34 Trinbagonian innovators strengthen their skills for the development of technological patents

CAF, Development Bank of Latin America, the Caribbean Industrial Research Institute (CARIRI) and the Trinidad and Tobago Intellectual Property Office (TTIPO) successfully co-hosted the virtual workshop “Development of Technological Patents” from June 16 to June 28.

The workshop, delivered through six virtual three-hour sessions, was focused on the development of patent applications, based on the CAF Method for Accelerated Patent Development, designed to rapidly conceptualize novel technologies, and validate their patentability, focusing primarily on engineering. Thirty-four Trinbagonian participants from government institutions, universities and private companies benefitted from the workshop, learning the importance of patenting new inventions and the advantages these could bring for creators and their companies.

“The knowledge and tools transferred are highly relevant for the innovation ecosystem that strengthens productivity and development of any country. This is a first step and it is a process to be continued, but with these tools participants can materialize new technological patents that they are working on”, declared Jairo Tiusaba, CAF Director of SME Development.

Richard Aching, Manager, Technical Examination in the TTIPO pointed out that “We have helped the inventors with the tactics they can use to explore their intellectual creations. We hope many of their inventions can become intellectual property at some point in time.” He also explained the importance of setting their funding, because it could be a profit for years, not necessarily in a patent but also of a brand.

Miguel Jagessar, participant from the University of Trinidad and Tobago, said “This workshop helps us, the inventors, to be better prepared when we are going to submit the ideas into the patent. In the past, we only sent our proposals to the IP Office and there was a gap. Now we have a better form for the application and it is easier for the inventors and the IPO to submit the patent.”

The workshop facilitators comprised three Colombian engineers specialized on CAF’s Method for Accelerated Patent Development, Simón Villa, Ana Isabel Rua and Valentina Gallego, who led the sessions alongside experts in patents from TTIPO.

During the sessions, the thirty-four students covered different areas of technological patents such as: technology concept definition, prior art search, novelty analysis, functional analysis, and preparing patent drafts, key aspects for the enhancement of their knowledge on patent applications.