Have an Idea?

The main role of IPSO is to facilitate commercialization of research results and University’s innovative technologies for the public good and maximize income to the school and faculty through licensing and other commercial agreements. Our main functions are consulting on intellectual property and technology transfer, receiving and reviewing all invention disclosures, determining patentability and assessing commercial potential of the disclosed inventions, administrating the patent process, negotiating deals through confidential disclosures and licensing agreements and supporting UNCG inventors in establishing start-up companies to commercialize their inventions.

Disclosing your invention to IPSO is an important part of protecting the rights to your discovery. One of the most important benefits may be the commercialization of your technology through IPSO’s efforts in patent and licensing of the discovery. Other benefits through IPSO’s marketing efforts include ??? this ends here on the website!

To protect the patentability rights to your invention, it is important that you contact IPSO as early as possible prior to public disclosure. Public disclosure includes Journal Articles, Publication on the Web, Conference Abstracts, Oral Presentation or Poster Presentations. Foreign patent rights are lost immediately upon public disclosure. In the U.S., you have one year from the date of the public disclosure to file a patent application.

An invention is a novel and useful idea resulting from study and experiment, and may relate to a process, machine, article of manufacture, composition of matter, or any improvement thereof.

Intellectual properties developed by university faculty and within the scope of their employment or through the use of their time, facilities, equipment or materials owned or paid for by the university are considered by Federal patent and copyright law to be the property of the university.

Inventions or technology developments made by a student who is supported by the university (i.e., by a fellowship) or employed by the university or is working voluntarily on a faculty member’s research and makes substantial use of university resources, are considered by Federal patent and copyright law to be the property of the university.

IPSO professionals. Such decision is based on the scope of the invention, its patentability, and commercial merit. UNCG Patent Committee may be asked to review the IPSO’s decision to patent.

A U.S. Patent for an invention is the grant of a property right to the inventor(s) , issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. A patent permits its owner to exclude members of the public from making, using, or selling the claimed invention.

In return for the monopoly, the inventor must make known the details of the invention so that others can seek improvements or new uses. The inventor gains by exclusive access to the invention, and society gains by using the detailed description of the invention to further advance technology.

Copyright is given to an author, artist, composer or programmer to exclude others from publishing or copyrighting literary, dramatic, musical, artistic or software works.

The entire process may take from two to six years. The cost of a U. S. patent typically ranges from $15,000 to $50,000.

If the University is interested in the invention, then all legal expenses and fees for the preparation, prosecution and maintenance of patent filings are paid by IPSO. However, IPSO tries to recover such costs from research sponsors or licensees.

Under current U. S. law, not all computer software may be patentable. It is, however, covered by the Copyright Act of 1976, under which computer software (as well as all other copyrightable work) is protected by Federal Statute from the moment it is “fixed” in a tangible form.

You can use the sites listed below to search for prior art patents:

• U.S. Patent & Trademark Office Web Patent Databases – Contact Innovate and our staff can conduct a search for you

You can use the sites listed below:

• Small Business Association (SBA)
• SBIR/STTR General Information

These are some local organizations providing assistance to researchers and small businesses:

• Small Business Technology Development Center – http://www.sbtdc.org/

UNCG and NC A&T Technology Transfer Partnership at the Nussbaum Center

• Nussbaum Center for Entrepreneurship – www.nussbaumcfe.com

After provision for University expenses incurred by it in obtaining and maintaining patents and/or in marketing, licensing, and defending patents, the inventor’s share of such revenues received by the University shall normally be as follows: