The Philippines Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) will host a patent library to encourage more innovation in rice science and development following a memorandum of agreement (MOA) it recently signed with the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IP Philippines)
Also called Innovation and Technology Support Office (ITSO), the patent library aims to educate researchers on global scientific and technology information and facilitate access on patent database, says Jerry C. Serapion, in-charge of PhilRice’s Intellectual Property Management.
ITSOs are IP Philippines’ flagship project which will be established in areas and institutions with high potential for patent activity such as usage of patent information, filing of patents, and commercialization of patented inventions.
Serapion said hosting ITSO will strengthen PhilRice’s intellectual property management activities that the Institute started to implement since 2004.
“Among the PhilRice-based ITSO functions include providing skills training in patent searching, conducting patent search services, and organizing a community of experts and patent information users,” Serapion said.
In 2011, PhilRice’s patent application for a mechanical device for cleaning seeds was granted until 2025. The Institute also has 10 pending patent applications, in which four are machines, and six are methods and processes.
A Plant Variety Protection for Mestiso 19 and Mestiso 20 were granted while 22 knowledge products were deposited at the National Library and were given with Certificate of Copyright Registration and Deposit.
“With ITSO, it is hoped that duplication in research work will be minimized, and funds allocated to research and development will be effectively utilized,” Serapion said.
Meanwhile, Atty Ricardo Blancaflor, IP Philippines director general announced during the MOA signing that institutions hosting ITSO will be eligible for Patent Protection Incentive Package or Juan’s Thousand Inventions. Under this package, the first 1,000 patent applications through ITSO will be free of charge until December 20, 2013.
IP Philippines aims to establish ITSOs in more than five institutions in Metro Manila and Metro Cebu until the end of the year.