Patent information

The University of Tübingen actively supports its researchers in effectively protecting intellectual property. One approach is to file a patent application for inventions and discoveries that may be commercially viable. The Technology Transfer Office at the University of Tübingen provides detailed advice on the requirements and specifics of a patent application and investigates possible competing property rights for you.

The following pages provide detailed information on patents:

From invention disclosure to patent commercialization

Disclosure date

Submission of invention disclosure

The relevant date for all processes is the date on which you disclosed your invention to the Technology Transfer Office.

4-12 weeks

Recommendation and evaluation phase

In cooperation with the patent commercialization agencies ctf and tlb, Technology Transfer conducts a novelty search of the invention disclosure. We conduct one or more inventor interviews to understand your invention, explain the formal process to you, and discuss possible commercial options for your invention.

4 months

Employer’s claim period

Within four months of the date of receipt of your invention disclosure, your employer must decide whether to claim or release your invention.

If your invention is released, you may continue to develop it independently.

1-4 months

Drafting the patent specification

If a claim is made, we commission a suitable patent attorney to draft the patent specification. This is done in close cooperation with the inventors and takes a few weeks.

Priority date

Submitting the patent specification to the patents office

Your invention is protected from the priority date onward. Any publications prior to registering the invention with the German patents office are detrimental to novelty. Publications in this sense include publications in journals, but also lectures, as well as abstracts published on the internet prior to conferences.

The patents office conducts its own search and examines the relevant criteria for granting a patent. Usually after approximately 10 months, you will receive a search and examination report indicating prior publications that are detrimental to novelty or anything else which runs counter to your application (citations). These citations and questions are revised in collaboration with the patent attorney.

If the citations can be refuted, a patent is granted.

12 months

International registration

An international application may be filed within 12 months (starting from the priority date). We usually wait for the search and examination report from the patent office before filing. Minor changes and adjustments (based on the reports received, but also on your ongoing research results) may be made in the international application.

18 months

Publication date

18 months after the priority date, your patent will be published on the relevant databases and will therefore be accessible to everyone.