University-industry Technology Transfer Research Articles

A Trust-Enhanced Patent Recommendation Approach to University-Industry Technology Transfer

Technology transfer enables the technology from legal owners to be used by others, and it is essential for technology innovation in modern society. However, transferring technology from academia to industry has become a challenging task due to the "cultural divide" problem, where researchers in universities tend to focus on knowledge discovery, while companies focus on making profits with application of proven technologies. This creates a mistrust problem for companies to use academic patents invented by universities. Various recommendation methods have been proposed for technology transfer purposes, but few have addressed the trust issue caused by the cultural divide. This paper proposes a multidimensional trust-enhanced recommendation approach to promote academic patent trading. The approach extracts patent information, users' online interactions, and technology transfer information for recommendation calculation. It includes 1) measuring the degree of connectivity between companies and patents by the Personalized PageRank model; 2) measuring the trustworthiness of a potential patent transaction from the aspects of patent quality, inventor, and university; and 3) adopting a logistic regression model to integrate the above measurements. The results of our user-based experiment show that the proposed recommendation approach obtains higher average hit rate and higher willingness scores than current recommendation methods.

Research on the involvement and success factors of star scientists in start-ups

Star scientists are an essential driver of innovation. Studies into the concept of star scientists were first carried out by Professor Lynne Zucker and Professor Michael Darby from the University of California. They identified that in science research fields a very small number of scientists are responsible for the notable discoveries, and that the brightest scientists in the world produce more publications, attract more citations and lodge more patents than other scientists. An international collaboration led by the Waseda Business School and the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Japan has expanded on the concept of star scientists. Their novel JST-RISTEX project, entitled ‘Star Scientists and Innovation in Japan’ focuses on understanding innovation and entrepreneurship, and the role star scientists play in this in Japan. Associate Professor Kanetaka Maki is the Principal Investigator. Building a list of star scientists in Japan and constructing data sets that can be used for star scientist research were the two main project outputs. Key activities for the team were evaluating an initiative the Government of Japan introduced in 1998 promoting university-industry technology transfer and providing scientific evidence regarding the allocation of research funds from the perspective of a star scientist, in order to ensure that Japan remains competitive in the world, in terms of scientific innovation with real-world applications for industry. The project is the first to conduct science and technology innovation and related policy evaluation in Japan from the perspective of a star scientist using quantitative analysis.

Hurdles in University-Industry Technology Transfer: Why Research-Based Inventions are Not Transferred to the Market?

Despite their importance, previous literature on university-industry technology transfer has overlooked identifying the factors and the mechanisms inhibiting the successful commercialization of research-based inventions (RBIs). In this article, we adopt an inductive approach to explore the factors inhibiting the transfer of RBIs developed within universities to the market. We do so by conducting a case study on 15 RBIs developed within a prominent Italian technical university. Our results show that three main classes of inhibitors prevent the commercialization of RBIs: institutional, interpersonal, and cultural. Although all three factors are important in preventing knowledge and technology transfer between universities and their industrial ecosystem, we find out that relational inhibitors are the most prevalent ones, whereas institutional and cultural contribute to reinforcing the effect of relational inhibitors. We discuss how such inhibitors could be tackled by technology transfer ecosystem actors to eliminate obstacles to the transfer of knowledge and technologies from universities to industry; we also discuss the effectiveness of formal policies and instruments in lowering such inhibitors.

Business incubation as a community of practice: an emergent cultural web

ABSTRACT Research on business incubation has been dominated by studies exploring university-industry technology transfer and high technology accelerators. Less is known about Business Incubation Centres (BICs), specifically, how their formal and informal structures may impact upon client development. Drawing on concepts from the community of practice (CoP) literature and organizational culture, we explore if BICs can be considered to be CoPs. We also seek to unravel the key elements which underpin the culture of a BIC and how these elements may provide enabling or constraining conditions for a CoP to emerge. Through a qualitative methodology of regional-based BICs in Ireland, we illustrate how the amount of time spent on campus; the nature of the working week; the scalability of the enterprise; and the capacity of the enterprise to meet the criteria associated with high potential start-ups influences clients’ perceptions of the value of BICs. We provide new theoretical insights which suggest that BICs are a CoP with a culture that can be studied, captured, and illustrated. Practical and policy implications are suggested to enhance the effectiveness of BICs for both clients and regions.

University–Industry Technology Transfer: Empirical Findings from Chinese Industrial Firms

The knowledge and innovation generated by researchers at universities is transferred to industries through patent licensing, leading to the commercialization of academic output. In order to investigate the development of Chinese university–industry technology transfer and whether this kind of collaboration may affect a firm’s innovation output, we collected approximately 6400 license contracts made between more than 4000 Chinese firms and 300 Chinese universities for the period between 2009 and 2014. This is the first study on Chinese university–industry knowledge transfer using a bipartite social network analysis (SNA) method, which emphasizes centrality estimates. We are able to investigate empirically how patent license transfer behavior may affect each firm’s innovative output by allocating a centrality score to each firm in the university–firm technology transfer network. We elucidate the academic–industry knowledge by visualizing flow patterns for different regions with the SNA tool, Gephi. We find that innovation capabilities, R&D resources, and technology transfer performance all vary across China, and that patent licensing networks present clear small-world phenomena. We also highlight the Bipartite Graph Reinforcement Model (BGRM) and BiRank centrality in the bipartite network. Our empirical results reveal that firms with high BGRM and BiRank centrality scores, long history, and fewer employees have greater innovative output.

A Framework to Manage University–Industry Technology Transfer

This paper focuses on university–industry relationships, and the value in such linkages that motivates firms to choose a particular mode to acquire university-generated research output. We combined insights from literature review and 15 exploratory interviews of multiple stakeholders, and developed a framework to examine university–industry linkages. We grounded our framework on the social exchange theory (SET) and quadruple helix concept. It proposes university climate readiness (e.g. incentive system), firm climate readiness (e.g. managers’ attitude toward academic research), and exchange readiness (e.g. a firm’s absorptive capacity) as antecedents to science-business collaboration, coupled with environmental readiness factors (e.g. unique socio-cultural setting in developing economies) as moderating variables. The framework highlights (1) functional value (i.e. technology pricing, quality, and applicability) and (2) relational value (i.e. trust between academia and industry) in the said relationship. The framework further provides a basis for practitioners to arrive at a suitable university-developed technology transfer mode (e.g. patent licensing, research services, and research partnerships).

University-Industry Technology Transfer in India: a Plausible Model Based on Success Stories from the USA, Japan, and Israel

AbstractPatenting and technology commercialization activities are rapidly gaining momentum in Indian academia. Currently, there is paucity of data suggesting technology commercialization activities among Indian academia. This study aims to examine issues regarding technology commercialization among Indian academics. The objectives of this study are to (1) understand the policy implications of university-industry technology transfer and (2) propose a conceptual model for technology transfer suitable for Indian scenario. The data included for our analysis is drawn from our previous study of 25 Indian Universities. The orientation of the paper is as follows: “Literature Review” is subdivided into two sub-sections — “Policies Implemented for Leveraging Successful Academic Research Commercialization in the USA, Japan, and Israel” and “University Research Commercialization — Case Studies of Universities in the USA, Japan, and Israel” are presented. “Methodology” deals with the methodology used for the study. “Discussion” is further subdivided into three sections — “Analysis and Comparisons of Policy Implications on University-Industry Technology Transfer,” “Practice of Academic Technology Transfer in Indian Universities/Institutes,” and “Conceptual Model Recommended for University-Industry Tech Commercialization in India.” “Conclusion” concludes the topic. The current practices of academia-industry knowledge commercialization in India are limited, and the paper is an attempt to propose a suitable model to encourage commercialization activities by Indian universities.

Factors Affecting Technology Transfer and Commercialization of University Research in India: a Cross-sectional Study

In recent years, there is a great emphasis on transferring inventions and technologies originating from academia to industry through technology transfer/licensing or commercialization. The efforts of the Government of India (GOI) aim to create socially useful innovation through university-industry technology transfer. The objective of the study is to examine and understand enabling factors and barriers for technology transfer among Indian universities. The study covers three key aspects: (1) the awareness and practice of patents and research commercialization among Indian academia, (2) comprehending strategies adapted to commercialize research activities, and (3) barriers in university-industry technology transfer (TT). This paper is an attempt to answer the research question whether current dynamics within Indian universities create an environment for enabling knowledge transfer/commercialization and propose plausible suggestions to enable academia-industry technology transfer. A self- assessed structured methodology is contemplated and applied. Convenience sampling methods were adopted. Administrators of 25 universities overseeing research and development activities/patent cell/incubation cell or industrial collaboration of universities were approached to participate in the study. Indian universities are categorized as (i) public funded universities and (ii) private institutes for the purpose of the study. It is interesting to understand that public funded universities have an advantage in terms of receiving funds and licensing the research to potential industrial partners. The authors further conclude that research undertaken in academia is far from the demands of the industry. Even though the relevant supporting system for enhancing university-industry collaboration is in place, such as establishing technology transfer office (TTO) in the university, they hardly channelize the resources for socially useful innovation. It is important for Indian academia to undertake commercially viable research for the benefit of society.

University-Industry Technology Transfer: Issues and Probable Remedies

The importance of technology transfer (TT) from Universities to industry cannot be overstated. Such transfer does not only stimulate development, but is also a way of bringing research into practical use. However, the issue of how Universities and industry partner for enhancement of TT activities is not well articulated. This study attempts to answer the following questions: How does policy on intellectual property rights affect TT from Universities? How does government funding affect TT from Universities? This research highlights the mechanisms adopted by Ugandan Universities for TT and the avenues for protecting intellectual property rights. It is hoped that the findings of this study will provide useful lessons to policy makers who are concerned with evaluating the effectiveness of TT from Universities. The Endogenous Growth Model was used to assess this TT. The research project was a qualitative descriptive single case study using Makerere University as a case institution. The Nvivo 9 data analysis technique was employed to organize and analyse the data. Findings indicate that inadequate funding; problems with ownership of intellectual property, lack of ethics by faculty and researchers, low motivation of staff and conflict of interest are the major impediments to University-industry TT in Uganda. The study recommends increased funding for University-industry TT activities and formalization of intellectual property rights in higher education institutions. Keywords : University, Industry, Technology Transfer, Intellectual Property Rights, Endogenous Growth Model, Technology Diffusion. DOI: 10.7176/JEP/11-17-06 Publication date: June 30th 2020

Science-based entrepreneurship education as a means for university-industry technology transfer

This paper explores the potential of university-industry technology transfer through science-based entrepreneurship education (SBEE). The scientific literature focuses mostly on enabling university-industry technology transfer via university-industry collaboration in research, and not so much in (science) education. The paper identifies four strands of relevant literature for further theorizing SBEE principles to research its contribution to industry-technology transfer: 1. Embedding entrepreneurship education in universities; 2. Balancing theory and practice of entrepreneurship education; 3. Cultivating an entrepreneurial mindset through entrepreneurship education; and 4. Creating spin-offs through entrepreneurship education. One of the main theoretical contributions of this paper is, that SBEE is different from regular entrepreneurship education in its need for being firmly embedded in a science, technology and R&D environment, both within and outside the university. This is important in order to give SBEE students the opportunity to gain experience with handling the hurdles for successful university-industry technology transfer. The main empirical finding is that elements in the program, related to for example the balance between teaching entrepreneurship through theory and experiential learning, are not systematically covered. It means that fundamental questions such as: Can entrepreneurship be indeed taught? Which elements of entrepreneurship can be taught through theory, and which ones must be experienced in practice? are currently left unanswered. Systematic coverage of these questions enables a better exploitation of the possibilities that SBEE offers for university-industry technology transfer.

Perspectives of University-Industry Technology Transfer in African Emerging Economies: Evaluating the Nigerian Scenario via a Data Envelopment Approach

All of Africa’s emerging economies are faced with developmental challenges, which can be partly ameliorated using effective University–Industry technology transfer. While technology transfer remains at the infant stage, sparsely documented, and with no complex ongoing processes in many African societies, Universities in Africa are making efforts in University–Industry collaborations aimed at bringing significant improvements to the continent in a bid to drive national innovation and regional economic development. In this paper, we attempt to evaluate the progress made so far by Nigerian Universities in technological innovation transfer, in order to suggest ways for possible future progress. To do this, crucial technology transfer resource factors (inputs), namely, the number of linkage projects funded by the “African Research Council” (ARC), consortium membership of the University’s technology transfer office, and the number of doctoral staff at the University’s technology transfer office, were checked against a set of performance measures (number of executed licenses, amount of licensing royalty income, number of spin-offs created, and the number of spin-offs created with university equity), using data envelopment analysis and multiple regression, respectively. Results suggest that Universities that possess better resource factors reported higher outputs on most of the performance indicators applied. In addition, it was observed that Universities with greater ability to effectively transfer knowledge had higher technology commercialization performance and financial sustainability. The implication of these results is that Universities in Africa need to develop in line with the technology transfer resource (input) factors suggested within this study, as this is the way to go for better performance.

Models, Processes, and Roles of Universities in Technology Transfer Management: A Systematic Review

Universities play pivotal roles when research findings are to be adopted commercially. Although these roles vary from one country to another, effective patenting and licensing procedures, as well as eventual commercialisation of scholarly inventions, reflect hard work on the part of the University mediating between the researcher and the industry through technology transfer offices (TTOs) in order to ensure that knowledge-developers take motivational and monetary credit for their findings. This paper details some existing models, processes, and roles taken up in some countries where sharing of intellectual property exists, and links it up with aspects of university–industry technology transfer, such as policies surrounding patenting, government investment and marketing, and the process of academic entrepreneurship, among others. 22 articles were found via a systematic review of literature and analysed with respect to four identified areas of focus: internal strategy, investment and market, academic entrepreneurship and policy. Based on models, processes, and roles in reviewed studies, our results indicate that new models for technology transfer mainly stem from the fact that there is no universally accepted model in the literature. Furthermore, management of technology transfer is mostly the responsibility of TTOs in most countries. While university TTOs act as intermediaries to protect the interest of the author/inventor, issues such as poor relationships between universities and industry, as well as funding, remain major challenges in many emerging economies. In contrast, researchers in western economies are mainly challenged by financial motivation and recognition within the academic domains.

University-industry technology transfer: the commercialization of university’s patents

ABSTRACT The study aims at investigating the main challenges in University-Industry Technology Transfer (UITT) process, as well as the relevant factors for the successful licensing of university inventions. We interviewed academic inventors of several patents in force, owned by Portuguese public universities. We evaluated the process of patent development considering three phases: research, protection and commercialisation. We observed that most of the patents resulted from master/doctoral research and were developed by small, departmental or interdepartmental work teams without industry collaboration. The main motivations were related to curricular valorisation (prestige/visibility/reputation), potential of commercialisation, and/or university incentives. Inflexibility in university procedures and in negotiating with industry; lack of R&D funding to further develop the technology suitable for marketing; and low market potential of the patent were the most cited barriers. The collaboration with industry seems beneficial in the three phases of the UITT process, and its involvement contributed to diminish several of the barriers identified in the UITT process.

How Can We Improve the Transformation Success Rate of Research Results in the Pharmaceutical Industry? The Game Theoretic Model of Technology Transfer Subjects.

University–industry technology transfer (UITT) plays an important role in the construction of the national pharmaceutical innovation system. The speculations of a faculty inventor may hinder the successful transfer of pharmaceutical research results. This paper divides the specific process of the transformation of pharmaceutical research results into two parts: (1) an evolutionary game between faculty inventors and universities; and (2) a Stackelberg game between faculty inventors and pharmaceutical companies. Further, we carry out numerical simulations to analyze the impact of transformation success rate, income distribution coefficient, and a faculty inventor’s future working years on the transformation of pharmaceutical research results. The findings indicated that whether a combination of action strategies of faculty inventors and universities can evolve to the optimal equilibrium is determined by many factors, such as the technological transaction price of the pharmaceutical company and the reward or the income obtained by the faculty inventor. The transformation success rate and the income distribution coefficient are the key factors that affect the faculty inventor’s will and the behavior of the pharmaceutical company. The conclusions of this paper contribute to the research on how we can improve the success rate of research results and avoid resource waste, and provide a decision-making reference for the management of pharmaceutical research results in universities.

University-industry technology transfer within the context of RIS3 North of Portugal

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this paper is to assess stakeholders’ perceptions on the implementation of the smart specialization strategy (RIS3) in the North of Portugal, with a particular focus on technology transfer (TT) activities between 2014 and 2017. A qualitative methodology was followed through semi-structured interviews applied to the actors in the region based on the eight priority domains of RIS3 North of Portugal. Data analysis was performed using Iramuteq software. Our results suggest that the stakeholders’ perception of the fitness of the RIS3 defined for their region does not match with the RIS3 defined by the policy makers. Our results contribute to a better understanding of the real perception of universities and industry on TT in the context of RIS3 and the need for ongoing evaluation and adjustments of RIS3 priority domains by policy makers to address them to the real necessities of the industry/market.

Invention characteristics and the degree of exclusivity of university licenses: The case of two leading French research universities

This paper examines the determinants of university exclusive versus non-exclusive licenses. We specifically focus on the effect of the characteristics of the licensed invention (i.e. stage of development, specificity and appropriability). We rely on a unique and original dataset of 91 inventions contained in 62 intellectual property licensing contracts executed in the period of 2005–2014 by two leading French research universities. We cannot find a significant relation between the characteristics of the invention and the degree of exclusivity. In particular, as opposed to theoretical predictions, embryonic inventions are not significantly linked to more exclusive licenses and generic inventions are not significantly linked to non-exclusive licenses. Furthermore, inventions that are both generic and embryonic are not significantly linked to exclusive licenses per field of use. These results, although still exploratory, contribute to feed the discussion about the performance of university-industry technology transfer since they suggest that performance might be improved by taking more into account the characteristics of the licensed invention.

Tacit Knowledge and University-Industry Technology Transfer

Traditional conceptions of university-industry technology transfer typically focus on patenting and licensing of academic inventions. However, effective technology transfer often requires significant knowledge exchange between academic and commercial entities in parallel to patent licensing. Although patents on university technologies nominally disclose those inventions, a significant amount of knowledge related to practicing and commercializing them remains tacit or uncodified, residing in the mind of the faculty inventor. This chapter explores the nature of tacit knowledge and mechanisms for transferring it. It notes that the “tacit dimension” of university inventions can be quite high given the embryonic nature of such technologies. It further reveals that human and institutional connections play a critical role in transferring tacit knowledge between universities and commercial firms. In particular, networks, consulting engagements, sponsored research, proof of concept centers and incubators, and university spinoffs facilitate direct interactions between academic and commercial entities, thus promoting tacit knowledge exchange.

Towards a typology of university technology transfer organizations in China: evidences from Tsinghua University

This paper argues that failure to deeply understand various existing organizations of university-industry technology transfer in China impedes the progress of both practice and research on technology transfer between university and industry in that country. In response, it attempts to categorize different types of university technology transfer organizations in China in over a 30-year time span and analyze the relations between these organizations. In so doing, Tsinghua University is taken as an example for analysis, because technology transfer at Tsinghua University can be seen as a microcosm of university-industry technology transfer in China with pioneer practices and successful experience to be followed by other universities in China. The analysis is guided by an analytical framework, constructed by integrating the insights from relevant literature. The framework distinguishes between different forms of university technology transfer organizations by focusing on six dimensions of the organizational characteristics. After identifying eight types of university technology transfer organizations in Tsinghua University with detailed descriptions of their respective organizational characteristics, the paper further groups them into a four-category typology. Besides its contribution in constructing a framework to understand university technology transfer organizations in the Chinese context, the paper also solicits suggestions for Chinese and international stakeholders who may potentially cooperate with Chinese research universities in research, development, and innovation.

University-industry linkage and technology transfer management

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to contribute to the understanding of the variables that play a relevant role in the management of university-industry linkage and technology transfer in the context of a public university in Mexico.Design/methodology/approachThis study is quantitative, and the method is based on an exploratory factor analysis (EFA), to identify the group of variables that relates to university-industry technology transfer, by applying a questionnaire to full time professors and researchers.FindingsThe EFA allowed for the analysis of the relationships within a group of variables, and found that the structure of the principal components presents a close connection to the literature review. The first, second and third factors, named institutional support in the linkage and technology transfer activities, research results management, and university linkage activities planning, respectively, explain the original problem in a greater percentage. Additionally, it is suggested to include other variables, to increase the explained variance percentage of the components.Social implicationsThe study of university-industry linkage and technology transfer allows for improvement in the institutional management of these activities, their entrepreneurship, and consequently, their use by companies, government and society.Originality/valueThis study focuses on analyzing a group of variables in a questionnaire, in order to identify those that are related to the university-industry technology transfer management, in the context of a public university in Mexico.

Examining alliance management capabilities in university-industry collaboration

Effective university-industry technology transfer requires universities to maintain and strengthen research and technology capabilities on the one hand, but also to develop and strengthen management capabilities to build and manage relationships with external partners on the other hand. This research seeks to advance the knowledge on university-industry collaboration by examining how managerial routines that in sum reflect the concept of alliance management capability influence success of outward university technology transfer. The results of an empirical study with academics from different universities in Germany offer insights into net effects and configurational effects of routines to manage interorganizational collaboration on technology transfer success. The findings indicate that academic units’ alliance management capability has a significant positive effect on technology transfer success. In addition, the findings indicate different configurations of alliance management routines, reflecting alternative, consistently sufficient pathways to technology transfer success. This knowledge contributes to current debates by disclosing important predictors of successful university-industry collaboration. In addition, it informs decision makers in universities about how to configure management systems to govern outward technology transfer activity.