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A new approach for detecting open innovation in patents: the designation of inventor

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  • Alessandro Comai

    (International University of Japan)

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to understand to what extent open innovation (OI) is utilized in R&D departments by using patents as a main source. The paper adopts the “designation of the inventor” as a new method for detecting open or closed innovation, a method which examines the type of relationship that exists between the inventor(s) and the patent applicant(s). Since the openness or closedness of an invention is mainly measured by analyzing a firm’s co-applicants, the patent’s designation of the inventor indicates whether or not inventors are employees of the applicant. The paper offers new empirical evidence about whether a patent is open or not without surveying inventors and it complements previous studies that failed to describe whether a patent is based on open or closed innovation. After studying a collection of 231 patents in the wind energy sector obtained from the European Patent database, descriptive statistics show that OI Patents (OIPs) where the inventor is under agreement represent approximately 90% of the total number of OIPs, which in turn account for more than 23% of the total number of closed and open types of patent. Additionally, the designation of inventor method is also able to identify closed innovation-based patents. The results also show that a minority of companies utilize a hybrid type of OI, in which the inventors are composed of a mix of external individuals and employees. The results suggest that the method proposed yields a better understanding of how OI as well as other innovation strategies are utilized by firms in a particular industry or technological field.

Suggested Citation

  • Alessandro Comai, 2020. "A new approach for detecting open innovation in patents: the designation of inventor," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 45(6), pages 1797-1822, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jtecht:v:45:y:2020:i:6:d:10.1007_s10961-019-09763-8
    DOI: 10.1007/s10961-019-09763-8
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    Cited by:

    1. Dall-Orsoletta, Alaize & Romero, Fernando & Ferreira, Paula, 2022. "Open and collaborative innovation for the energy transition: An exploratory study," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Open innovation; Closed innovation; Patent; Designation of inventor;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O30 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - General

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