Licensing Dryden Technologies

    Leveraging Dryden Technologies for Commercial Use


      Licensing Resources

    Dryden’s world-class researchers continually develop new innovations to benefit the space program. The Dryden Innovative Partnerships Office (IPO) is tasked with helping industry benefit from these inventions by widely disseminating the technologies for scientific, academic, industrial, and commercial use. In order to protect the government’s interests, the technologies are patented, marketed, and licensed to industry partners for commercial applications.

    Many of Dryden’s patents and patent applications are available for licensing. You can find these technologies under the Technology section of our Web site. The IPO can help you find the right technologies for your business and help you navigate the licensing process. You can find more details below and on our Frequently Asked Questions page.

    In addition to patent licensing, some software technologies are distributed under Software Usage Agreements. Please visit the Software section of our Web site for more details.

    Visit the Success Stories section of our Web site to read about how industry has benefited from previously licensed Dryden innovations.

    How to License a Dryden Patent or Patent Application

    NASA licenses pending patent applications and existing patents to private industry in compliance with 37 CFR, Section 404 entitled, "Licensing of Government-Owned Inventions.” → 

    Companies interested in licensing one or more of Dryden’s innovative technologies are encouraged to contact Julie Holland at (661) 276-2515 or julie.a.holland@nasa.gov to discuss their licensing needs and objectives.

    Completing the license application is the first step of the process.

    Part I of the License Application

    During the first stage, you, as the prospective licensee, submit part 1 of the license application to the Dryden licensing manager, using the form provided. This application covers basic information about your company and your interest in the technology. You and the licensing manager then negotiate and agree to the business terms. Dryden negotiates each license individually, and it contains terms such as license duration, up-front fees, ongoing royalties, and level of exclusivity.

    Licenses may be exclusive, non-exclusive, or partially exclusive within a particular field of use or geographic area. Requests for exclusive and partially exclusive licenses must go through an additional step prior to granting the license. For these licenses, Dryden must place a notice of the prospective license, identifying the invention and the prospective licensee, in the Federal Register and provide an opportunity for other prospects to file written objections within a 15-day period. Any objections are taken into consideration by the Director of Patent Licensing in making the final recommendation to the NASA Associate General Counsel for Intellectual Property.

    Part II of the License Application

    During the second stage of the license application process, you submit a development and marketing plan, using the form provided. The commercialization plan outlines your product development and marketing plans. Append the final agreed upon terms to your development and marketing plan before submitting the plan to the Dryden licensing manager.

    Once you have submitted the commercialization plan and you and Dryden have agreed to the final business terms, the license is written, reviewed, and executed. Both Parts I and II of the license application are appended to the final license.

    The Dryden IPO will maintain the license application, business terms, commercialization plan, and license itself in strict confidence. None of this information is subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.

    After the license is granted, the Dryden IPO monitors the licensee’s sales of products and services incorporating the licensed technologies. The Dryden IPO may write success stories and, upon approval by the licensee, these may be published on the Dryden Web site, in NASA Spinoff magazine→  or other publications and on various NASA Web sites.

    Government inventors are entitled to a share of the royalties generated from licensing. The remaining fees come to the Dryden IPO and are used to fund additional technology development projects at Dryden.

    For additional licensing assistance, please contact Julie Holland at (661) 276-2515 or julie.a.holland@nasa.gov.

    Licensing Resources