Imagine a nifty little product that promises to better your golf swing simply by analyzing your gait. The technology exists -- its working title is the "portable wireless wearable posture tracking system" and it was developed by Carnegie Mellon University's very own assistant professor of robotics, Yoky Matsuoko.

But for now, it sits, waiting to be seized by some hungry tech company or launched into its own start-up firm. Why? Because investors and companies don't easily part with money for a technology that doesn't come with a surefire guarantee that it actually works. But turning a promise such as Dr. Matsuoko's technology into a prototype that can prove its worth also costs money that is hard to come by.

This week, the state helped, pitching in $500,000 in matching grant money to the University of Pittsburgh and CMU tech transfer offices that are charged with bringing promising concepts to the marketplace. The state's injection is in addition to another $400,000 provided last year by Downtown-based Heinz Endowments provided to the MPC Corp. -- a joint economic development venture of CMU and Pitt -- to fine-tune and tweak worthy technologies for the marketplace.

Don Smith Jr., who heads MPC, chairs a six-member panel of the informally named "MPC Gap Fund" that is dedicated to identifying technology that needs that extra push and polish to tantalize an entrepreneur or investor or become a start-up. The "gap fund" has made three awards so far, Dr. Smith said, two to Pitt and one to CMU, for inventions that include a tiny robotic snake used for exploratory surgery and technology that detects retinal damage in diabetics. "None are companies yet," Dr. Smith said.

The extra dollars go toward such critical post-invention steps as market research and analysis and developing a prototype. Dr. Smith said the cost to prep these technologies is often in the tens of thousands of dollars. Top-notch universities such as the Massachusetts of Institute of Technology already are in the game of refining their inventions, aided by hefty endowments that go into the tens of millions.

Dr. Smith said Heinz doesn't meddle in his group's activities, which centers on deciding which technologies to pursue. "We can only do so many of those -- we can place our bets strategically,'' he said. "This funding'' from Heinz and the state "will help us pursue more of these technologies than we were able to otherwise."

More on Heinz Endowments ... By now, you may know that CMU Vice Provost and Chief Technology Officer Christina Gabriel is set to join the foundation on Feb. 1 as director of its newly renamed Innovation Economy Program. This is a real coup for Heinz' economic development efforts as Dr. Gabriel is well-known and respected for revamping the university's technology transfer office to speed its ability to bring inventions to the marketplace.

It's also an indication that tech-focused economic development -- growing viable successful technology firms with the strength of Pittsburgh's research and medical institutions -- is going to be a top priority for the foundation.

Dr. Gabriel wasn't specific about her plans, but she did suggest that it could be time for the region to take a look at the direction and focus of some of its tech-oriented economic development organizations, including those funded by Heinz such as the Idea Foundry, the Technology Collaborative and the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse. "All of them have been in operation long enough [to see] what's working really well and what should be changed."

Lastly, Dr. Gabriel said that Heinz's role as a convenor of ideas and strategies around the region to make the tech industry better will continue. "I want to broaden the conversation a bit ... It's really about our attitude. We're much more willing to think big and try new things."

UPMC's Strategic Business Initiatives arm -- designed to commercialize technology inside and outside of the hospital and health care giant -- is very busy. A few weeks ago, Bits reported that the company was in talks to do an investment deal with Strip District-based software firm CombineNet. Yesterday, SBI Director Chuck Bogosta confirmed that the company is also in talks to acquire a Pitt-developed cancer diagnostic technology that was expected to become a start-up known as MidasBio. The technology can detect ovarian cancer at its earliest stage. "We're pretty excited about it, but we're in the very early stages of [discussions] right now," Bogosta said.

State College-based C-Cor Inc. said yesterday it would sell its legacy digital signal product, known as the DV6000, to Massachusetts-based Newfound Technology Inc. for an undisclosed amount. The company, which has been undergoing restructuring over the past year, including 225 job cuts at some of its offices, said the sale of the DV6000, which transports digital video signals over fiber optic networks, would allow it to focus on research and development of new products.