Introduction
Green technology or sustainable technology plays a very significant role in developing a positive environment. It helps to counteract the bad effects of pollution and climate change by producing green products. Intellectual property Rights plays a prominent role in the growth of green technology. It provides a platform for researches and inventors to understand the current scenario of green products to bring innovation in green technologies. In this study, we will discuss the impact of intellectual property on green technology.
Investment, Innovation and Technology Transfer
The investment, innovation, and technology transfer are interlinked to provide social and economic benefits from research. The functioning of these two elements must be accurate to provide effective economic growth. The process of technology transfer consists of the commercialization of academic research and discoveries. Innovation brings technology transfer which results in the production of new goods and services. Investment is dependent on technology transfer as it is directly related to production. These three factors play a pivotal role in the development of green technologies.
The need for Green Technologies Innovation
Only the innovation is a tool that can bring advancement in existing green technologies. It motivates the researchers and inventors to build new ideas. Innovation in green technology is fruitful in terms of economic growth and also acts as a catalyst to make the environment healthy. It can bring new solutions for climate change, recycling, utilizing solar and wind energy. The ultimate goal of innovations in the field of green technology is to provide a methodology or product which is beneficial for society as well as economic growth. Innovation opens up new doors for green technology in the market. In some countries, green technology innovations are growing at a much faster rate as compared to the innovations related to other fields.
Some Amazing innovations in Green Technology
The green technology is a hot topic of research all over the world. Researchers, scientists, and inventors are continuously working in the field of green technology to bring a cost-effective solution. In the past few years, we have seen some interesting innovations focussed on green technology. A few examples of these innovations are as follows:
- Producing Cloths from waste milk
- Computer chips made from woods
- Roads made from plastic
- Bioplastic made from sugar
- Organic solar film
- Corky: A 100% recyclable mouse
- A battery made from cardboard
- A Lightbulb Which Lasts For 37 Years
- Energy-generating soccer field
There are numerous other interesting inventions in the field of green technology.
Intellectual property Rights provides a platform to the scientist, researchers, and inventors to bring innovation in technology by knowing the existing weaknesses. It provides multiple options such as patents, copyrights, trademarks & trade secrets not only to bring innovation in a field but also to protect that innovation. The laws associated with Intellectual property bring curiosity inside the inventors to invent a technology that is novel, cost-effective, and beneficial for the society.
Role of Intellectual Property Rights in Green Technologies Innovation Green products are developed on the technologies which involve environment protection, recycling waste products, reducing pollution, utilization of resources in a more sustainable manner, an adaptation of change in climatic conditions. Such as water shortage, ocean acidification, rising water levels, extreme weather. Intellectual property rights include patents that serve as a technology transfer tool in the context of green technology. Patents also encourage investment and innovation of green technology. Patents include various types of exclusive rights which motivate universities, organization and corporate sector to invest in the innovation of the green technology and to introduce these technologies into the market. Apart from developing new technologies, patents serve as a collaboration tool. It provides collaboration between the government and the non-government sector to bring innovation in the field of green technology. Patents serve as a database that provides accurate information regarding the latest trends in green technology and organization working in these domains. By analysing patents related to green technologies, it can be predicted that what and how a problem or issue related to green technology is being solved in an invention. As a result, an investor can develop an improved version of that invention. It indicates that patents serve a very prominent role in innovating green technologies.
Apart from patents, trade secrets also motivate an inventor for green technology innovation. The inventions which are not patentable can be kept secure using trade secrets. The IP system provides a lot of options to inventors for innovation and investment in green technology. It also promotes the technology transfer of green products.
Green Technology Investment Trend over the Past 10 Years
The researchers, inventors, and scientists are continuously working on green technology innovations. The patent filings over past ten years in the field of green technologies such as recycling, solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, climate change, and biofuels indicates that the green technology as a field is witnessing rapid innovation and patents are acting as a powerful resource for bringing tremendous growth in green technology innovation. Through our research, we witness that technology areas, such as, Climate Change, Geo-thermal Energy, Wind Energy, and Recycling are gaining increased interest in Green Technology.
Conclusion
Through this study, we have tried to highlight the importance of IP for green technology innovations. Green technology plays a very prominent role in the field of technology as well as in the betterment of the environment. Intellectual property has a big impact on green technology innovation, in not only offering protection, but also in motivating researchers, scientist, and innovators to invent in the domain. Patents serve as a very powerful tool, as they create awareness in inventors about the existing innovation and the current problems in the domain. By analysing the patent data, innovators & companies can find unique ways to improve the existing technology. There is a need for sustained research & development in the domain for bringing positive changes in the environment. The growth of technology is directly proportional on the growth of IP in the domain – as strong intellectual property rights provide scalability in the field of green technology.