TT Program

The TT Program is designed to build transactional capabilities in technology transfer by adopting an integrated approach that engages researchers and local and international technology transfer practitioners in Serbia.

An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition or process. Some inventions can be patented. A patent legally protects the intellectual property rights and legally recognizes that a claimed invention is actually an invention. The rules and requirements for patenting an invention vary from country to country, and the process of obtaining a patent can often be expensive.

Technology transfer is a term used to describe a formal transfer of rights to use and commercialize new discoveries and inventions resulting from scientific research to another party. R&D organizations typically transfer technology through protecting (using patents and copyrights) and then licensing these inventions. The major steps in this process include the disclosure of inventions, patenting the invention concurrent with publication of scientific research and licensing the rights to these inventions to the industry for commercial development.

Applicant is a R&D institution that has the legal and economic rights (in full or partially) on the intellectual property in question. The Principal researcher (Pr), as the creator of the intellectual property, would ideally serve as the contact point and by that be responsible for providing the IF with any information regarding that proposed project, in the format required by the IF. The Principal researcher will also be responsible for project implementation on behalf of the Applicant, in case financial support under the TT Program is awarded. The relationship between the Applicant and the Principal researcher is defined by the Principal researcher’s employment contract, the applicable Law on Scientific Research Activity and any other valid contract between these two parties that is in place.

Technology Readiness Levels (TRL) is a method of estimating technology maturity of Critical Technology Elements of a program during the acquisition process. They are determined during a Technology Readiness Assessment that examines program concepts, technology requirements, and demonstrated technology capabilities. TRLs are based on a scale from 1 to 9 with 9 being the most mature technology. The use of TRLs enables consistent, uniform discussions of technical maturity across different types of technology.

Eligible candidates are all public R&D institutions in Serbia, as well as all other institutions and organizations in Serbia accredited for research and development (including private), such as: institutes, faculties, research institutes, innovation centers and other institutions for research and development in Serbia.

The list of accredited scientific research organizations is available at the link.

The evaluation is performed by a team of expert peer reviewers who will be engaged to evaluate all projects that meet the conditions for the award IF support.

The call for project proposals is continuously open. Applicants can expect a decision within 30-45 days from the moment they receive confirmation of receipt of the project application through the Portal of the IF. 

The TT Program may offer advice on technical details during the preparation of the Application, especially with the Invention Disclosure Form (IDF). The IF team can assist to Applicants to better compile a high-quality description of the invention, including its key elements. In case you need help in this regard, we also recommend that you contact the Technology Transfer Office at your University or your organization if such a center exists.

Please note that the IF team cannot assist you in creating the content of the Application itself.

The IF will review all Applications where there is clearly defined intellectual property ownership and where there is evident market potential. However, Applicants are required to use the application forms prepared by the IF and developed in accordance with the requirements of the TT Program. These forms are available on the website of the IF: http://www.inovacionifond.rs/program-ttf/

Yes. This is actually a very important part of the whole process. Successful commercialization of the invention is rarely possible without the participation of the Principal researcher himself. At the outset, the Principal researcher is responsible for submitting application documents for the TT Program. In further stages, he participates in the implementation of the commercialization strategy together with the Commercial Advisor in order to establish contact with potential commercial partners with whom the Principal researcher himself is in contact or who are familiar to him.

There is no single correct answer to this question, as innovation can have drastically different ways of entering the market. If the Principal researcher is competent, the proposed technology is of high quality, there is a clear market potential and interested clients, the whole process can be completed within a few months.

It usually takes 6 to 24 months for the project to be adequately prepared to be commercially ready for presentation to potential clients.

In the event that the Applicant's intellectual property, accepted by the IF, is not commercialized, ie. that theIF cannot conclude a transaction during the TT Program, the Applicant and the Principal researcher may freely dispose of the intellectual property in question and attempt commercialization on any other way. There are no accompanying obligations to the IF in this regard.

All services related to the commercialization of intellectual property intended for the public scientific research sector are free of charge. However, in the case of successful commercialization that generates income in excess of € 25,000, the IF may claim reimbursement of costs related to the protection of intellectual property, which the IF has paid in favor of the Applicant.

 

Yes, it is possible to submit more than one application by one Applicant. However, only one Project can be approved in the implementation process.

Technology Readiness Level (TRL) is a common scale for determining the level of technology development. Before submitting the project itself, you will be required to do the TRL assessment yourself on the  Portal of the IF. In this regard, the IF has prepared an explanation for the entire TRL scale, which is available on the Fund's website in the Documentation section 2021.

In case you have questions regarding the TRL assessment process, you can contact the Fund team or the Technology Transfer Office at your university for clarification.

No. All documentation related to the Application must be submitted in electronic form through the Portal of the IF.

A document that has already been submitted may be amended several times before the Project is officially submitted. When all the final documents from the Application are placed on the Portal, it is necessary to press the Submit button in order for the Application to be sent and therefore valid. Once the Application has been submitted, it is not possible to make changes to the documents, unless this is formally allowed by the IF.

No. The fund does not fund research. Applicants can apply for the commercialization support service, which is the basic service of the TT Program. If it is assessed by external commercialization experts that the project may benefit from further development or protection of intellectual property, in order to increase the commercial potential of the invention, financial support may be granted.

Patenting and costs related to the patent protection procedure are the allowed cost category for projects that have been granted commercialization support under the TT Program.

Yes, through the rules of the Public Procurement Act. All awards can use their internal procurement procedures in accordance with applicable national laws and regulations.

Intellectual Property comprises literary, artistic and scientific works; performances of performing artists, phonograms and broadcasts; inventions in all fields of human endeavor; scientific discoveries; industrial designs; trademarks, service marks and commercial names and designations; protection against unfair competition; and all other rights resulting from intellectual activity in the industrial, scientific, literary or artistic fields.

Intellectual property rights refers to creations of the intellect for which a monopoly is assigned to designated owners by law. IPRs are the protections granted to the creators of IP, and include trademarks, copyright, patents, industrial design rights, and in some jurisdictions trade secrets. Artistic works including music and literature, as well as discoveries, inventions, words, phrases, symbols, and designs can all be protected as intellectual property.

Prior Art or the State of the Art comprises everything that is made available to the public by means of written or oral description, by use, or in any other way, before the date of filing a patent application.

No. If the results of the research are published and the invention is made available to the public, from that moment the invention is part of the prior art. To obtain patent protection, the invention must be new on the day the patent application is filed. If the invention is part of the known state of the art, as such it does not meet the criterion of novelty, which is necessary for the grant of a patent. After filing a patent application, the Principal researcher is free to publish his research results without the risk of jeopardizing the novelty of his invention.

That. However, it is very important that all these materials that are given to others are documented and that the conditions of use are clearly indicated. It is often necessary to use a data confidentiality agreement or material transfer agreement, in order to protect research results and / or intellectual property rights in this regard.

No. In no case shall the IF take ownership of the Applicant's existing or future intellectual property.

In Serbia, research funded from public sources and related intellectual property rights are the property of the employer (eg. universities, colleges or institutes) and the employer has the right to protect the intellectual property in question. The exception is intellectual property that falls within the field of copyright. For this intellectual property, the employer is the owner of economic rights (rights to commercial exploitation) in the first 5 years after the creation of the copyright work. After 5 years all rights are transferred to the author. However, this does not apply to software where the employer retains all economic rights.

Commercialization of intellectual property through TT Program is implemented through the participation of all parties that have an economic interest. Usually the Principal researcher's employer is a scientific research organization (eg. a university, faculty or institute) that is the holder of economic rights, while the Principal researcher is the owner of moral rights (eg. the right to be listed as the author of the work). In addition to moral rights, the Principal researcher is entitled to a minimum of 50% profit from commercialization revenues, in the case where the research is funded from public sources.

Owners of intellectual property rights can transfer their rights (part of the right or in full) and this is one of the processes that will be supported under the TT Program.