Patents

The patent confers the exclusive, temporary (for 20 years from the date of filing of the application) and territorially delimited (in the chosen States) right to use an invention and the right to prevent others from exploiting it without the owner's consent.

Inventions, innovative and novel solutions to a technical problem, which have an industrial application, can be patented. Not everything that is new and has an industrial application is patentable, they are not:

discoveries, scientific theories, mathematical methods; plans, principles and methods for intellectual, gaming or commercial activities and processing programs (software); the presentation of information;
methods for therapeutic surgical treatment of the human or animal body and diagnostic methods applied to the human or animal body, plant varieties and animal breeds and essentially biological processes of animal and plant production.

In Italian universities and public research bodies, the researcher is the exclusive owner of the rights deriving from the patentable invention of which he is the author. Therefore, according to Italian legislation and the University Patent Regulations, the researcher/inventor can:

- submit an application for a patent, bearing the costs yourself, and informing the Third Mission and Territory Office of the filing (the university is however entitled to a share varying from 30% to 50% of the profits);

- transfer ownership to the university which will bear the patenting costs, retaining the right to no less than 50% of the profits.

The Third Mission and Territory Office, also making use of specialist consultancy, supports researchers and University staff throughout the patenting process: from the first evaluation of patentability, through to the drafting and filing of the patent application (and any extension ), up to the economic exploitation of the same.

Patent portfolio owned by the University of Sassari:

No. 15 patents divided as follows:

Human needs: n. 5 patents Performing operations, transporting: n. 1 Chemistry patent: n. 6 patentsPhysics: n. 2 patents Aeropace and aviation: n. 1 patent

No. 1 utility model in the performing operations, transporting sector.