Stage 1: Idea 

Research discoveries made by the University’s staff and students are the principal source of Ulive’s Intellectual Property. A Technology Agreement gives Ulive first right of refusal, for a minimum period of 15 years, to IP arising from the University’s own research as well as, a range of strategic alliances. New inventions are captured on invention disclosure records (IDR) and submitted to either Ulive directly or via the Business Gateway team at the University. 

Download IDR form

Stage 2: Evaluation

All early-stage opportunities will require comprehensive commercial and technical evaluation, to determine:

• strength of intellectual property (IP);
• stage of technology development;
• market assessment;
• competitor analysis;
• proposed exploitation route; and
• assessment of potential commercial partners.

Stage 3: Protect

Protecting your IP allows you to manage how it is used and who uses it. IP protection is critical to maximising the future value of inventions. The type of protection needed depends on what you are protecting and how you will use it. Ulive mainly protects IP through filing Patents, however in some circumstances other forms of protection such as, Copyright, Designs, and Trade Marks are more appropriate.

Stage 4: Develop

Additional work to strengthen the IP and to provide any necessary proof of concept often requires additional funding or resource assistance. Inventors will be assisted to find such partners. Ulive has an established Proof of Concept (POC) Fund which is one potential source of financial support, but there are also alternative funding routes such as fellowships or collaborative research.  Many research councils now offer specific programmes to develop near market research.

Download POC Application Form

Download POC Application Form Notes