NER: Nanotechnology and Intellectual Property

该提案是响应纳米科学与工程倡议，NSF 04-043，类别NER而收到的。 它解决了涉及纳米技术的专利引起的社会关注和法律的关注。 获得专利权的可能性为学术研究人员、政府研究人员和公司在纳米技术方面的创新提供了激励，就像药品的开发也是出于类似的激励一样。 然而，纳米技术给美国专利商标局（PTO）及其国际同行提出了问题，本项目将对此进行探讨。其中一些问题类似于寻求专利保护的任何引人注目的新技术所遇到的问题。然而，由于纳米技术的非凡特性，其他问题是独特的。正如一项技术的科学发展可能存在问题一样，法律的制度对该技术的反应也可能存在问题。本项目的目的是确定专利制度对纳米技术的反应存在的问题，预测未来的问题，并提供政策解决方案。该项目将包括（1）对适用于纳米技术的专利法规、条约和法院判决进行法律的分析;（2）对以前在将专利政策应用于其他新技术时出现的问题进行法律的和社会分析（如计算机程序和基因技术专利），并预测这些问题是否可能发生在纳米技术上;（3）确定纳米技术将为专利制度带来的独特问题（例如现有物质的纳米版本是否符合专利的新颖性要求）;（4）分析潜在的政策解决方案。 这个为期一年的项目将是第一次全面分析专利政策在纳米技术中的应用。因此，它将提供一个显着的进步，现有的文献，其结果将是兴趣和教育价值的科学研究人员，企业，律师，学者，法官，决策者，立法者，和其他参与这一领域。 一名高年级和低年级的法律的学者和两名研究生将进行研究并提出研究结果。 因此，该项目符合“纳米级科学技术进步的社会和教育影响”计划的目标。"

This proposal was received in response to Nanoscale Science and Engineering initiative, NSF 04-043, category NER. It addresses the societal concerns and legal concerns raised by patents involving nanotechnology. The possibility of obtaining patent rights provides an incentive for academic researchers, government researchers, and companies for innovation in nanotechnology, just as pharmaceuticals have been developed because of a similar incentive. Yet nanotechnologies raise issues for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) and its international counterparts, which this project will explore. Some of those issues are analogous to those encountered by any dramatically new technology for which patent protection is sought. Other issues are unique, however, because of the extraordinary characteristics of nanotechnology. Just as there may be problems in the scientific development of a technology, there may be problems in the legal system's response to that technology. The purpose of this project is to identify existing problems with the patent system's response to nanotechnology, predict future problems, and offer policy solutions. The project will consist of (1) legal analyses of patent statutes, treaties, and court decisions that apply to nanotechnologies; (2) legal and social analyses of problems that have previously occurred in the application of patent policies to other new technologies (such as computer programs and patents on genetic technologies) and predictions of whether those problems are likely to occur with nanotechnologies; (3) identification of unique problems that nanotechnology will create for the patent system (such as whether a nano-version of an existing substance satisfies the patent requirement of novelty); and (4) analyses of potential policy solutions. This year-long project will be the first comprehensive analysis of the application of patent policy to nanotechnology. Thus, it will provide a significant advance over the existing literature and its results will be of interest and educational value to scientific researchers, businesses, lawyers, academics, judges, policymakers, legislators, and others involved in this field. A senior and junior legal scholar, and two graduate students will undertake the research and present the findings. Thus, this proposed project meets the goals of the program involving "Societal and Educational Implications of Scientific and Technological Advances on the Nanoscale."