Services for Access to Knowledge in Promoting Innovation and Creativity

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Services for Access to Knowledge in Promoting
Innovation and Creativity

• Narrowing the Knowledge Gap Strategic use of
  Patent Information by RD, Companies and
  Inventors for competitive edge

MBOYA R.
Symposium of Intellectual Property
Authorities Geneva, September, 23rd, 2011
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PRESENTATION OUTLINE

• Patent Landscaping and Strategic use of Patent
  Information
• Use of Patent Information by Universities/RD
  Institutions and SMEs for innovation Kenyan
  Experience - KIRDIs Experience
• Patent intelligence and Business Strategy for
  SMEs
• Strategies for better access and utilization of
  Patent Information

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1. Patent Landscaping and Strategic use of Patent
Information
i) Functions of the Patent System

• a) Exclusivity Function
• Exclusive right to an invention in exchange for
  full disclosure of the invention
• provide protection to the inventor
• Protection for a given period of time (20 years,
  patents)
• Protection means NO commercial production, sale
  and distribution, importation without owners
  consent
• The rights are enforceable by law
• Protection reward inventor/creator- recoup
  investment

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Functions of patent system

• b) Information Function
• Full disclosure requirement
• Very important for the continuous development of
  the technology.
• Each publication of an IP Application ( patent,
  design) is the base for new developments by other
  inventors/creators.
• it acts as a catalyst for the commercialization
  of IP Assets (inventions) and their transfer to
  productive use
• Majority of patents, industrial design are
  improvements to existing works patented
  inventions.
• This contributes to economic and social
  development.
• Patents are published before grant or rejection

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ii) Contents of Patent document

• Contains information on
• Applicants (person, company, university or
  research organization)
• Inventor
• Title of the invention
• Contact addresses of the applicants and the
  inventors
• Description of the invention
• Drawing, plans and diagrams
• Claims

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iii) Patent Landscaping
BUSINESS STRATEGY
Grouping patent DATA according to area of interest
INTELLIGENCE (Strategic Decision Making )
RESEARCH STRATEGY
Analyzing data and deriving useful INFORMATION
POLICY STRATEGY (Institutional, National)
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iii) Patent Landscaping
Processing application time- challenges faced
by patent offices
Patent Filing Trends and Grants by offices and
countries of origin
Field of Tech. 2005,computer tech (144,594),
telecommunications (116,770),
PATENT LANDSCAPING
Patents in Force Country of origin, Age of
Approx 6.1 million, 2006

• Use of utility models as an alternative to
  patent

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2. Use of PI by Universities and RD Institutions
for Innovation Linking PI to RD at KIRDI

• Universities and RD institutions carry out
  research- New Products, process, equipments or
  improvement of the same
• This leads to technological development
• Some Challenges facing researchers in Africa
• Believe that every technical problem require RD
• Limited information on alternative solutions
• Duplication of RD Activities

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2. Linking Patent Information to RD at KIRDI

• Mandate of KIRDI
• First to undertake industrial research and
  development in all industrial and allied
  technologies including mechanical, civil,
  electrical, chemical engineering, energy,
  environment and commodity technologies (food,
  leather, textile, ceramics).
• Second to disseminate and transfer of the
  knowledge generated to the society through
  extension services

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i).Providing technological information for
research

• Patents valuable sources of technical and
  scientific information in the world
• More than 70 million patents filed
• Majority are first and only publication eg Baird
  television
• Disclose the invention and how it can be worked
  out.
• Provide the most current information on the
  Technology
• Television by Baird took five years to be
  disclosed in other forms of literature
• KIRDI uses patent information for literature
  review

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ii) Identifying Solutions to Technical Problems

• Patent documents often discuss the difficulties
  of a particular process or design, advantages of
  a particular process or design.
• A search in Patent Literature can potentially
  identify solutions to technical problems
• KIRDI researchers use IP information as potential
  source of solution to technical problems
• Example A method of extracting artemisinin from
  Artemisia annua,(2007)Technology not protected in
  Kenya
• Botswana pharmaceutical company focuses on
  technology not protected in the country,

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iii). Searching for Information in Specific Field

• Knowledge of technology in a specific field can
  be gained through a search of the relevant
  literature. Valuable information may be provided
  concerning raw materials, procedures, processes
  or by-products
• Choose the most favorable conditions under which
  to implement a new solution or an established
  solution to a slightly different problem.
• KIRDI researchers use this avenue when working on
  their research projects

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iv) Evaluating Specific Technologies offered
for Acquisition

• Evaluation of technology available for
  licensing and offered for acquisition.
• In choosing between two or more technologies
• A review of patent documents provides information
• A review of both present and past technology
  currently used and unused, in similar and
  unrelated fields, can also be evaluated. For
  instance in the artemisinin case

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v). Identifying the Patentability potential of
RD activities at earlier stages

• A search in Patent Literature will
• help determine whether the development is likely
  to be novel (for patenting)
• Usually the case before filing any application at
  KIRDI.
• The researcher is informed accordingly

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vi) Monitoring the success of Funded RD
activities at early stages of development

• Patents are used as a measure of the success of
  funded research and development programs.
• The nature and number of patents filed and
  granted, indicates the level of success of a
  program.
• KIRDI has filed more than 10 applications
• For instance a research with no patent
  applications is likely to be a duplication of
  existing work

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vii) Avoiding the Risk of Duplication of RD

• KIRDIs main mandate is to carry out research,
• Use of a patent search to establish the state-of
  the-art for a new research is important.
• To ascertain the novelty of research
• Alert the scientist or researcher of previous
  research in the area (e.g Production of bio
  diesel from algae),
• Universities and RD not to spend money carrying
  out research already existing.

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viii). Identifying Rights in the Public Domain

• Patents have duration of protection
• Territory of protection
• This facility is very important in African
  countries where the informal sector and small and
  medium-sized enterprises are considered major
  engines for industrial transformation.
• Invention on artemisinin was in the public domain
• Method for processing fish leather also in public
  domain, KIRDI transferred it to a company

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ix). Technology Scanning and Reverse
Engineering RE

• RE a process of dismantling an existing
  technology with a view to learn and copy in order
  to produce similar technology
• This method is cumbersome and time consuming.
• It is common in the SMEs sector
• Most universities and research institutions use
  reverse engineering in developing technologies
• Use of patent information is valuable
• Since most technologies not protected in Africa,
  reverse engineering to be used

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x). Providing Assistance during Development and
Marketing of New Products

• Patent searches important in the process of
  initiating, developing and marketing a new
  product or process. They are useful for
• Identifying companies which are end-users of a
  particular product or equipment
• Analysis of the patent holdings of specific
  inventors within a narrow research area can be
  used as an aid to recruitment, since it can
  identify a major player in the field, whose
  services could then be sought.

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xi). Infrastructure in place for utilization of
Patent Information to RD at KIRDI

• Technology Transfer Department
• IP Office (Patent Information)
• Research and Development
• Reverse Engineering and Upgrading of MSME
  products
• Incubation Services
• Prototype development policy

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3. Patent intelligence and Business Strategy for
SMEs

• i). Importance of SMEs
• Employment Creation, Wealth Creation,
  Industrialization, Value addition, Contributes to
  the GDP (20 in Kenya)
• ii). Characteristics of SMEs products
• Low quality, Less attractive in appearance
• Low efficiency and effectiveness
• Lack of standardization of products
• Products that are not protected and have no
  trademarks
• Nevertheless MSMEs are known to be very
  innovative.
• The todays MSMEs would be tomorrow's
  multinational companies

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iii). Challenges facing SMEs

• Finance
• Market
• Management skills
• Technological-equipment, product, process

Difficulty in accessing the Market for SMEs
Products Lack of Competitiveness
SMEs are innovative and most of the technical
needs they provide by themselves but through
trials and errors
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iv).Patent Analysis and Business Strategy
BUSINESS STRATEGY
IDENTIFYING, MONITORING COMPETITORS IN THE MARKET
IDENTIFYING TECHNOLOGIES IN PUBLIC DOMAIN
SOLUTIONS TO TECHNICAL PROBLEMS
PATENT INFORMATION
ESTABLISHING STRATEGIC ALLIANCE
IDENTIFYING ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGIES
OBTAINING ADDITIONAL REVENUE
SOURCE OF TECHNOLOGICAL INFORMATION
ENHANCED REPUTATION
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Reasons for underutilization of patent system
4. Strategies for better access and use of Patent
Information

• Thus a large percentage of world patents are
  available for free in Africa
• Africa not utilizing effectively this avenue
• Lack of knowledge of existence of such
  resourceful data bases by key stakeholders
• Lack of technical capacity to interpret the
  patent
• Lack of directed efforts from IP offices to
  provide this information to stakeholders
• Lack of skills in searching patent databases

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Strategies for better access and use of Patent
Information cont

• Use of PI should be integral part of RD
• Business can use patent documents as source of
  technical, legal and business information
• Capacity building of IP offices to start
  providing this services in addition to other
  service
• Establishing of pilot technology innovation
  centre in other institutions such as universities
  and research institution to provide the services
• Public awareness creation on availability of this
  resources
• Mechanisms on reverse engineering should be
  developed at national level as part of research
  policy

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• THANK YOU
• rsmboya_at_yahoo.com