Microbot Medical Inc. announced that it entered into an agreement with CardioSert Ltd. to acquire CardioSert’s patented guidewire technology, including R&D information, technical know-how, and intellectual property.
Microbot expects the acquisition to close in April 2018, at which time Microbot expects to have a patent portfolio of 25 issued/allowed patents and 15 pending patent applications worldwide, including CardioSert’s one issued patent (U.S. Pat. No. 9,586,029) and three pending patent applications. According to CardioSert, CardioSert’s technology offers capabilities such as steering and adjustable stiffness to guidewires used in interventional cardiology, radiology and vascular surgery. These features give physicians the ability to control the tip curvature, to adjust tip stiffness in a gradually continuous manner, and to produce impacts with the tip for negotiating calcified segments.
Microbot believes the technology has uses in other spaces, including peripheral intervention, neurosurgery, and urology. Microbot also believes the technology, when added to its existing robotic capabilities, will be consistent with its strategy to develop micro-robotic technologies for surgeries utilizing the natural and artificial lumens in the human body, expand and enhance its intellectual property portfolio, and allow it to enter adjacent medical spaces and applications.
Microbot reports that CardioSert will receive 100,000 restricted shares of Microbot’s common stock, cash payments totaling $300,000 (including $50,000 paid at signing), the potential for future milestone payments based on development progress and regulatory approvals, as well as royalties from futures sales related to the technology.