News Archives

UNM among Top 100 Worldwide Universities granted U.S. utility patents

June 21, 2018 - STC.UNM

The University of New Mexico is among the Top 100 Worldwide Universities granted U.S. utility patents in 2017, according to a report published by the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) and Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO). The report uses data from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to highlight the important role patents play in university research and innovation.

patents

The report ranks The University of New Mexico 32nd among the top-100 for the number of issued U.S. utility patents received in 2017 for its inventions.

“We moved up this year to 32nd in the world from last year's ranking of 33rd," 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. Considering that universities with top rankings were for system-wide issued patents supported by considerably larger research budgets, UNM is doing a remarkable job of fostering an innovation culture among our researchers. Universities and university inventors are innovators and drivers of economic growth.”

The NAI and IPO have published the report annually since 2013. 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.

“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," Kuutila said. "However, the patents are equally important because they protect the inventors’ intellectual property rights. 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 the reason we continue to do so well among institutions around the world. We applaud their dedication and commitment to finding solutions to problems that have a social and economic impact on our daily lives.”

As the technology-transfer and economic-development organization for UNM, STC.UNM protects and commercializes technologies developed at UNM by filing patents and copyrights and transferring them to the marketplace. To learn more, visit STC.UNM.

NAI is a 501(c)(3) non-profit member organization comprising U.S. and international universities, and governmental and non-profit research institutes, with over 4,000 individual inventor members and Fellows spanning more than 250 institutions. For more information, visit National Academy of Inventors.

The Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO), established in 1972, is a trade association for owners of patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. IPO is the only association in the U.S. that serves all intellectual property owners in all industries and all fields of technology. For more information, visit Intellectual Property Owners Association.