Space Technology Transfer as a Source of Innovations

Abstract

The DARA Technology Transfer Programme is presented in detail. It comprises a threefold way to make space technology accessible to the non-space industry. First, promising technologies are identified and by an extensive marketing effort offered to non-space firms. Space industry as the owner or the technology can profit by license agreements or by starting diversifications into a non-space market segment. Second, DARA is funding the developments of technology demonstrators at research institutes as a first step towards targeted industrial cooperations. a Call for Ideas in the summer of 1996 among 190 German institutes resulted in 60 proposals for terrestrial applications of research results and technology developments related to space. This demonstrates clearly the high technological potential of space research which is available to non-space companies to be utilised for innovations. Support by DARA by the direct funding of technological demonstrators considerably improves the basis for industrial cooperations, resulting perhaps in funding of the research by industry, or even encourages researchers to found their own small enterprises and thus to constitute new markets. Third, new technologies are developed for space as well as for terrestrial applications. the developments stemming from the area of micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) can be used in space research as well as for terrestrial applications. This built-in spin-off makes use of R&D very efficiently by coupling financial and intellectual resources from different fields; some examples are presented. Thus space technologies are opened up systematically as a source for market relevant innovations.KeywordsTechnology TransferSpace ResearchEuropean Space AgencySpace TechnologyIntellectual ResourceThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.