn’t possible: Velaqua is expected to be available in February of 2008. IT&D has requested from Fapesp money to replace the stolen equipment, but it still doesn’t know if the request will be approved.

In spite of the difficulties, the company is slowly consolidating itself. Today IT&D uses two rooms in the incubator, in which three holders of PIPE fellowships work – one with a degree in Physical Education and two technicians in computing. Two technical consultants in the areas of electronics and automation, who work according to the project’s needs or in special tasks, collaborate as well. “Our revenues are still irrelevant,” admits Souza. “But according to our business plan, they’ll become significant after mid-2008.”

While that doesn’t happen, the company survives from products and services in the area of industrial automation. IT&D is a “systems’ integrator.” Velaqua’s creator advertises his company: “We master project and creation of high level software, drivers and microcontrollers’ programming, especially of those directed to the areas of automation and transports,” he says. “We can also operate in the optimization and maintenance of automatic systems in the area of modal and industrial transports, in addition to sports. This is certainly due to the fact that the company is located in Latin America’s largest export outlet.” Besides, on November 1, 2007, the company qualified as a regional service supplier for Brazil’s State oil company, Petrobras, in the areas of industrial automation and automation maintenance, especially in what refers to the highway and maritime modals.