Advertisment

NASA releases patented technologies into public domain

author-image
CIOL Writers
New Update
CIOL

Good news for everyone who is interested in NASA projects. NASA has released 56 formerly patented technologies into the public domain for unlimited commercial use and also launched a searchable database that records thousands of older expired NASA patents.

Advertisment

The purpose behind this release is to stimulate the innovation economy by giving the people free access to NASA's otherwise expensive technology portfolio.

"By making these technologies available in the public domain, we are helping foster a new era of entrepreneurship that will again place America at the forefront of high-tech manufacturing and economic competitiveness." said Daniel Lockney, NASA's Technology Transfer Program Executive.

According to NASA, the patents released may have non-aerospace applications that could help companies with commercial projects. By using these established technologies, companies can save a lot of time and money by avoiding the need to create their own options or pay massive amounts in licensing deals.

Advertisment

The new database of the 56 formerly-patented technologies, known as the NASA Patent Portfolio, features technologies developed for 15 different areas including manufacturing, electronics, automation and control, communications, optics, sensors, propulsion, robotics, medicine and biotechnology, health, information technology, and software, aeronautics and power generation and storage.

The agency website states, “The technologies in this public domain portfolio do not require a license agreement, and anyone may freely pursue independent product development right away without the need to contact NASA in anyway.”

In the past also, NASA has made thousands of patents available for licensing and even offered small businesses the right to use its technologies for free. But this time, the agency decided on which ones to release to the public by identifying those that "are less likely to be licensed by outside companies because of low demand for resulting products for example "spacecraft" or still require 'significant development' before they are marketable."

You can find the full list, on the agency's public domain database

nasa