Wavelogix, a manufacturer of novel, patented concrete strength sensors invented at Purdue University’s College of Engineering, has received a $999,910 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II grant from the National Science Foundation’s Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (TIP).
The grant covers a two-year project scheduled to end Aug. 31, 2026.
Luna Lu, Purdue’s Reilly Professor in the Lyles School of Civil Engineering and Wavelogix’s founder, invented the REBEL Concrete Strength Sensing System. The technology enables faster, data-driven decisions through real-time concrete strength monitoring.
“Built on the success of a Phase I SBIR project, this TIP-funded project will develop a complete solution for scaling up production,” Lu said. “A systematic hardware production and quality control procedure will be established, and key parameters for a reproducible production line will be determined.”
Concurrently, Wavelogix is developing a scalable cloud back end capable of serving tens of thousands of data loggers while ensuring data security and low latency.
“The machine learning algorithm is being refined to provide fast and accurate strength inferences,” Lu said. “A full-scale production and stress testing of the sensor system in real-life conditions are also being conducted to evaluate the robustness and user experience.”
Lu said the Wavelogix REBEL concrete strength sensors have the potential to transform the construction industry.
“Short term, this technology will allow accelerated project timelines and eliminate costly quality control errors,” she said. “Long term, it will leverage the power of big data to enable data-driven decision-making and optimization of concrete mix design, which will drastically reduce carbon footprint, eliminate wastes and lead to more durable concrete infrastructures.”
Lu is already thinking about how future breakthroughs will impact the company’s technology.
“By leveraging AI and big data analysis of the vast amount of structural health data collected, the project paves the way for the development of AI-powered solutions for predictive maintenance and improved construction practices,” she said.
In 2022 Wavelogix received a $255,996 Phase I SBIR grant from the National Science Foundation to develop its technology. The company received a $3 million investment from Rhapsody Venture Partners in June.
Lu disclosed the sensor system to the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization, which applied for the patent to protect the intellectual property and licensed it to Wavelogix.
