4.5 Intellectual property rights and Non-disclosure agreements

When taking part in a project-based course, it is likely that Intellectual Property (IP) in some form is generated. This IP might be suitable for further development and/or commercialization, and therefore it is important to be aware of and manage IP in an early stage of the work. IP stands for Intellectual Property which means any intangible property that is or may be of value. The definition of IP in the KTH Policy for managing intellectual property is; “IP in the context of this policy means intellectual property that is or may be subject to intellectual property rights according to applicable law such as, but not limited to, patent, copyright, trademark and design as well as everything that represents a result of intellectual work such as, but not limited to, inventions, prototypes, models, texts, compilations, calculations, information, materials, data, know-how, methods, drawings etc." (33)

It is important to have a clear picture of the prerequisites of the project, for example if there are any agreements or provisions that affect the work and the results generated. To regulate ownership of the results/IP in the group at an early stage is important in order to avoid conflicts and misunderstandings later on. Intellectual property law states that the inventor has ownership of the IP generated. If there are two or more inventors, the IP is jointly owned. Confidentiality agreements is a good way to make sure that the group can work and communicate freely, and at the same time make sure that the results are protected.

Ownership and management of IP as a result of project-work varies considerably and this is best handled on a case-by-case basis. KTH, as most universities, provides support for this through KTH Innovation and the legal department. It is recommended that you seek out this support. Basic rules and principles for management of IP is regulated in the KTH Policy for management of intellectual assets (33), http://intra.kth.se/regelverk/policyer/policy-for-intellektuella-tillgangar-skapade-vid-kth-1.456590.