USF Innovation Beats Out Harvard, NYU

When it comes to universities noted for cutting-edge innovations, Tampa’s University of South Florida might not roll off the tongue as being among the best of the best. A new report issued by the National Academy of Inventors and the Intellectual Property Owners Association, however, indicates that it should.

The Florida university, in fact, bested such established hotbeds of innovation as Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, Rutgers and Cornell for the number of utility patents granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in 2014, according to the academy’s Top 100 Universities rankings.

USF Bulls were responsible for earning 104 patents in 2014, up from 95 patents in 2013. That number earned it the honor of being the 13th-top-patent-earning university in the world and the 10th in the nation, the report states.

The University of California topped the international list with 453 patents while the Massachusetts Institute of Technology came in second with 275. As for the University of Pennsylvania, it ranked 14th worldwide, while Harvard came in 24th. Other notable Florida and national schools included on the worldwide list include:

• New York University – No. 19
• University of Florida – No. 20
• Cornell University – No. 28
• University of Central Florida – No. 30
• Rutgers University – 35
• Duke University – 46
• Emory University – 58

The two organizations have teamed up since 2013 to publish the annual report of top schools for inventions.

“The data once again proves that innovation based on university technology continues to be a key factor in economic development and a fundamental element to the success of a university,” National Academy of Inventors President Paul R. Sanberg was quoted in a media release as saying.

Sanberg also happens to be the senior vice president for research, innovation and economic development at USF. He’s credited with helping drive USF’s push for creating in-house inventions and was also recently named to USF’s Florida Inventors Hall of Fame, according to the Tampa Bay Business Journal.

For a look at the complete list of the Top 100, visit the National Academy of Inventors online.

Photo from USF’s Facebook page