Re-Time Pty Ltd is a university-owned company headquartered in Australia which commercialize novel sleep devices from the research sector. The company was founded in 2005 by

Flinders University Flinders University, established as The Flinders University of South Australia is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia, with a footprint extending across a number of locations in South Australia and ...

after the publication of a 2001 Flinders study showing green-blue

light therapy Light therapy, also called phototherapy or bright light therapy is the exposure to direct sunlight or artificial light at controlled wavelengths in order to treat a variety of medical disorders, including seasonal affective disorder (SAD), circ ...

was effective in the treatment of

Circadian rhythm sleep disorders A circadian rhythm (), or circadian cycle, is a natural oscillation that repeats roughly every 24 hours. Circadian rhythms can refer to any process that originates within an organism (i.e., endogenous) and responds to the environment (is entra ...

and

Seasonal Affective Disorder Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a mood disorder subset in which people who typically have normal mental health throughout most of the year exhibit depressive symptoms at the same time each year. It is commonly, but not always, associated w ...

. The Chief Investigator was Professor Leon Lack. Originally from

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

, California, Lack moved to Flinders University in 1972. Lack went on to publish three more peer-reviewed research articles in 2003, 2004 and 2007 covering light therapy to treat sleep disorders including

Delayed sleep phase disorder Delayed sleep phase disorder (DSPD), more often known as delayed sleep phase syndrome and also as delayed sleep–wake phase disorder, is the delaying of a person's circadian rhythm (biological clock) compared to those of societal norms. The dis ...

and Jet lag syndrome. These studies would further demonstrate the

efficacy Efficacy is the ability to perform a task to a satisfactory or expected degree. The word comes from the same roots as '' effectiveness'', and it has often been used synonymously, although in pharmacology a distinction is now often made betwee ...

of green-blue light therapy for in improving sleep. Flinders filed patents in the United States, Japan, Korean, China and Europe to cover the specification of the

prototype used in the 2001 study. In 2011 Flinders University signed a joint venture agreement with SMR Australia, a subsidiary of Samvardhana Motherson Group based in Noida, India with turnover USD $6.9billion. SMR Australia became a shareholder in Re-Timer Pty Ltd and also obtained the rights to design and manufacture the device. The Re-Timer product was launched in November 2012 and received significant global media coverage, which included the

Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

and

Fox News The Fox News Channel (FNC), commonly known as Fox News, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conservatism in the United States, conservative List of news television channels, news and political commentary Television stati ...

. In the company's home state of South Australia, considerable attention has focused on the model of technology transfer used to commercialize this University research. In an interview with

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

Magazine, Re-Timer Managing Director stated 85% of production is now exported from South Australia to over 40 different countries. In October 2016 the company successfully completed crowdfunding for a novel wearable technology called Thim.

References

{{reflist

External links

Thim Website
Manufacturing companies of Australia Flinders University