Chapter 5: Science & Engineering 93

Patents Awarded to U.S. Universities

The recent marked increase in university patenting may be seen as an indicator of the potential role academic R& D can play in the development of technology and new products. The number of patents awarded to u.s. universities, which had increased sharply during the 1980s, continued to rise through 1991. (See appendix table 5-27 and figure 5-18.) In 1991, 1,324 patents were awarded to academic institutions, compared to a previous high of 1,218 in 1989 and only 437 a decade earlier. The increase during the eighties was partly due to a 1980 change in U.S. patent law that allows academic institutions and small businesses to retain title to inventions resulting from federally supported R&D. In 1991, U.S. universities received 1.4 percent of all U.S. patents, up from 1.0 percent in 1980.

University patenting increased particularly rapidly during the second half of the 1980s and early 1990s. In fact, 24 percent of all patents issued to U.S. academic institutions since 1969 were awarded in 1990-91. Prominent among higher volume patent classes in the late 1980s and early 1990s were those involving health or biomedical applications; superconductor technology; chemistry; optics; and computing, electronics, and information processing. (See appendix table 5-28.)

The 100 largest research universities account for a large share of all academic patents-about 85 percent in the 1987-91 period. (See appendix table 5-27 and figure 5-18.) This proportion was an increase over the 1969-75 period, when these institutions received 75 percent of the patents. Between 1969 and 1975, only 64 of the top 100 received patents; in the 1987-91 period, this number rose to 88.

However, a composition shift has taken place in academic patenting. The very largest (top 20 by research volume) and very smallest institutions (i.e., those ranked below 100) are being awarded a smaller share of all academic patents than in the past, while institutions ranked 21 to 100 have growing shares. (See figure 5-18.) This trend reflects relatively stronger growth in patenting activity among the middle-tier institutions.

Footnote 33:

Patents represent a potential source of funds for academic institutions. For a brief discussion of this topic, see "Income From Patenting and Licensing Arrangements."

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