Intellectual Property Commitee of the University of Iceland and Landspítali

Would you like to utilize your research; license or sell intellectual property rights, establish a start-up company or seek collaboration with other companies? The Intellectual Property Commitee of the University of Iceland and Landspítali assists employees with utilization of their research!According to the Icelandic Act Respecting Employees´ Inventions, No. 72/2004, the University of Iceland and Landspítali, as other employers, are entitled to acquire the right to inventions of employees what have emerged within the scope of their work. The same applies to inventions that are related to a certain project that employees are entrusted with.

Should the Intellectual Property Commitee decide on behalf of the University of Iceland or Landspítali, to acquire the rights to an invention, an agreement is made between the Committee and the respective employee on the transfer of rights over the invention and fair remuneration in return. Should the Committe decide to file a patent application for the invention, the Committee will finance the application. Subsequently, preparations for utilizing the invention commences in collaboration with TTO-Iceland (Auðna-tæknitorg).

The technology in question is generally transferred via a license agreement made with an established company or a start-up company. Profits resulting from the utilization of the invention are generally divided as follows: a) Staff member(s) - 35%, b) Staff member's research work - 10%, c) Staff member's work unit - 10% and d) The University of Iceland and/or Landspítali University Hospital, as applicable - 45%. When revenues from an invention/innovation are due to a license agreement entered into by TTO Iceland, TTO Iceland receives 5% of the total revenues and that share is deducted from the undivided share of the University of Iceland and Landspítali.

The role of the IP Committee is to enforce the procedure that the University of Iceland and Landspítali have set for themselves on the utilization of inventions and research results of their employees.

The IP Committee operates on the basis of Operational rules as well as Statement of duties, both based on the Act of Respecting Employees´ Inventions No. 72/2004, as well as the principles of Icelandic Labour Law.

FAQ

Who can contact the Intellectual Property Committee (IP Committee)?

All staff members and doctoral students at the University of Iceland and the Landspítali University Hospital.

Why contact the IP Committee?

If you have an invention or research results which you think might be patentable or possible to utilize, in accordance with the Act on Respecting Employees' Inventions or the Operational rules of the Intellectual Property Committee, you are required to disclose it to the IP Committee. All staff members and doctoral students at the University and Landspítali University Hospital may also contact the IP Committee to receive various assistance concerning the transfer of other research results and knowledge.

Those in doubt whether their research may be utilized should contact the IP Committee.

When do I disclose my research results to the IP Committee?

The IP Committee must be informed of inventions or research results before they are made public, whether through a presentation or lecture, or written publication. For an invention to be patented it must not have been published anywhere in the world. Rules on the IP Committee are not intended to affect the conventional right of employees to publish e.g. books or scholarly articles, since publication is available after filing of a patent application.

What happens after the disclosure to the IP Committee?

The first step is to evaluate the research results (invention) with regards to whether it is worth applying for a patent and whether technology transfer is a viable option for the institutions and the employee in question, in collaboration with Auðna tæknitorg (TTO Iceland). If conclusions are positive and the IP Committee decides to gain rights to the invention/innovation, a contract is drawn up with the employee in question on the financial rights for the assignment of the invention. If a decision is taken to apply for a patent, the committee will finance the work involved.

TTO Iceland manages patents that have been assigned to the institutions and is responsible for the marketing and utilization thereof. Utilization may be in the form of a license agreement with an established company or a start-up company.

If it is decided to establish a start-up company, the institutions' shares in the company will be negotiated and consequently, TTO Iceland will assist with the company founding. The respective employee is entitled to a fair share of the profits from the utilization of the invention/innovation if license agreement is concluded with the start-up.

What do I get for my part in the invention?

The general rule for dividing the profits of the transfer of an invention is:
a) Staff member(s) - 35%
b) Staff member's research work - 10%
c) Staff member's working unit - 10%
d) UI and LANDSPÍTALI UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL - 45%, part of which is allocated to the IP Committee as determined by the rector of UI or the chief executive of LANDSPÍTALI UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL, as applicable. When revenues from an invention/innovation are due to a license agreement entered into by TTO Iceland, TTO Iceland receives 5% of the total revenues and that share is deducted from the undivided share of the University of Iceland and Landspítali.

However, the IP Committee may take other factors into consideration when determining the division of profits, e.g., different parties' contribution to the invention or how the work (facilities, appliances, equipment, labour) has been funded.

Who evaluates inventions sent to the Intellectual Property Committee?

The committee evaluates inventions and ideas with the assistance of appropriate specialists from within or outside of the institutions. Measures is taken to ensure that those who are asked to perform the evaluation treat information as confidential, have sufficient knowledge of the area in question, but at the same time are not directly connected to the research or the relevant party. If a survey is conducted on an innovation or a potential market, the services of companies or cooperating partners specialising in such surveys are generally used.

Further information can be found in the operational rules of the Intellectual Property Committee.

Is Patent Search useful?

It can be useful for staff members and students to search in patent databases. Such a search can, for example, be used to discover:

What has already been done in the relevant technical field before work on the research project begins, or even to find ideas for new projects or solutions to technical problems.
Whether the invention (research results) violates an existing patent.
Whether the invention (research results) is already known and therefore impossible to patent.
What inventions certain researchers are registered as the inventors of.
What companies are applying for patents in a particular field.

There are various free patent databases in which it is possible to conduct such searches, the foremost being Espacenet run by the European Patent Office and PatentScope run by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Invention Disclosure

The Intellectual Property Committee (IP Committee) has prepared a form, Invention Disclosure, in order to make it easier for staff members and doctoral students at the University of Iceland and Landspítali University Hospital to submit an invention to the committee. The IP Committee bases its decision concerning technology transfer on the disclosure.

When the IP Committee receives a disclosure from a staff member or a student, the Committee considers possibilities in protecting the invention with a patent, or other registered intellectual property rights where the aim is to license or sell the invention to a third party. In some cases, it may be preferable to found a company or establish a collaborative project with an external party possessing the specialist knowledge and resources necessary for transferring the technology. It should be kept in mind that the involvement of the IP Committee differs depending on the nature and status of the project. 

Please submit the Disclosure to Brynja Björg Halldórsdóttir, Lawyer at the Division of Science and Innovation.

Opportunities

New Absorption Enhancing Agent

Sveinbjörn Gizurarson, Professor at the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, is an inventor of a new absorption enhancing agent suitable for mucosal administration, e.g. intranasal. The invention makes it possible to administrate the drug Nayzilam to patients suffering from serial epileptic seizures, using a nasal spray rather than an injectable solution. Sveinbjörn's invention is currently being considered with regards to other drugs. Priority application was filed in 2007 and international PCT application in 2008. University of Iceland and Hananja are owners of the invention.

Spark

Sólrún Traustadóttir and Andri Orrason are inventors of a novel method of producing airfoils / NACA wings, produced as a single structure, eliminating the need for post-production gluing of individual parts of the aerodynamic structure. The airfoil structures are produced from composite materials which combine advantageous properties of being very strong and corrosion resistant yet having low weight. The University of Iceland filed for a patent on the technology in the U.S. in 2017 and the patent was granted in 2019. TTO-Iceland is currently working the the utilization of the patent.

Stable Free Radicals

Snorri Þór Sigurðsson, professor of Organic Chemistry at the Faculty of Physical Sciences at the University of Iceland, specializes in the area of nucleic acid chemistry and the chemistry of stable free radicals. He has, along with collaborators at the CEA research institute and the Université Grenoble Alpes, both in France, designed and synthesized stable biradicals for increasing the sensitivity of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy with Dynamic Nuclear Polarization (DNP). CEA and the University of Iceland applied for a patent for these biradicals in 2017, which was granted in 2019. CEA has negotiated utilization of the patent and the first biradical (Asympol-POK) has been marketed, in collaboration with the French company Cortecnet. CEA and the University of Iceland applied for another patent in 2021, which covers biradicals for DNP at high magnetic field.

Catalysts

Egill Skúlason, professor in the faculty of Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science, has developed the method of reducing carbon dioxide in fuels. The University of Iceland submitted a priority application in Iceland in 2018 and an international (PCT) application in 2019. At the end of 2020, the application was transferred to EPO and USA. TTO-Iceland is currently working on the utilization of the patent. Furthermore, Egill Skúlason, professor has developed a method where electricity or sunlight is used to transform nitrate from the atmosphere as well as water into ammonia, that can subsequently be used for fertilizer production. The University of Iceland owns the patent on the technology and has entered into a license agreement with Atmonia ehf., a start-up company owned by the University, on the utilization thereof.

CarbFix

Sigurður Reynir Gíslason, a scientist at the Science Institute and his co-workers at Reykjavík Energy, the University of Iceland, Columbia University and Barnard College are the inventors of the CarbFix method, which captures carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and dissolves it in water which is pumped into underground reservoirs eventually turning the carbon dioxide into stone, deep down in the ground. A patent application for the technology was filed in 2019 and an international (PCT) application was filed in 2020. The international (PCT) application entered the national phase in 2021. CarbFix ohf. is currently working on the utilization of the patent. CarbFix ohf. is owned by Reykjavík Energy and the University as of 2022.

Start-ups

The following Startup companies are owned in part by the University of Iceland and/or Landspitali:

Akthelia
Artica Biosciences
Atmonia
Calor
Carbfix
Capretto
Fiix greining
Heilsugreind
Hugarheill
Grein research
iMonIT
Lipid Pharmaceuticals
Marsýn
Minamo
NúnaTrix
Oculis
Oxymap
Risk
Taramar
Lífeind
Íslensk nýorka

Additionaly, the University of Iceland owns a share in Lífeind which was founded in 2001 og Icelandic New Energy which was founded in 1999. Guidelines on the University of Iceland's involvement in startup and research companies can be found here.

Information

The Intellectual Property Committee has published the Employees‘ Manual on Technology Transfer: Handbók starfsmanna um tækniyfirfærslu. The manual is based on a guide published by the University of Michigan: Inventor´s Guide to Technology Transfer.

Further useful information on patents and the patent process can be found on the websites of The Icelandic Intellectual Property Office, European Patent Office (EPO), and World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). 

The University of Iceland is a member of the Pan-European Seal program of the European Patent Office (EPO) and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO). The offices have developed EUIPO Academy Learning Portal and EPO online training on Intellectual Property Rights and co-developed IP Teaching Kit. These tools are available for teachers and students of the University of Iceland. With participation, students of the University of Iceland also have the opportunity to pursue paid internships at EPO and EUIPO. There, students can gain unique professional experience with international organizations and comprehensive intellectual property education.

Agreements

Examples of Agreements which may be used for collaborative projects: 

About the IP Committee

The role of the Intellectual Property Committee is to encourage staff and doctoral students to transfer technology from research results, for example by obtaining patents, establishing start-ups, or making license agreements. The committee evaluates inventions and ideas with the assistance from TTO Iceland, decides on the involvement of the institutions in the transfer of intellectual property and makes agreements with staff as appropriate.

Members of the Intellectual Property Committee of the University of Iceland and Landspítali University Hospital are:

Kristinn Andersen, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Chair of the Committee
Sigríður Ólafsdóttir Ph.D., Director of QC Alvotech
Þorvarður Jón Löve, doctor at the Landspítali University Hospital

Following employees work with the IP Committee:

Halldór Jónsson, Head of the Division of Science and Innovation at the University of Iceland
Brynja Björg Halldórsdóttir, Lawyer at the Division of Science and Innovation at the University of Iceland

Annual Reports

Annual Reports of the IP Committee are to be found here below:

Annual Report 2023
Annual Report 2022
Annual Report 2021
Annual Report 2020
Annual Report 2019
Annual Report 2017 and 2018
Annual Report 2016
Annual Report 2015
Annual Report 2014
Annual Report 2013
Annual Report 2012

Further information can be found in the Employee’s Handbook of Technology Transfer.