Patents as potential indicators of the utility of EC research programmes

In the framework of the MONITOR-SPEAR programme of the Commission of the European Communities a critical review of the literature with regard to the utility of patent indicators being in use for evaluation world- wide has been undertaken. Availability, scope and complementary of these indicators are discussed. A practical tool for evaluation committees of the EC programmes is desigend and recommendations for EC procedures are given. The suggested procedures will be implemented alongside three sample exercises. One of the exercise programmes is science-led (BEP and BAP), one industry-led (BRITE I) and one interphase (MHR). In this paper for time and space reasons only selected examples with respect to the MHR programme are outlined and discussed. The project is not completed yet and only preliminary findings will be given n this paper. From the viewpoint of it's present stateit is concluded that patent indicators may play a very useful role within a mixed set of evaluation procedures. T he intersection with other methods is not very big, that is, patent indicators may provide supplementary information to a large extent. However, their use is limited to those types of programmes which are relevant for intellectual property rights mostly in the commercial realm. Patent indicators share with other evaluation tools the problem of best adjustment of time windows between observation and execution of the programe. Despite of these limitations, patent indicators may be employed properly as output indiucators related to ongoing EC programes, but as well for prospective analysis of applied fields of RuD and may thus help in the definition phase of new RuD programmes.