Innovative Design with Intellectual Property Certificate (IP)
This certificate introduces students to intellectual property (IP) requirements for creating novel, non-obvious, and non-infringing designs. It teaches IP concepts through enhanced critical thinking skills and innovation. More specifically, students will be prepared to engage in prior art review, and design with an understanding of what is needed to obtain an enforceable protection and avoid infringement of existing patents and other vehicles of IP protection. Perhaps more importantly, graduates will have new career options including choices for becoming patent engineers (liaisons between engineering departments and corporate managements) and patent agents (everything a patent attorney can do minus providing options), in addition to the traditional technical career choices but with the enhanced new approach to structured innovation. In order to obtain the certificate, students will be prepared and required to take the patent bar examination a step toward becoming certified to practice patent law before the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
The certificate is a 12-credit hour curriculum for students enrolled in a degree seeking program in engineering or science.
Curricular requirements:
- 3-credit design course (e.g., ME 26201+ME 25001, EEN 26201+EEN 25001, ECE 27000, or BME 24101)
- 3-credit introductory design course (Innovative Prod. Design Emphasis Intel. Property)
- 3-credit advanced patent design course (Design for Patentability)
- 3-credit soft IP design course (IP Rights for Engineers)
