template.back.to.overview The innovation process

After you have contacted the FoUI advisor at your faculty/center, you will be invited to a meeting so that we can better understand what the idea/innovation involves. In each case, we will assess whether the meeting will be conducted with the local FoUI advisor and/or a counselor from the central innovation group in the Research and Development Department. Local FoUI advisors and the central innovation group collaborate through the so-called Innovation Network, ensuring that the process is coordinated. This is to ensure that you get tailored support for your specific idea.

Agenda for the first meeting about the idea:

• Get acquainted!
• What is the idea/invention/technology?
• How far along is it? Who do you believe could benefit from this?
• Who is behind it?
• What do you believe is needed to progress further?

After the first meeting, we will map out and evaluate the next step and whether there is a need to submit the idea via a declaration form (so-called Declaration of Invention - DOFI). We might need more information from you at this stage. Two outcomes are possible:

• We ask you to submit the idea via a declaration form (so-called Declaration of Invention - DOFI)
  • In this case, your idea will proceed to a thorough assessment of its innovation potential.
    • Some ideas/innovations may get a quick DOFI assessment. This applies primarily in cases where the development stage is advanced, and several of the mappings in the DOFI phase have already been carried out.
• We send your idea "back." In this case, it will not be necessary to submit the idea via the declaration form (DOFI). We often send ideas back because more development or research is needed before incorporating the idea into a formal innovation process. The advantage of the process described above is that you are given a better opportunity to be followed up through the regular research and development advisory services at the university.

After you have submitted your idea, the so-called DOFI phase begins. In the DOFI phase, we conduct a more comprehensive mapping of your idea/innovation. The mapping is carried out by the central innovation group in collaboration with the local FoUI advisor. The aim is to assess how to follow up the idea further. The following points are included in the mapping:

• Assessment of the inventor/team
• Assessment of technology and social maturity
• Assessment of IPR
• Market assessment
• Assessment of external partners
• Assessment of funding needs
• The mapping forms the basis for deciding on the next step.

The decision on the next step for your idea is made in consultation with the faculty/center. Three outcomes are possible:

• OsloMet establishes an innovation project. This means that OsloMet retains the rights to the idea and is thus obligated to allocate resources to further develop the idea/innovation. The innovation project will then be carried out in collaboration with the inventor(s), if this is desirable from your/their side.
• Need for more development/research. During the mapping, it has been clarified that the idea/innovation is at too early a stage to be implemented as an innovation project. In consultation with the faculty/center, one will look at other ways to find resources for more development, e.g., by applying for external research funds.
• OsloMet waives the rights, and the idea holder is free to proceed with the idea. During the mapping, challenges have been identified that result in the assessment that OsloMet does not want to establish an innovation project or recommend further development. There could be various reasons for such a decision. For instance, the idea/innovation could involve an innovation project with too high a risk or cost. Alternatively, the mapping of the intellectual property rights may have concluded that OsloMet does not own the idea/innovation, or that there are no intellectual property rights to secure. This can occur, for example, if an invention is publicly disclosed before a patent is obtained.

You and the involved partners will be informed about the decision and next steps as soon as possible.

• Innovation projects can vary significantly from one another based on what the idea/innovation is and what is needed to realize it. The goal is for the idea/innovation to benefit those who need it.
• It's easy to believe that the idea/innovation you've come up with is complete, but during the innovation projects, it's common to discover that much more development is needed.
• It's important to arrive at a sustainable financing model, whether it's commercial, public, or social innovation.