WARF and UW–Madison ranked sixth among universities in U.S. utility patents in 2016

MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF), which serves as the designated patent management organization for the University of Wisconsin–Madison, moved up to sixth place among the Top 100 Worldwide Universities which were granted U.S. utility patents in 2016. The report, which is published by the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) and Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO), utilizes data acquired from the U.S. Patient and Trademark Office to highlight the important role patents play in university research and innovation.

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 which list a university as the first assignee on the issued patent.

“This report recognizes patents granted, not just applications that are filed. This is an increasingly important way to recognize the inventive nature of our UW colleagues and their teamwork with WARF,” said Erik Iverson, WARF’s Managing Director. “Patents that are granted represent truly novel and important inventions. It also serves as a measure of the transformative work that positively impacts people across our state and the world taking place in our UW–Madison research community.”

“This is a clear expression of the great research, innovative mindset and inventive thinking that is taking place on our UW–Madison campus,” said Michael Falk, WARF’s General Counsel and head of WARF’s Intellectual Property division. “We receive about 400 disclosures a year from our UW faculty, staff and students. Our team works diligently with our UW partners to confirm which are best to move forward for patent consideration.”

“Utility patents” cover materials, processes, functions and devices. In contrast, “design patents” cover nonfunctional elements like appearance.

The full report of the Top 100 Worldwide Universities Granted U.S. Utility Patents in 2016 can be found at academyofinventors.com/pdf/top-100-universities-2016.pdf

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