Global Access: Guiding Principles

Universities play an active role in developing medicines, screening technologies, and other leading medical and public health tools that are instrumental in improving health worldwide. While these are widely available in developed countries, in poorer societies, access to vital technologies like these is directly tied to the distribution and patenting decisions made by the universities. Who are these products distributed to? Will they be sold in bulk for societies that can’t afford high prices? The fate of the distribution of a single drug or screening test can lie in these decisions. Drugs and other health discoveries should be equally available Read More …

Anatomy of a Patent Application

One of the most common ways to protect certain types of inventions (like medical devices or new chemical compositions) is through patenting. This guide quickly explains the parts of a United States patent application which is filled through the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Generally, patents are divided into seven sections. The sections are as follows: Title Background: A description of the problem the invention hopes to solve, along with information on any previous inventions of a similar function (prior art). Summary: A concise description of the claims. Description of Drawings: A list of drawings that appear within Read More …

Six Things to Know About Copyrights

There are plenty of myths and confusion around copyright law. Many people aren’t sure what a copyright covers and how it differs from other types of intellectual property (IP) protection like patents or trademarks. Although a blog is too short to go into all the specific details of copyright law, we hope to hit a few key highpoints here and help clarify what a copyright is and its function. A copyright differs from a patent or trademark in that it protects an original work of authorship. A patent protects inventions or discoveries and a trademark protects words, phrases, symbols, or Read More …

Quick Reference of the Common Types of Intellectual Property Rights

“Intellectual property” or “IP” generally refers to exclusive rights granted to owners under U.S. intellectual property laws to a variety of intangible assets covering creations of the human mind.  Common types of IP rights include copyrights, trademarks, patents (utility and design patents) and trade secrets. Type of Right What it Protects How to Obtain Copyright Original works of authorship, including writings (including computer software) music (including any accompany words and/or music), and works of art (e.g., pictorial, graphic, and/or sculptural works) that have been tangibly expressed Copyright exists immediately and automatically when the work is created, that is, when it Read More …

What do Those Extra Letters Mean? Professional Designations in Technology Transfer

Many members of our team carry additional letters behind their names, most being readily recognizable such as PhD, JD, or MBA; but what do the others you see mean, such as CLP and RTTP? Like many professions, these are certifications and designations attained by those in the technology transfer and licensing fields that are conferred and administered by the professional societies our team members participate in, namely, the Licensing Executive Society and the Alliance of Technology Transfer Professionals. For our field, these designations signify that a technology transfer professional has met a certain level of proficiency and experience; for our Read More …

Inventorship: Who is an Inventor?

Inventorship could be the million dollar question. In a university setting where collaboration is common place – who is an inventor? Most scholars understand “authorship,” but this concept shouldn’t be confused with “inventorship.” Being listed as an author on a journal article discussing the invention does not automatically make one an inventor on the patent itself. As a general rule, an inventor is one who has substantially contributed to the “conception” of an invention. Whereas, someone working at the direction of another, using routine skill without making a substantial conceptual contribution, is not considered to be an inventor under U. Read More …

Untangling the Codes

In technology transfer, as in other fields, there are quite a few acronyms that are thrown around and may seem confusing at first. In this glossary, we break down the different types of agreements that’ll help you untangle those codes. MTA MTA stands for Material Transfer Agreement. Because research and technology development are often collaborative efforts, colleagues may share research tools. MTAs are formal contracts that define the proper use and limits of these shared tools, which could include reagents, cells, antibodies, computer software, etc. It’s important to execute an MTA before any research material is sent or received. The Read More …