Where Do I start and What's Next?

The first thing you’ll need to do to get started on your intellectual property protection is submit an Invention Disclosure Form to RSIO.

The invention disclosure form is a series of questions, and requires you to:

  • List inventors, grants and related publications
  • Describe your invention (you can upload a draft paper or presentation if you have one already prepared)
  • Let us know if you plan to disclose the invention, (by publication or at a conference for example)

The information you provide as a part of the invention disclosure form will then be reviewed. RSIO will use this information to assess the patentability and freedom to exploit your invention. In addition, the information you provide could be used to file a patent application protecting your research and introduce your invention to companies that may be interested in further developing the technology.

What’s next?

Once you’ve submitted an invention disclosure form to RSIO, what happens next?

Every disclosure is unique, but here’s the general idea:

  • Our IP & Licensing Manager will contact you regarding your invention disclosure upon receipt.
  • Your invention disclosure will then be reviewed to determine if it is patentable and owned by the University of Glasgow. If so, RSIO may file a UK patent application on your technology, which later could be converted to an international patent application.
  • RSIO may market your invention to companies that might be interested in licensing the technology and taking it to market.

From this point, one of three things can happen:

  • A company will be interested in the technology, and the Research Support Office will negotiate a license agreement with that company.
  • The University may create a spin-out company to license the technology (or license it to your own existing start-up company).
  • If no licensee is found, the rights to the invention will typically be offered to the inventors, in the case they would like to try on their own to find a company interested in further developing the technology.

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