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UNM among top-100 worldwide universities granted U.S. Utility Patents in 2016
June 12, 2017 - By Denise Bissell
The University of New Mexico is among the Top 100 Worldwide Universities granted U.S. utility patents in 2016 at No. 33.
The report, published by the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) and Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO) and published annually since 2013, uses data from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to highlight the important role patents play in university research and innovation.
“We made a significant leap this year to 33rd in the world from 2015’s ranking of 47th," said Lisa Kuuttila, CEO & chief economic development officer of STC.UNM, the University’s technology-transfer and economic-development organization. “Since 2013 when we were 56 among the top 100, we’ve climbed at a steady pace. Universities and university inventors are innovators and drivers of economic growth. There is no question that the patents received each year by UNM inventors are a confirmation of the research quality and market potential of their new discoveries."
The rankings are compiled by calculating the number of utility patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that list a university as the first assignee on the issued patent.
"The patents are equally important because they protect the inventors’ intellectual property rights," Kuuttila said. "Our patented technologies are essential to the companies who want to license them and to our start-up companies who need investors to help them bring these new technologies to the marketplace. This relationship between patents and commercialization activity has an undeniable positive impact on local and global economies.
"We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to our UNM inventors. They are our unsung heroes and are the reason we continue to do so well among institutions around the world.”
The full report is available at: Top 100 Worldwide Universities Granted U.S. Utility Patents in 2016.