01
Prepare your materials.
Pull together what you have, results, data, who contributed, and any deadlines like an upcoming talk or paper.
For researchers
Take research from the lab to the real world.
Protect what you've found, get the agreements that let you share it, and find the funding that moves it toward impacting the world. Access Idea to Impact support when you need it.
About patents
What patents protect, and when to file.
- 01
What does a patent actually protect?
It protects how something works, a process, device, or composition, not a name or written content. Those fall under trade marks and copyright instead.
- 02
What can be patented?
Inventions that are new, useful, and non-obvious, from lab methods to software and hardware. If you're not sure, disclose anyway and the team will assess it.
- 03
How long does a patent last?
Before. Any public talk, paper, or poster can count as prior disclosure and reduce patentability. Talk to the team ahead of submitting or presenting.
- 04
When should I disclose, before or after publishing?
Before. Any public talk, paper, or poster can count as prior disclosure and sink patentability. Talk to TTI ahead of submitting or presenting.
Disclosing an invention
Take the first step
towards impact.
Disclosure is not a commitment to commercialise. It's how NUS records what you've made and starts protecting it. Your authorship and your interests remain intact.
02
Submit on our portal.
The disclosure form takes most researchers under thirty minutes once their notes are ready.
03
We review your disclosure.
A tech transfer officer assesses novelty and commercial fit, then comes back to you within a working week on whether and how to file.
Agreements
Request the right agreement
Sharing materials, protecting confidential information, or formalising a development project each needs the right agreement behind it. Pick the agreement that fits, submit the contracts request form, and the TTI contracts team takes it from there.
- Request an MTA →
Material Transfer Agreement (MTA)
For sharing physical research materials with another institution or company.
- Request an NDA →
Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA)
For protecting confidential information before a conversation or collaboration.
- Request a TDA →
Technology Development Agreement (TDA)
For formalising work with an external party built on NUS background IP.
NUS IP policy
Common questions
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[1] Which officer should I contact for my field?
Each NUS tech transfer officer covers a specific domain, such as life sciences, materials, or software, so you reach someone who already knows your field. Match your area to an officer using the domain filter on this page. If none fits cleanly, send one enquiry and the team routes it to the right person.
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[2] What does a TTO actually help with?
A tech transfer officer (TTO) takes your invention from disclosure to a deal. They assess whether it can be protected, file and manage the patent, find companies to license it, and support you if you want to spin out a company. You stay on the research; they handle the IP, the agreements, and the commercial side.
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[3] I'm an industry partner, who do I talk to?
To license a specific NUS technology, contact the tech transfer officer who covers that domain, listed in the grid on this page. For broader partnerships, corporate challenges, or if you're not sure where to start, Corporate Partnerships is the front door and will connect you to the right officer.
Ready for the next step?
Disclosing an invention is one step. Spinning out a company is another. NUSX has programmes and funding to support the next stage of your work, regardless of which direction you choose.