LSU Ranks Among Top 100 Universities Worldwide Granted U.S. Utility Patents

BATON ROUGE — LSU ranked among the top universities worldwide granted U.S. utility patents in 2021. It is the fourth time in six years that LSU placed in the top 100.The 32 LSU-patented inventions include treatments for cancers, HIV, kidney and neurological diseases; new pain medications; a composite material that prevents pavement from cracking; and a digital lighting system for surgical suites that eliminates shadows, so physicians always have a clear line of sight.

“LSU’s incredibly talented inventors drive advances in everything from health care to construction. These innovators increase productivity and efficiency, help generate jobs and build the economy,” said Andrew Maas, associate vice president for research, LSU Office of Innovation & Ecosystem Development.

Utility patents cover the creation of new or improved, and useful, products, processes or machinery. But it can take several years to obtain a patent. Maas and LSU have developed strategic programs to smooth the process, increasing the success rates for patents and licensing.

Those programs include the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps, which places faculty and graduate students with a business mentor to help commercialize research, and the LSU Leverage Innovation for Technology Transfer Fund, or LIFT², that can provide early-stage funding to bridge the gap between basic research and commercialization.

LSU ranked 93 among the top 100 universities, according to the 2021 report released today by the National Academy of Inventors and the Intellectual Property Owners Association. The report uses data from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. 

“Ranking in the top 100 demonstrates yet again that LSU’s culture offers inventors fertile ground, where their new ideas and innovations can flourish,” said LSU Vice President of Research & Economic Development Samuel J. Bentley.

So far in 2022, LSU has been granted 20 U.S. patents.

“Innovation based on university technology continues to be a key factor in economic development. The expansion of technology and innovation are fundamental to the success of a university,” said Paul R. Sanberg, president of the National Academy of Inventors.

 

About LSU Innovation 

LSU Innovation works with the LSU research community to facilitate the evaluation, protection and licensing of intellectual property created at LSU. LSU Innovation also focuses on establishing, developing, and growing technology-based startup companies. This work maximizes the university's impact on the intellectual, economic and social development of Louisiana and beyond. LSU Innovation helps LSU entrepreneurs and the community through the evaluation of their discoveries and ideas, mechanisms for protecting their innovations, marketing and industry negotiations for intellectual property, and licensing and other agreements.

National Academy of Inventors

The National Academy of Inventors is a member organization comprising U.S. and international universities, and governmental and non-profit research institutes, with over 4,000 individual inventor members and Fellows spanning more than 250 institutions worldwide. It was founded in 2010 to recognize and encourage inventors with patents issued from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, or USPTO, enhance the visibility of academic technology and innovation, encourage the disclosure of intellectual property, educate and mentor innovative students, and translate the inventions of its members to benefit society. The NAI works collaboratively with the USPTO and publishes the multidisciplinary journal, Technology and innovation. www.academyofinventors.org

 

Intellectual Property Owners Association 

The Intellectual Property Owners Association, or IPO, is a trade association for owners of patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets. IPO is the only association in the U.S. that serves and advocates for all intellectual property owners in all industries and all fields of technology.