The Office provides a number of services on campus. First, we are responsible for educating faculty and staff about our responsibilities and services. Second, we move the research discoveries at KUMC from the laboratory to the marketplace through licensing, formation of KUMC startup companies, and recruitment of commercial-sector partners to provide research funding. Third, we assist inventors in protecting their inventions and intellectual property rights through patenting, copyrights, trade secrets, and the trademark processes. In addition, we are engaged in negotiating licensing, research, material transfer and confidentiality agreements between individuals in the KUMC community and outside interests. Finally, we are committed to promoting collaborative research among KUMC faculty and other University's faculty, hospitals, institutions, and private industry.
The Collegiate Inventors Competition is a national competition sponsored by the National Inventors Hall of Fame for the inventions with the most originality and inventiveness of a new idea, process, or technology. To be eligible, one must be enrolled, or have been enrolled, full-time in a college or university for at least part of the 12-month period prior to the date of entry. The competition is open to undergraduates, graduates, and even postdoctoral fellows who meet the eligibility requirements. Teams of up to four people can enter and only one is required to meet these requirements. Every year it awards up to six prizes of $20,000 cash and $2,000 gift certificate to college students with an additional $10,000 cash going to their advisor. The deadline for this year's competition is June 1, 2001. For more info, check the National Inventors Hall of Fame web site. In addition, call our office at 588-5713 for more information or to have our office assist in developing and commercializing your invention.
In 1999, the American Inventors Protection Act was passed by congress, which is one of the most fundamentally significant changes in Patent Law in over 100 years. This law requires the publication of a vast majority of patent applications filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) after November 28, 2000. This occurs after the expiration of an 18-month period following the earliest effective filing date. For example, if a patent application is first filed in May of 2001, it will be published in November of 2002. If one does not want the patent application published, they can file a certificate that the application will not be filed in any foreign countries. This prevents publication by the USPTO, but one also loses the foreign patent rights. More information can be found at the USPTO website. (Publication by the PTO of a patent application is generally not considered a "prior" publication for manuscript submissions.)
A Science and Commercialization Forum will be held on May 25 from 7:45 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership (4801 Rockhill Rd., Kansas City, MO). This forum is designed to provide scientists with an understanding of the process of commercializing their inventions. Topics will include Industry Technology Valuation, Intellectual Property, Business Planning, Company Formation, and Venture Capital. The Forum is free and open to the Greater Kansas City research Community. However, reservations are required by May 20 and space is limited. For more information, or to make reservations, contact Elaine Spielbusch by phone (913-588-5721) or espielbu@kumc.edu. Registration starts at 7:45 a.m., the forum begins at 8 a.m. and a complementary lunch is provided. This forum is sponsored by Rockhurst University, University of Kansas, University of Missouri-Kansas City, and the Kauffman Foundation for Entrepreneurial Leadership.
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