AMES, Iowa- The next time you enjoy an oblong, seedless watermelon, or admire the round hay bales that dot the Iowa landscape, you can thank an Iowa State University researcher for their invention, and success at getting a patent.
ISU has hundreds of patents, most are high tech, including components found in your cell phone and computer.
Lisa Lorenzen in ISU's Research Foundation, keeps track of the hundreds of patents, many of which are paying royalties to ISU, including the oblong, seedless watermelon.
Some of the more high profile inventions include: The fax machine, lead-free solder, Maytag Blue cheese, soybean oil for reduction of trans fat, Buck roses, and weed control from corn gluten meal. ISU researchers have also received patents for a long list of agricultural products and techniques.
Last year, ISU had more than 30-new patents. Lorenzen says about half of the inventions are in use by industries.
The University has landed in the top-100 list of US utility patents. ISU ranks 83 in the world, in the number patents granted in the United States last year.
"Iowa State has a long history of successful technology transfer, from enabling data to be transmitted by fax machines, to technologies that contribute to feeding the world daily,” said Lisa Lorenzen, executive director of the ISU Research Foundation and director of the Office of Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer. “Being among the top 100 worldwide universities granted U.S. utility patents is a testament to the great research being conducted and Iowa State’s commitment to making a difference in the lives of Iowans and people everywhere.”