One of the coolest parts of my job is being able to read Wired magazine to stay current. Recently I read a great piece about 3D printing a military grade drone. Brilliant concept. The drone can be assembled from parts that can be printed in an ordinary 3D printer, and it can be flown using a cell phone as the drone's brain! David Sheffler's team at the University of Virginia led the development as part of a department of defense grant.
So what kind of intellectual property do they (either Sheffler's team, UVA or the DOD) have?
1) copyright in the design documents (i.e., CAD file)
2) copyright in mobile app controlling the phone
3) trade secret in the mobile app code
4) potential patentability of the plane itself or its components
5) potential patentability of the plane's control system
We'll save the discussion of who owns the intellectual property for another day. It's usually complicated with University contracts, but even more complicated with the DOD layered on top of a university.
Either way, I want one! Read the full article on wired.com.
So what kind of IP do you have?
Originally published September 24, 2014
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