The Process 

The first step in participating in the technology transfer program at MCG is to document your discovery and the fact that you feel that you have an invention by submitting an Invention Disclosure form to our office (“OTTED”).

The forms are available online (see the “Forms” section on this website). You also can obtain a hard copy upon request (phone 706/721-9822, or fax 706/721-2917, or mail to us at CA-2105).

Please pay careful attention to all of the items in the form. Such information is critical to giving you the best service and the highest quality review in the shortest period of time.

This office will review the information and will schedule a meeting with the inventor(s). An abstract or non-confidential, detailed summary will be prepared with the inventor’s assistance if it is not already available in the Disclosure document. 

The Office of Technology Transfer and Economic development has a three pronged approach to the evaluation and commercialization of intellectual property.

Kourosh Sabet-Payman will review the prior patent art and determine if there is a solid chance of securing a patent if we should file an application. With over six million patents on file in the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (“PTO”), there is a chance that someone else has had a similar inventive idea.  The only way to be certain is to conduct a review, and that is one of the critical services that we provide.

Kourosh Sabet-Payman and Dr. Carl Clark will evaluate the scientific literature for prior publications relating to the invention and analyze potential market for the invention. We do this through our scientific and marketing databases and possibly through conversations with industry representatives. The reports will be shared with the inventor(s) who will be asked for comments.

The white paper assessments of science, patentability and marketability are evaluated in toto by Dr. Clark, Director of Technology Transfer.  Based on his evaluation of the white paper, he makes a recommendation to the Intellectual Property (IP) Committee. The IP Committee is composed of senior researchers with prior experience in technology licensing, as well as, senior administrators of the Medical College of Georgia Research Institute. The IP Committee will consider this information and provide recommendations to the Office of Technology Transfer as may be necessary.

Note that there is not an actual deadline or scheduled meetings. We will accept and process Invention Disclosures as they are received. In this way, we can be more responsive to your own time demands, and you do not have to lose precious time as we attempt to assemble a quorum or find a suitable meeting time. The IP Committee provides its recommendations to the OTTED based on the Committee's assessment of the invention.

While it may look complex, it is very workable provided that all the necessary information is provided. With a comprehensive Invention Disclosure in hand, the OTTED should be able to complete its activity within 10 working days, and the IP Committee can make its recommendation within another 10 working days.

If MCG relinquishes rights to the inventors, they may elect to file for a patent on their own behalf and at their own expense.

It MCG decides to pursue patent protection, we will assign a law firm to the case so that their capabilities match the nature of the invention. You then would be contacted by their attorney for more detail, and they will require your assistance as the application is prepared and processed through the PTO. Thus, the Disclosure is just the first step in securing a patent. There will be multiple opportunities for your very valuable input and technical expertise as the paperwork moves through the system.

While this is ongoing, the OTTED will develop a list of commercial firms likely to have an interest in acquiring rights to the invention. It would then be marketed, and if serious interest is expressed by a firm capable of commercializing the invention, a license (or option) would be negotiated by the OTTED.

Once the deal is consummated, and income is realized, you as the inventor would receive a share of that income according to MCG and Regent policies.