Patent Law News

New York Inventors Set New Patent Record

Russell W. Bessette, M.D., Executive Director of the New York State Office of Science, Technology and Academic Research (NYSTAR), today announced that the number of utility patents awarded to inventors in New York State again set a new record, sending a strong signal of the continuing strength and vitality of research and development in the State.

“For the fourth year in a row, New York has witnessed a rise in the number of its residents securing patents,” Dr. Bessette said. “As a result of his initiatives to expand high technology and biotechnology business and job-creation opportunities in New York, including his unprecedented $1 billion Centers of Excellence plan, Governor Pataki has helped provide a foundation for future discoveries.”

Last year, 7,674 utility patents were awarded to inventors in New York, up from the previous record of 7,644 utility patents issued in 2001, according to figures compiled by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Since 1995 the number of utility patents issued to New York inventors has increased 42 percent.

Meanwhile, New York inventors associated with public and private universities continued to play a key role in the development of new technology, netting 264 utility patents in 2002, up from 247 in 2001.

Utility patents are granted to those who invent or discover a new and useful process, machine, article of manufacture, or compositions of matters, or any new useful improvement.

The awarding of patents encourages technological advancement by providing incentives to invent, invest in and disclose new technology worldwide. A direct result of these patents awards will be new products and new employment opportunities.

The rise in patents confirmed other indicators of the growth of New York’s technology industry.

Recently, New York ranked No. 1 in the number of high school students named as finalists in the Siemens Westinghouse Science & Technology Competition for the fourth straight year. The contest recognizes the recognizing the “best and brightest” students in the hard sciences, mathematics and technology-related courses of study.

Governor Pataki and the Legislature have advanced several major initiatives to expand high technology and biotechnology business and job-creation opportunities in New York, including the Governor's innovative Centers of Excellence plan. Since 1995, the State has fostered the growth of New York's high-tech and biotech industries by supporting the investment of more than $1 billion in the State's technology business sector and its world-class research laboratories and academic centers.

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	Did You Know?
	There is a time limit on patent protection. For applications filed on or after June 8, 1995, utility and plant patents are granted for a term which begins with the date of the grant and usually ends 20 years from the date you first applied for the patent subject to the payment of appropriate maintenance fees. Design patents last 14 years from the date you are granted the patent. Note: Patents in force on June 8 and patents issued thereafter on applications filed prior to June 8, 1995 automatically have a term that is the greater of the twenty year term discussed above or seventeen years from the patent grant.