Forms, Policies & Procedures

Intellectual Property Protection, Ownership and Commercialization

1. POLICY
   The University of Delaware strives to support its faculty, staff, and students by pursuing the commercial development of intellectual and tangible research property resulting from University research. The early transfer of such knowledge and rights is consistent with the University’s mission of creating new knowledge and facilitating its application to the benefit of the public. The University has established policies and guidelines that provide incentives for faculty, staff, and students while protecting the integrity of research (also see Legacy Policy 6-11 related to avoidance of conflicts of interest). The University provides a number of administrative and legal services to inventors and authors to effectively and efficiently pursue intellectual property rights and technology transfer.

   It is policy of the University that all inventions and discoveries, together with any tangible research materials, know-how and the scientific data and other records of research including any related government protections (collectively “Intellectual Property”), which are conceived or reduced to practice or developed by University faculty, staff, or students in the course of employment at the University, or result from work directly related to professional or employment responsibilities at the University, or from work carried out on University time, or at University expense, or with the substantial use of University resources, shall be the property of the University. An invention shall constitute any discovery, machine, new and useful process, article of manufacture, composition of matter, life form, design, algorithm, software program, or concept that may have commercial value. University faculty, staff, or students employed by the University who discover or invent or develop a device, product, plant variety, method, or work while associated with the University must cooperate with the University in defining and establishing the rights to such inventions, works, materials, and data. This obligation extends to any Intellectual Property, whether or not made on University time with or without use of University facilities.

   When an invention is made, the inventor shall promptly provide, via the appropriate Department Chair and Dean, and the Vice President for Research, Scholarship and Innovation, or his/her designee, an invention disclosure statement describing the circumstances under which the invention was conceived and reduced to practice …

2. SCOPE OF PURPOSE
   1. To provide a mechanism for placing in the public realm the fruits of research, while safeguarding the interests of the University, the inventor(s), and the sponsor;
   2. To provide procedures to evaluate the significance of inventions, discoveries, research materials, and works, and the opportunities by which such creative advances may be brought to the point of commercial viability;
   3. To provide adequate legal protection for intellectual property including patent, trademark, and copyright protection for inventions and works falling within the scope of this policy, through the collaboration of University faculty, staff, and students with the assigned attorney(s) and Research Office staff;
   4. To establish principles for determining the rights of the University, the inventor(s), or developer(s) or author(s), and the sponsor;
   5. To provide greater incentives for pursuing and commercializing intellectual property by University personnel;
   6. To assist the inventor(s) or developer(s) or author(s) in realizing tangible benefits from the intellectual property;
   7. To satisfy requirements of certain research grants and contracts; and
   8. To provide a basis for establishment of institutional patent, copyright, and trademark agreements with the federal government and other agencies.

The complete policy and more can be found on the General Counsel’s web site.