Inventors and Authors
- University Policy on Intellectual Property
- The TEACH Act
- 6.19.2 Policy on University-Sponsored Educational Materials; (Copyrights)
- 6.19.3 Policy on Patents
- 6.17. Research and Instructional Projects Involving Human Subjects
- 7.47 Outside Employment
- 7.45.1 Conflict of Interest
- Copyrights
- The University of Texas
- US Copyright Office
- Creative Commons
- Stanford University
- Copyright Management Center
- Patents
- US Patent and Trademark Office
- Cornell
- Trademarks
- University of Texas
- Cornell
- Franklin Pierce Law Center
- Nolo Press
- Government Offices
- United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
- European Patent Office (EPO)
- US Copyright Office
- Online Search Engines
- Search US Patents and Applications
- Search US Trademarks
- Search US Copyrights
- Search Worldwide Patents and Applications
- Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the OIPDC and how is it related to Florida State University?
- Who pays the patent costs for an invention?
- Who is eligible to disclose an invention to Florida State University and use the OIPDC?
- What if a collaborator from another institution (i.e. other than FSU) has contributed to my invention?
- If I publish a paper or make a presentation on my technology at a meeting, will my invention still be patentable?
- Does the OIPDC file foreign patents on inventions?
- Research Notebook Guidelines
University Policy related to Intellectual Property
The TEACH Act covers the use of Copyrightable Works in Distance Education. Everything you wanted to know about the TEACH Act.
6.19.2 Policy on University-Sponsored Educational Materials; (Copyrights)
- The types of material that are and are not governed by Copyright policy
- How these materials mar be used internally and externally, and who controls such uses.
- Establishes compensation and royalty sharing terms. (Broadly, authors get 50% of net royalties)
- Establishes procedures for assigning ownership to the University and administering the process.
6.19.3 Policy on Patents (scroll down the page) For all inventions, whether or not patentable:
- The right of the University to claim title, and its obligation to pursue patent protection and public use of inventions made by faculty or staff within the scope of skill and activity implied by their duties as employees.
- Assigns responsibility for managing prosecution and licensing of patents to the Vice President for Research.
- Establishes the division of net royalty proceeds among the inventor, his academic unit, and the University as a whole, represented by its Research Foundation.
- Establishes procedures for disclosure, evaluation, and management of inventions.
6.17. Research and Instructional Projects Involving Human Subjects - Requires review by a Committee appointed by the Vice President for Research of all proposals that involve Human Subjects in research. Administration of this activity is assigned to Legal Counsel within the Office of Research.
More information can be found at the Human Subjects website
7.47 Outside Employment - Provides that faculty and staff may engage in reasonable and appropriate outside employment, subject to specific approval and reporting actions.
The form for Outside Employment is here.
7.45.1 Conflict of Interest - Identifies the circumstances in which faculty or staff may find that outside activities or interest present a potential conflict of personal interest with the interests of the University or other agencies of the State of Florida. Such activities or interests may still be permitted, if they are disclosed, monitored, and reported according to policy provisions outlined here.
The University of Texas offers an excellent crash course for learning the basics about copyrights. It will take about 5 hours to get the key concepts; and longer if you go though the power point presentations
Afterwards you can take an online test here.
The U.S. Copyright Office - This website enables you to find most any info about copyrights from a federal viewpoint that you want.
Creative Commons - This site is a leading site promoting the use of creative works by others to build on and share. The site offers free downloadable licenses to authors who wish to allow others to have limited rights to their copyrighted works. The site also features case studies-based comic strips and flash movies.
Stanford University - A detailed website devoted to copyright usage.
Copyright Management Center - Their Copyright Quick guide is a great resource for getting a summary of copyrights.
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office - Gives you information about patents and trademarks from a federal viewpoint.
Cornell - Gives you a fairly easy to understand narrative summary on patent law.
Nolo Press - Site provides general Trademark information, comparative info about service marks and trademarks, classifies goods and services, etc.
United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)
United States Copyright Office
Attention faculty: Please use these to do your own research to see if any one has already patented your invention or creative work!
Worldwide Patents and Applications
Frequently Asked Questions about Intellectual Property
(Modified from the WARF website)
What is the OIPDC and how is it related to Florida State University? The Office of IP Development and Commercialization (OIPDC) is the designated technology transfer and intellectual property licensing organization for the university.
Who pays the patent costs for an invention? The FSU Research Foundation (FSURF) covers all the costs of patenting an invention. After an invention is licensed, the FSURF typically asks the licensee to reimburse these expenses.
Who is eligible to disclose an invention to Florida State University and use the OIPDC?
Any employee or student of the Florida State University may disclose an invention to the OIPDC.
What if a collaborator from another institution (i.e. other than FSU) has contributed to my invention?
The FSU OIPDC has inter-institutional agreements with many universities, research institutes and other organizations, and could likely negotiate such an agreement with your collaborator's institution. This type of agreement determines which institution would take the lead in patenting and licensing of the invention, as well as how any royalty income would be shared.
If I publish a paper or make a presentation on my technology at a meeting, will my invention still be patentable?
After you publish, present or otherwise publicly disclose your invention, you have one year from the first disclosure date to file a U.S. patent. After this anniversary has passed, you lose all U.S. patent rights. For foreign patents, no grace period exists; that is, publication (or any form of public disclosure) of your invention immediately bars you from foreign patent rights.
Does the OIPDC file foreign patents on inventions?
Yes, the OIPDC does file foreign patents on inventions but expects to see significant licensing interest, market size, and potential market share for the technology to commit to this expense which may cost as much as $100,000.
RESEARCH NOTEBOOK GUIDELINES
What level of detail should I keep in my laboratory notebooks?
A United States patent is granted to the inventor who was the first to conceive the invention. Therefore the laboratory notebook is evidence for proving inventorship or first-to-invent. It establishes a permanent record detailing what was done during the course of a project and what inventions were made and when. . . . More
All details of a project should be recorded. This includes raw data and final results of experiments, protocols and designs of experiments, calculations on which the results are based, details of equipment use, and a key to any abbreviations used. … More
Records should be Permanent, Complete and Continuous. The laboratory notebook should be bound with numbered pages. Include a detailed Table of Contents with necessary explanations for abbreviations, acronyms, or unique codes. … More
Take care how you store your lab notebooks. When not in use, maintain notebooks in a central location, preferably in a fireproof safe or filing cabinet. … More
