Monitoring your own- and third-party patent portfolios (in your industry) should under no circumstances be neglected by any company or research organisation. Although the data published by patent offices is very extensive, when using the right tools this can provide a wealth of information that can both help protect and grow your company, and its IP portfolio… More…
The COP27 in Egypt is well underway bringing with it an important reminder of the growing necessity to reduce CO2 emissions to help tackle climate change. Renewable Energy isn’t a new topic; however, the energy crisis seems to have pushed people and businesses to think of more innovative ways to foster clean energy, move away from fossil fuels and reduce CO2 emissions. One music venue in Glasgow, SWG3, has recently switched on a system that creates renewable energy from the body heat of people on its dancefloor. Using body heat as an energy source isn’t a new concept but this is the first time it has been implemented to power a building using solely clean energy. More…
Traditionally, companies have used a closed patent strategy designed to protect and prolong the lifecycle of existing technologies from competitors. Patents remain a popular way of safeguarding original work, with almost 188,600 applications received by the EPO in 2021 – a 4.5% increase, showing a significant recovery from the small decline recorded in 2020 due to the pandemic.
Intellectual Property (IP) is commonly seen as one of the most important economic assets of any corporate entity or research organisation. It is a form of property, which, like land can be sold, rented, or mortgaged. Therefore, it has the potential to generate revenue for a business – even indirectly – and like land, its value depends on its quality. The four main types of IP are patents, trademarks, designs, and copyright. This article focuses on patents, and their commercialisation since these are of the most economic value to innovative companies.
As the world transitions towards deploying green energy solutions and electric vehicles, batteries are becoming a vital storage tool, necessary to facilitate the energy transition. However, the chemicals used in conventional batteries such as lithium-ion can take hundreds or thousands of years to break down and are often corrosive and flammable. Consumer gadget batteries have been known to catch fire on aircrafts or caused fires in waste and recycling sites. Moving away from fossil fuels isn’t enough, the batteries used for green technology also need to be eco-friendly. To solve this problem, a team of researchers from the University of Maryland’s Center for Materials Innovation, led by Liangbing Hu, have developed a renewable zinc battery that uses an electrolyte extracted from crustacean shells. More…
Energy is the pulse of our day-to-day life – how we create and use it is changing rapidly. One thing is certain, to limit global warming we need to move away from fossil fuels altogether and embrace sustainable energy sources. Solar power technologies have been developing for decades, and modern solar power could now become a viable alternative to fossil fuels, but it doesn’t come without its flaws. Solar panels can only be placed at certain angles on buildings, significantly reducing the amount that can be installed in towns and cities. There are also concerns that solar farms can affect biodiversity and farmland and natural habitats need to be safeguarded. But what if these limitations in built up areas were removed? Scientists have been developing transparent solar panels that could be the answer to these issues... More…
Biometric technology has come a long way in recent years. We are using facial and fingerprint recognition more and more in our everyday lives and although technically they can be duped, they are still more secure than traditional security measure like passwords. Biometrics allow accounts to be intrinsically linked to an individual, rather than co-opted by hackers who can guess passwords, making them a promising technology for a world that is increasingly online. With this in mind, could passwords be a thing of the past? And what are the benefits and drawbacks of biometric technology? More…
In 2019, the United Nations General Assembly designated the 7th of September as the International Day of Clean Air for blue skies. The aim is to stress the importance of and urgent need to raise public awareness and to promote and facilitate actions to improve air quality. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) 99% of the world’s population is now breathing polluted air, 7 million people die each year due to air pollution and it is one of the main avoidable causes of death and disease globally. To tackle this, innovators have been developing technologies to help improve the air we breathe. More…
A global debate around AI and IP ownership has been on-going since the late 2010s. The main issues surround the question of whether AI can legally own IP if AI is not considered to be a legal person. There has been a divide in opinion between national courts, mainly regarding patent ownership, with some ruling in favour of AI and others strongly opposing. Let’s take a closer look at the current landscape of AI ownership of IP and how this is applied more specifically to AI art. More…
With the rise of veganism and evidence that meat and animal products significantly contribute to CO2 emissions, consumers are demanding more and more plant-based products. Plant-based food innovations have exploded in recent years, diversifying the range of products already available, improving their quality and providing consumers with more choice. In this infographic we explore some of the top plant-based innovations already available to consumers and those that are still under development. You can view the relevant patents mentioned in PatBase by clicking here. More…
