What constitutes intellectual property per the university’s guidelines? How can I notify the university that I may have an invention or discovery? When should I disclose? Must faculty disclose traditional books, monographs, and journal articles and share any royalties derived from these? What are the functions of the Technology Transfer Office? If there is more than one inventor, how are the royalties divided? Are current agreements between Ball State and authors on intellectual property ownership and income distribution still in effect, or will they now be subject to the new policy? Must a faculty member who receives an internal summer grant to conduct research leading to a published work that produces royalties disclose to the university and reimburse the university for these funds? Is there a documented process describing the technology transfer? How does the new policy differ regarding student-created intellectual property? What constitutes intellectual property per the university's guidelines? Intellectual property relates to technology developed by Ball State faculty, staff, students, and others participating in Ball State programs. Technology within this framework includes technical innovations, inventions, and discoveries as well as digital and emerging media or other creative works, including software. In some instances, commercialization of technology can be accomplished by the licensing of patents or copyrights. In other instances, distribution and commercialization of technology may be aided by or depend upon access to the physical or tangible embodiment of the technology, as in the case of biological organisms, plant varieties, or computer software through a material transfer arrangement.
How can I notify the university that I may have an invention or discovery? When should I disclose? The Technology Transfer Office is responsible for managing intellectual property (IP) for the university. Whenever a faculty member, student, staff member, or a visitor employed by Ball State, participating in Ball State programs or using Ball State funds, resources, or facilities creates a work of IP, the creators/inventors must submit an Intellectual Property
Disclosure Form to the office (ideally before it has been publicly disclosed/published). Disclosures are used by the university to determine if there is IP, who are the inventors/creators, who owns the IP, and royalty distribution.
Note: The
Disclosure Form is an internal document to notify the university of the invention in accordance with the requirements of the university
Intellectual Property Policy. It has no official status under patent law to protect the invention from third parties.
Must faculty disclose traditional books, monographs, and journal articles and share any royalties derived from these? No. According to Section 2.1.4 of Ball State’s
Intellectual Property Policy, these works are specifically exempt. Furthermore, in most cases publishers hold copyrights.
What are the functions of the Technology Transfer Office? The Technology Transfer Office handles all the patents, copyrights, trademarks, and tangible research property issues, including:
- solicit and analyze invention disclosures from faculty, students, and staff
- analyze commercialization feasibility of university intellectual property and marketing strategies
- license "tangible research property" for commercial use
- license patents and copyrights for commercial use
- facilitate faculty and technology start-ups
- advise faculty on IP issues
- foster inventor participation in the technology transfer process
- educate campus researchers about the technology transfer process at Ball State
If there is more than one inventor, how are the royalties divided?
In most cases, the inventors agree upon the share of the 30 percent among themselves in a proceeds distribution agreement. If such an agreement is not reached, the university may divide royalties among all inventors.
Are current agreements between Ball State and authors on intellectual property ownership and income distribution still in effect, or will they now be subject to the new policy?
Current agreements are not affected under the new policy.
Must a faculty member who receives an internal summer grant to conduct research leading to a published work that produces royalties disclose to the university and reimburse the university for these funds?
No. Again, the products are generally copyrighted by the publisher.
Is there a documented process describing technology transfer?
The new Intellectual Property Policy and the Ball State Innovation Corporation (BSIC) have recently been put in place. This Web site also provides information about the technology transfer process.
How does the new policy differ regarding student created intellectual property?
The new policy provides a more detailed explanation regarding university ownership of intellectual property (IP) produced by students. With some exceptions, students fall in the same category as faculty, staff, and visitors, where significant uses of university resources and/or facilities are used to create the IP. The student handbook will refer students to the IP policy for information on student created works. The new policy further provides that the university has a limited royalty-free license to use student-owned work created as part of a university project or program for certain educational, marketing, or promotional purposes.
Under ordinary circumstances, student work written, performed, or created in or out of class belongs to the student. Exceptions occur when students use significant university funds, resources, and/or facilities to create their IP. The term “significant” implies uses beyond what is considered usual and customary. In such exceptions, a disclosure must be made to the university for the determination of IP ownership, cost recovery, and royalty distribution. Ball State’s new Intellectual Property Policy provides a more detailed explanation regarding ownership of intellectual property produced by students.