University Technology Transfer Research Articles

Institutional frameworks that guide research integrity and security towards protection of IP and management of technology transfer in universities in Kenya

Kenya’s higher education system is expanding at a very rapid rate. This is reflected in the increasing number of public and private universities, the expansion of existing universities, and the proliferation of online education services. Further, these universities have been increasingly expected to transcend their conventional teaching and research missions to contribute directly and indirectly to solving social and environmental challenges and generate knowledge of economic relevance to society. The teaching and research missions of a university are important, especially on a continent whose population is young and growing rapidly. Demand for higher education is likely to remain high.

An Investigation of the Mechanisms of Technology Transfer and Automation in Universities: A Case Study on Promoting Entrepreneurship and Startup Ecosystems at Bangladesh Open University

This study conducts a thorough analysis of the processes involved in technology transfer, automation, and entrepreneurship at Bangladesh Open University (BOU), using a qualitative research methodology. The study utilizes thematic analysis, supported by NVivo, to extract valuable insights from interviews with 30 important stakeholders, including academics, students, and administrators. The results indicate moderate achievements in the transfer of technology, characterized by difficulties in commercializing university research and developing robust industry connections. Within the field of automation, the study emphasizes the important role it plays in improving access to education, while also acknowledging the difficulties created by limited digital skills and unequal distribution of resources. The expansion of the entrepreneurship ecosystem at BOU is clearly visible, but, it is limited by a requirement for stronger support systems, namely in the areas of mentorship and funding. These qualitative views provide a detailed and subtle viewpoint on how BOU aligns with or deviates from well-known ideas like the Triple Helix Model and Academic Entrepreneurship Theory. They emphasize the distinct problems and opportunities that arise in an open university environment. The study’s results make significant contributions to scholarly discussions, highlighting the importance of customized approaches in incorporating technology and fostering entrepreneurial growth in higher education, particularly in the context of developing nations.

The Impact of Regional Patent Policies on University Technology Transfer: Empirical Evidence from China

The Impact of Regional Patent Policies on University Technology Transfer: Empirical Evidence from China

The duality of the influence of basic research and applied research on technology transfer performance: evidence from Chinese universities

ABSTRACT This paper addresses the question of how basic research and applied research independently and interdependently affect technology transfer performance. Using the data of 673 universities in mainland China over 2008-2017, we verify that basic and applied research are critical antecedents of university technology transfer. This study further explores whether the interdependent effect of these two types of research on technology transfer performance is synergistic or antagonistic, and finds empirical support for the antagonistic view. Additionally, university-industry connections and the diversity of disciplines are considered as heterogeneity factors that influence the effectiveness of reconciling the two types of research to enhance technology transfer performance. Our empirical results indicate that science parks can alleviate the antagonistic joint influence of basic and applied research on technology transfer performance. Inconsistent with our prediction, no significant disparities exist between comprehensive universities and non-comprehensive ones in this joint influence. This paper contributes to the literature on university technology transfer within the Triple Helix framework by sheding light on the pressures behind reconciling the excellence in basic research and the pursuit of practical application of research outputs during the process of advancing university technology transfer in the context of China.

Opinion: Do universities help or hurt innovation?

Opinion: Do universities help or hurt innovation? Do Universities help or hurt innovation? Find out in this 25-year academic entrepreneur’s anecdotal perspective of starting companies and developing implants. Thomas J. Webster shares his opinion here. Top research U.S. Universities and others worldwide, sometimes along with respective government funding agencies (like the NSF and the NIH in the U.S.), have spent billions of dollars trying to translate their faculty’s research to industry to develop real commercial products. Whether establishing University technology transfer offices (whose objective is to foster faculty research translation), paying IP lawyer fees for patents, establishing incubator spaces for University faculty spin-out companies, or issuing grants aimed at research primed for industry adoption, it is clear that U.S. Universities are in the high stakes and high funding game of entrepreneurship, and have been so for the last several decades.

FOSTERING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AWARENESS IN ACADEMIC ENTREPRENEURSHIP

The importance of Intellectual Property (IP) in academic entrepreneurship, emphasises a need for specialised knowledge of IP law in university Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs), and general awareness of IP rules amongst university researchers, research assistants, and other university personnel. This helps not only in preventing the inadvertent loss of valuable IP, but also the infringement of IP owned by other parties, which could result in costly law suits. Equally, knowledge of IP law is indispensable to the effective negotiation of licences, and the drafting of contracts that cater for the interests of both universities and industry. The objective of this article is, accordingly, to provide academic entrepreneurs with insights into IP regimes. This should help them in identifying valuable IP, and in ensuring that protection is not compromised. It will also help in determining the modes of protection suitable for particular forms of IP, how to manage acquired rights, and tackle infringements. In the following sections, we discuss these issues from the perspectives of several jurisdictions. Traversing our discussion is an examination of university IP policies, and relevant case law, which should enhance understanding. The last segment of the article concludes and reiterates the importance of IP awareness in academic entrepreneurship. Therefore, this article aims at fostering awareness of IP regimes amongst academic entrepreneurs.

University patent litigation in the United States: Do we have a problem?

In an attempt to increase revenues from patenting activities, some universities have started in recent years to pursue “overzealous” strategies to monetize their existing patents, by selling them to the highest bidder and enforcing them in court. In this paper we find quantitative evidence that patent litigation has an adverse effect on university technology transfer activities, reinforcing prior findings by Shane and Somaya (2007). However, we empirically show that universities do not litigate aggressively over patent infringement: not only do they litigate much less than patent assertion entities (PAEs), but we also observe no increase in terms of their propensity to litigate over the last two decades. Nor do we find any evidence of aggressive litigation strategies.

Co-designing doctoral programs to enhance postgraduate students' employability: insights from industry stakeholders

PurposeDoctoral programs play a crucial role in promoting innovation and technology transfer in universities. To design these programs effectively and with a co-design perspective, it is essential to consider all stakeholders involved in the process, including teachers, students and employers. The main objective of this study is to enhance postgraduate programs to improve students' employability.Design/methodology/approachThis empirical study was conducted over a three-year period and employed semi-structured interviews as its primary research methodology. In the first phase, 21 in-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with managers from various sectors. The second phase involved 20 interviews, and the final phase of the study included 18 interviews with the same managers from previous phases.FindingsThe study's main results revealed that the international networks, language proficiency and analytical skills of doctoral students were highly valued by employers. The main findings come from companies with doctoral students. Therefore, the skills were identified during the learning experience of the PhD graduates in the companies.Practical implicationsThe study's results can guide improvements in postgraduate program curricula and design to enhance students' employability.Originality/valueThis research presents a novel approach to its findings. On the one hand, the study's conclusions may provide valuable insights for business agents, encouraging them to hire PhD students. On the other hand, it aims to drive necessary changes that promote more PhD students' focus on non-academic careers, creating significant value for research and innovation in the private sector.

Motivational factors for patenting: A study of the Brazilian researchers profile

The motivation that leads researchers to engage in patenting and licensing activities is a complex topic that needs to be further investigated, especially in emerging countries. In Brazil, universities stand out as the main patent depositors, being important actors in the country's technological development process. The objective of this study is to present the profile of researchers from Brazilian universities and the motivational factors that lead them to patent the results of their research. Based on a literature review, 27 factors were identified, which were classified according to the nature of motivation and expected results. Data from curricula vitae were collected to verify the researchers' academic and sociodemographic profile. A survey was conducted to measure the importance attributed to different motivational factors. The results show that, in addition to the royalties established in Brazilian legislation, universities need to provide other conditions and incentives to engage more researchers in patenting and licensing activities. Therefore, this study can provide subsidies for the formulation of policies aimed at promoting innovation and technology transfer in Brazilian universities.

University Technology transfer: from the invention disclosure to the licensing agreement

University Technology transfer: from the invention disclosure to the licensing agreement

Examining the efficiency of regional university technology transfer in China: A mixed-integer generalized data envelopment analysis framework

In university technology transfer performance assessment, some variables, such as labor and contracts, must be treated as integer-valued variables. Usually, the reference points obtained by the conventional data envelopment analysis (DEA) method are unrealistic when one of the input/output measures is an integer value. As a result, several integer DEA models have been proposed over the last decade. However, these models are based only on self-evaluation. In some cases, when a large gap exists between the best- and worst-performing units, the improvement path based on self-evaluation can be inappropriate. To overcome this issue, we propose a mixed-integer generalized DEA model based on peer evaluation to evaluate the efficiency level of regional university technology transfer in China. A sample of 27 provinces in China from 2008 to 2015 is used in the study. The results reveal that the eastern region, on average, obtained the highest level of efficiency among the three regions in China, whereas the western region presented a poor efficiency level. This is consistent with the current stage of development. Several recommendations are suggested for promoting technology transfer in the western region.

(Invited) Iron Flow Battery with Slurry Electrode for Large Scale Energy Storage: Scale-up, Commercialization, and IP Challenges in an Academic Environment

Large-scale energy storage is required to meet a multitude of current energy challenges. These challenges include modernizing the grid, incorporating intermittent renewable energy sources (so as to dispatch continuous electrical energy), improving the efficiency of electricity transmission and distribution, and providing flexibility of storage independent of geographical and geological location.Through efforts supported by ARPA-E and the Department of Energy Office of Electricity, one technology we are developing utilizes an approach based on sustainable, low cost iron electrolytes in an iron flow battery (IFB). Advantages of the IFB include abundant, non-toxic, and non-corrosive materials that are used to provide an energy storage solution that has inherently safe operation and is environmentally friendly. In our approach to the all iron RFB, we introduced a flowing carbon slurry as the negative electrode as a substrate for plating iron during charging allowing storage of the plated iron in a tank external to the stack. This configuration decouples energy and power capacities. The work supported by DOE allowed us to address challenges encountered in scaling up from small laboratory cells to a large commercial size slurry IFB single cell. 1 In this presentation, we will address some of the challenges we encountered for demonstrating the technology within an academic environment in order to position it for commercial development. Even with funding to overcome the valley-of-death and technology-to-market assistance given by ARPA-E, we faced many challenges including hiring expertise to address scale-up, design and testing. We will discuss challenges faced with identifying partners and licensees for moving discovery to product. Also, we will describe the many types of interactions we had with the university Technology Transfer Office including patent disclosure, IP protection, and negotiating licenses. Acknowledgements: This research was supported by ARPA-E contract DE-AR0000352. Partial support also was received from the DOE Office of Electricity Award #1111358,0 under Dr. Imre Gyuk. 1N.S. Sinclair, R.F. Savinell and J.S. Wainright, MRS Energy & Sustainability, 2022; doi: 10.1557/s43581-022-00046-8

New product development process and case studies for deep-tech academic research to commercialization

This research proposes a new product development (NPD) framework for innovation-driven deep-tech research to commercialization and tested it with three case studies of different exploitation methods. The proposed framework, called Augmented Stage-Gate, integrates the next-generation Agile Stage-Gate development process with lean startup and design thinking approaches. The framework consists of six stages and five gates and focuses on critical thinking to help entrepreneurs avoid psychological traps and make the right decisions. Early activities focus on scouting for potential socioeconomically impactful deep-tech research, developing a business case, market analysis, and strategy for problem–solution fit, and then, moving to a build–measure–learn activity with a validated learning feedback loop. Next, suitable exploitation methods are decided using weight factor analysis, developing intellectual property (IP) strategy, completing the university technology transfer process, and participating in fundraising. To pass each gate, the committee board members, consisting of tech, business, IP and regulatory, and domain experts, will evaluate the passing criteria to decide Go/No-Go. Applying the framework to the case studies results in successful university research commercialization. The model, case study, and lessons learned in this paper can be useful for other deep-tech incubator programs to successfully launch deep-tech research for commercialization. The case studies’ positive outcomes validate the Augmented Stage-Gate framework, yet their success is not entirely guaranteed due to external factors like regulatory constraints, entrepreneur characteristics, timing, and the necessary ecosystem or infrastructure, particularly in emerging markets. These factors should be taken into account for future research purposes.

Factors, Routes, and Existing Theories of Technology Commercialization in University: A Conceptual Framework

<p>Technology commercialization in universities which consists of three phases, namely basic research, commercialization feasibility, and commercialization runs non-linearly and goes through licensing and spin-off creation. To achieve commercialization success, there are eight influencing factors, namely academic entrepreneur, role of technology, availability of market, availability of finance, intermediaries' support (i.e. University Technology Transfer Office (UTTO), university's incubator, and proof of concept center), role of collaborative research center, policy support, and regional infrastructure and environment. Meanwhile, the existing management theories that discuss the commercialization of technology in universities mostly use a resource perspective such as Resource-Based View (RBV), resource orchestration theory, and dynamic capabilities with university and spin-offs as unit of analysis. This literature study provides several recommendations for future studies. First, it needs to expand the analysis not limited to licensing and spin-off, and second, it is suggested to develop a resource perspective by enriching what dimensions influence the success of a technology commercialization in universities or provide alternative new management theories in understanding technology commercialization in university.</p>

Intellectual property coordinators' cohorts: A study into the imprints in university technology transfer

The primary aim of Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs) is to enhance technology transfers, resulting in the commercialization of science. Technology transfer has typically been analyzed at the individual level of the core research staff or with the focus on the TTO as a whole, overlooking the fact that the university technology transfer is administered by intellectual property (IP) coordinators. This paper focuses on exposing a potentially crucial factor in technology transfer; the effects of cohorts based on imprinting. The imprinting theory implies that imprints are persistent and manifest themselves in the core activities of the IP coordinators' cohorts in the long term. We bring to light the effects of IP coordinators' cohorts on patenting and licensing, and test a conceptual model of inter-cohort variability. We analyze the patenting and licensing data of 18,393 patent cases and 845 licensed cases, handled by 63 IP coordinators. In combination with human resource data, we show that in the technology transfer process, IP coordinators’' cohorts matter. Using discriminant analysis, we demonstrate that some aspects of technology transfer activities are more typical for one cohort than the others. Variations between cohorts suggest that they are influenced by the prevailing practices inside the TTO at the time of hiring. Cohort patterns are also distinct in the two key technology transfer activities (patenting and licensing). Regression analysis shows that cohort effects remain resistant to erosion even when faced with subsequent changes as captured by organizational and individual time-period effects.

Barriers to Third Mission: organizational and individual antecedents

The fulfillment of the University’s Third Mission has led the university to become a key actor for social and economic development in its regions of influence through a much closer linkage with the different agents in its environment. Thus, the literature has highlighted both the benefits derived from the Third University Mission, the difficulties inherent in the process and the existence of various barriers that can hinder its consolidation in the academic environment. Within the framework of these studies, it has been possible to identify three types of barriers to adopting the third mission: process, researcher, and ally or partner. It is worth mentioning that most of the research developed to date has focused on the study of the impact of the barriers on the development of the Third Mission but not on the analysis of the factors that can influence or attenuate the perception of these barriers. This is surprising if one considers that identifying these factors is relevant in designing strategies to promote the University’s Third Mission. Therefore, this article aims to identify the factors that influence or attenuate the researcher’s perception of different types of barriers to developing Third Mission activities. The study was based on data from a survey applied to a sample of academics categorized in the National System of Science, Technology and Innovation of Colombia and linked to 6 higher education institutions in the Colombian Caribbean region. Binary logistic regression models were established to analyze the data obtained. The results obtained suggest that, in addition to the researcher's previous experience in the external sector, their perception of the existence of processes or support services provided by the university for the promotion of relationships with actors in the socioeconomic environment is important to mitigate the barriers perceived during the development of Third Mission activities, especially when these activities are located in the support for the management and execution of technology transfer activities. In particular, it was found that as the academic's perception of the policies and procedures, support activities, and the university's technology transfer capacity improves, the barriers of both the researcher and those associated with the process are dissipated. This implies that universities should advance in the institutionalization of the third mission and in strengthening the functions of promotion, advice and support, as well as promotion structures and thus be able to mitigate the perceived barriers to the development of the University’s Third Mission.

Does high-speed rail stimulate university technology transfer? evidence from China.

Prior studies ignore the impact of infrastructure on university technology transfer. High-speed rail, China's most significant infrastructure, has played an essential role in the economy and society. Using high-speed railway construction as a quasi-experiment and a large sample of Chinese universities for the 2007-2017 period, we investigate the impact of high-speed rail on university technology transfer. We provide extensive evidence that high-speed rail has a positive effect on university technology transfer. The finding remains valid after a battery of robustness tests. Mechanism tests find that high-speed rail can improve university technology transfer by promoting the interaction between universities and enterprises and improving enterprises' technology demand for universities. Further analysis shows that better intellectual property protection strengthens the effect of high-speed rail on university technology transfer, and the relationship between high-speed rail and university technology transfer is more prominent in the regions with underdevelopment technology trading markets. Our study suggests that high-speed rail is an important variable that affects university technology transfer.

Outsourcing university research commercialization to a sophisticated technology transfer office: Evidence from Australian universities

A better understanding of how university technology transfer can be effectively achieved is critical for increasing the impact of academic research and driving innovation and economic growth. Considering this and the rapidly growing public policy attention on university-generated technology transfer, we provide evidence on the effect of outsourcing commercialization tasks on technology transfer performance. Using both qualitative and data-driven methods, we find that universities which outsourced to an established tech-transfer office of another university saw a greater opportunity for academics to engage with research commercialization and experienced a short-term increase in the capture of new discoveries and provisional patent filings. However, with respect to the more popular indicators of successful commercialization, patent applications, granted patents, license deals, and start-ups created, we find no evidence of an increase. Post-outsourcing we see evidence of a sustained advantage in some technology transfer activities, indicating a learning effect from engaging with a more experienced tech-transfer office.

University Technology Transfer from a Knowledge-Flow Approach—Systematic Literature Review

This study aims to review and synthesize the rapidly evolving literature on technology transfer from universities, and the concepts and models included in it, from a knowledge-flow approach to find the factors contributing to its performance. This article provides a perspective on recent work, focusing on empirical studies on technology transfer in universities conducted in the last 32 years from a knowledge-based vision. The study was carried out from a systematic literature review in the Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and SpringerLink databases on 135 articles selected and evaluated by peers from critical surveillance factors such as technology transfer, knowledge flow, and university–industry relationship, among others. It was possible to identify 75 factors that, from a knowledge-based vision and specifically from a knowledge-flow approach, permit and contribute to the performance of technology transfer generated from research processes in universities. We classified studies into four categories according to their approaches, each with their dimensions and factors: management of knowledge, resources and capabilities, management of technological transfer, and the university–industry relationship. This classification permitted not only identification but also the systematization of the different factors and related authors that, from a knowledge-flow approach, contribute to the performance of technological transfers in universities, reflecting their efficiency and effectiveness. In this respect, absorption capacity and open innovation are topics which are worthy of exploration.

Micro-foundations of dynamic capabilities to facilitate university technology transfer.

Within the university-industry ecosystem, improvement and innovation of technology transfer involve implementing appropriate dynamic capabilities. To answer the question-What are the micro-foundations of dynamic capabilities in university technology transfer?-this study investigates in-depth organizational-level dynamic capabilities in transferring university-based knowledge to business and society. Two qualitative case studies were deployed at organizational entities at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam: the Industry Alliance Office, and the Demonstrator Lab. These two organizations stimulate science- and business-oriented university technology transfer. In this context, the micro-foundations of the dynamic capabilities "sensing", "seizing" and "reconfiguring" are identified and discussed. For "sensing", which is the university's ability to explore the opportunities in the ecosystem, the micro-foundations are "selecting internal competency" and "sensing external partners". For "seizing", which supports universities in managing complementarity with industry and society, micro-foundations include "resource co-allocation" and "collaborative business model". The micro-foundations of "reconfiguring", through which universities maintain evolutionary fitness in the innovation ecosystem, are "strategic renewal", "establishing a university technology transfer-friendly environment", and "asset orchestration". This study provides researchers with a better understanding of how dynamic capabilities facilitate university technology transfer. Industrial practitioners and policymakers can consider the suggestions of the present study when pursuing collaboration with universities.