TU Dresden is the university with the most patents in Germany. The Saxon University of Excellence leads the current ranking of the German Economic Institute (IW) by a wide margin. The IW analyzed the number of patent applications from 2010 to 2019 . According to the analysis, TUD has filed more than 680 patents within ten years - on average, a new patent almost every five days.

"The study shows that TU Dresden is successful in generating new ideas from excellent research to solve urgent questions of the future and making them available for practical use through professional transfer," says Prof. Andreas Pinkwart, Director of the TUD Excellence Center for Innovation, Transfer and Entrepreneurship. "This particular strength of TU Dresden is at the same time a mandate to further strengthen and expand its role in the regional and European innovation system. We're working on that with great enthusiasm."

Research strength and support from the start: Patent culture at TU Dresden

Key reason for the success is TU Dresden's research strength, especially in the technical and natural sciences, where researchers work on the big questions of our time and make valuable contributions to solving global issues, for example in the fields of microelectronics, energy technology, artificial intelligence or medicine. Inventions and patents are also historically anchored in TU Dresden's culture. This includes protecting research results at an early stage by filing patents and building on them in an application-oriented manner.

TU Dresden provides researchers with extensive support from experienced experts working at the Transfer Office and the Patent Information Center. They conduct research globally, advise on the entire process of invention disclosures and patents, and provide long-term support for the researchers. The topic is particularly relevant for founders. Therefore, the Startup-Service dresden|exists specifically supports the exploitation of patents or their registration in the context of spin-off projects.

Alongside research and teaching, knowledge and technology transfer is one of the central tasks of universities. Research results should be transferred into application so that they can serve the society and benefit the economy. However, the path from scientific knowledge to the finished product or process is a long one. Patents are often important intermediate steps in this process and are therefore a central part of knowledge and technology transfer strategy.

Contact:
TU Dresden Press Office
Tel.: +49 351 463-32398