About this course: Far too often, researchers are misinformed about the role and the possibilities arising around patents and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). In this course we will teach you what IPR are - with a special focus on patents. Also this course will look at the importance of patents in the world of biotechnology - and what you actually can patent. Should your research be protected? Can your research even be protected? There are a lot of misunderstandings about patents, so first step is to know what patents really are and how they work. Then we will introduce how and when to apply for them. Also how to find existing patents is a crucial and necessary element to being able to assess whether your research should be protected or not. The course will be divided in 7 sessions, and at the end of the course, you should be able to: - describe the different types of IPR - explain the conditions of patentability for an invention - describe the various stages involved in a patent application - search and retrieve patent information from databases - read and understand a patent - write claims related to biotechnology - understand and explain the concept of Freedom To Operate Course Materials: You will need the following book as a reading material for the course: “Patenting in Biotechnology, a laboratory manual” by Peter Ulvskov, which will be available from http://polyteknisk.dk/home/Detaljer/9788750211068 Also, you will need to get access from your home institution to these databases: - Derwent Innovation Index (via Web of Science) - SciFinder NB: This course is related to a 5 ECTS point course that is a mandatory requirement for access to the BioBusiness and Innovation Platform (BBIP) program at the Copenhagen Business School. NOTE: this Coursera course will NOT be sufficient for attending the BBIP program but successful completion of this course (with a Course Certificate) will be a plus for applying to the BBIP. To obtain the 5 ECTS points, you will have to enrol as a DTU Student, participate on a hands-on workshop on patent databases and pass an exam in presence of an external Censor. For more information, please email me at: fdemasi@cbs.dtu.dk Link for BBIP: (http://www.cbs.dk/viden-samfundet/strategiske-indsatsomrader/biobusiness-and-innovation-platform-bbip)
Who is this class for: This course is aimed at Master and PhD students that want to learn about how to protect and create value from their current or future inventions. It is also a required course for students wanting to enrol in the BBIP Masters Programme at the Copenhagen Business School.
Created by: Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Copenhagen Business School
Taught by: Federico De Masi, Senior Researcher
Department of Bioinformatics - DTU
Taught by: Peter Ulvskov, Professor
Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Copenhagen University
Taught by: Karin Beukel
Taught by: Claus Bøttcher Jørgensen, Professor
Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences
Taught by: Finn Valentin, Professor
Research Centre on Biotech Business
| Level | Beginner |
| Commitment | 7 weeks for 2-4 hours week |
| Language | English |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
Syllabus
WEEK 1
Introduction to Intellectual Property Rights
An introduction to the important subjects within the field of patenting, such as novelty and “person skilled in the art”.
By Federico De Masi
5 videos, 1 reading
- Video: About This Course (5:27)
- Video: The book and the databases
- Reading: Suggested reading from the book
- Video: What is Intellectual Property (IP)? (13:27)
- Video: What Are Patents? (13:41)
- Video: What Is Novelty? (11:33)
Graded: Basic IP Quiz
Graded: Assessing Novelty
WEEK 2
The Patent System I
Get to know the important timeline for getting a patent. We look at the filing, international filing, examination, publication, and potential approval of a patent. Note that we will go deeper into the search machinery later in lecture 5. By Peter Ulvskov.
2 videos, 2 readings
- Reading: Suggested reading from the book
- Reading: Patenting in Biotechnology
- Video: Document Types I - Making Patent Timelines (US) (23:20)
- Video: Document Types II - Making Patent Timelines (PCT) (22:10)
Graded: Using The Databases + Reading a Patent
Graded: Patent trees and families
Graded: Your Own Patent Timeline
WEEK 3
The Patent System II
The first video introduces search reports and looks into destruction of novelty/inventive steps. The second video covers international filling - the PCT system. The issues with medical use claims will also be discussed. By Peter Ulvskov.
2 videos, 2 readings
- Reading: Suggested reading from the book
- Reading: Patenting in Biotechnology
- Video: Document Types II - All Documents I (24:05)
- Video: Document Types II - All Documents II (14:10)
Graded: Understanding the World of Patents
Graded: The filing process
Graded: Document Types
Graded: Analyse a Patent
WEEK 4
Creating a Patent Landscape
To map the patent landscape for an invention you need to be able to perform “literature search” for patents. This is important if you want to avoid infringing existing patents. In this lecture, different databases are reviewed: Derwent, USPTO, and NCBI. By Peter Ulvskov.
3 videos, 1 reading
- Reading: Suggested reading from the book
- Video: Part I (Database: Derwent) (15:52)
- Video: Part II (Database: Patentscope) (14:30)
- Video: Part III (Database: USPTO and NCBI) (Genetic Sequences) (21:46)
Graded: Derwent User Interface
Graded: Derwent Boolean Algebra, Wildcards and Operator Precedence
Graded: Hierarchical Search Profiles in Derwent
Graded: Field Tags and Operators in USPTO and Patentscope
Graded: Hierarchical Search
WEEK 5
How to Patent Biotechnology Inventions?
Here we go through the interesting issues, rules and possibilities of patenting specific biotechnology related items as microorganisms or enzymes. By Claus Jørgensen.
1 video, 2 readings
- Reading: Suggested reading from the book
- Reading: Patenting in Biotechnology
- Video: Sequences, Peptides, Enzymes, Antibodies, and Microorganisms (28:32)
Graded: Biotechnology Inventions
Graded: Patentability of Your Own Biotech Invention
WEEK 6
Business and Patents
How can we avoid infringing other patents and what are solutions in case we do? Freedom to operate (FTO) is in its essence to the constraints surrounding your invention that prevents your ability to produce/sell your invention. By Karin Beukel.
1 video
- Video: Freedom to Operate and Licensing Deals (21:42)
Graded: Freedom To Operate
Graded: Investigation of FTO for Your Own Biotech Invention
WEEK 7
Patenting Small Chemicals and Compounds
In this lecture the novelty of chemical molecules and natural products are discussed. An interesting real life example tried to but things in perspective. By Federico De Masi.
2 videos, 1 reading
- Reading: Suggested reading from the book
- Video: Novelty for Small Molecules (15:22)
- Video: Natural Products (20:25)
Graded: Patenting Small Compounds
Searching Patents for Small Chemicals
Introduction to using SciFinder, an enormous database for chemical reactions and compounds. See how one utilizes Markus formulas to search for patents. By Peter Ulvskov.
1 video
- Video: Scifinder: Searches for Small Molecules (22:27)
Graded: Scifinder Search
Conclusion - Should You Patent Your Invention?
Philosophical lecture about the benefit of patenting and how to actually use your approved patent. Also importantly, we cover ALL the reasons to NOT patent! Definitely important even though we really love patents in this course.
3 videos, 1 reading
- Video: Why / Why Not Patent? (14:02)
- Video: Conclusions (4:08)
- Video: Closing Remarks
- Reading: Extra reading from the book
Graded: Patenting Strategy
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Technical University of Denmark (DTU)
DTU focuses on research in technical and natural sciences that contributes to the development of society. As an industrially orientated university, our goal is to supply high-level international research based on combining theory with constructing models and empirical methods.
Copenhagen Business School
Centrally located in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, Copenhagen Business School (CBS) is one of the largest business schools in Europe with close to 23,000 students. CBS offers world-class research-based degree programs at undergraduate, graduate, and PhD levels as well as executive and other post experience programs.
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FM
Excelent course! I fully recommed it. Although it is very demanding and the quizzes are difficult to complete, the course provides a wide understanding of the issues related to patenting in biotechnology. I am glad to have taken the course