Patent-based inventor profiles as a basis for human resource decisions in research and development

Profiles of inventors' technological competence are a valuable source of information for decision-making in research and development (R&D) management, e.g. concerning inventor assessment, human resource development and R&D team-building. In the following exposition, a new method of inventor profiling will be put forward, which is based in particular on semantic patent analysis and multidimensional scaling. First, in the course of semantic patent analysis, specialized software, equipped with a natural language processor, reads the patent text transferring the contents into a subject–action–object–format (SAO). The extracted SAO structures are then used to create similarity matrices for patents or patent sets, respectively, according to a specific similarity value. Subsequently, an inventor competence map can be produced by means of multidimensional scaling.
The benefits of this method for R&D-related issues in human resource management will be illustrated by the example of a German mechanical engineering company. Two distinct types of profiles were generated and tested: (i) the profile of a single key inventor and (ii) a profile of key inventor sets. The single key inventor profile gives information on the range of competence, i.e. the homogeneity or heterogeneity of a certain inventor's competences, providing far more detailed insights than resorting to bibliographic data like international patent classification (IPC) classes or citations, whereas the latter kind of profile establishes the position of a certain key inventor in relation to others, helping to highlight specific groups of inventors and their domains. These results are clearly apt to support human resource management.     

The emerging value network in the mobile phone industry: The case of Japan and its implications for the rest of the world

This paper considers how the mobile phone industry is changing from a value chain to a value network using the Japanese market as an example. Value networks involve a larger number of firms, a more complex set of relationships between them, and agreements on a greater number of interface standards than do value chains. Building from this concept of a value network, the paper shows how: (1) agreements on many of these interface standards are enabling connections to be made between the mobile phone and other industries; (2) the resulting products and services often reflect the technological capability of phones and the existing products and services in these “other” industries; (3) each new interface standard requires a new critical mass of users; and (4) a critical mass of users for a new interface standard partly builds from previously created critical masses of users. On a practical level, this paper's analysis adds to a growing list of evidence that the growth in Western mobile Internet markets is nowhere near its potential and that the change from a value chain to a value network requires a different form of standard setting, policy making, and management than are currently used in the mobile phone industry.     

To go or stay home and watch: exploring the balance between motives and perceived constraints for major events: a case study of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games

The current study offers insight into the role of motivation and constraints on behavioural intentions prior to a mega event. The Psychological Continuum Model framework was used to integrate motivation and leisure constraints theory to examine attraction towards the 2008 Olympic Games. Semi‐structured interviews (N = 47) and a questionnaire (N = 235) distributed in Australia and the USA were used to identify and measure three motivational themes: cultural learning, cultural experience and olympic event interest, and three perceived constraints: structural, interpersonal and intrapersonal. Structural Equation Modelling revealed that motives were positively related to behavioural intentions while constraints were negatively related. Analysis further revealed the interaction between motives and perceived constraints led to two different forms of behavioural intentions; intentions to travel and attend the event vs. stay home to watch the event on TV. Policy and marketing implications are discussed that illustrate the benefits of understanding both motives and perceived constraints for tourism travel. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley and Sons, Ltd.     

Evaluating the risk of patent infringement by means of semantic patent analysis: the case of DNA chips

In this paper, we are going to present a method for detecting the risks of patent infringement by evaluating similarities between patent documents on the basis of semantic patent analysis. This approach enables the user to visualize similarities in the contents on a semantic patent map by means of multi‐dimensional scaling. The effectiveness of the semantic patent map has already been demonstrated by Dressler (2006) with regard to patents of seal technology, in which documents are commonly kept short and the extracted contents are concise. This paper will open out to the field of biotechnology, where patents can easily comprise several hundreds of pages. The method presented here conveys an interdisciplinary approach and combines computer‐aided natural language processing with domain‐specific expertise of biochemical processes. This is illustrated by an authentic case of infringement involving two manufacturers of DNA chips. Our experiment will show how the infringement case is visualized on a patent map based on semantic patent analysis. This experiment can be compared with the search for a needle in a haystack, the two competitive patents representing significantly conflicting ‘needles.’ From an approximate number of 4,000 patents in the current US Class 435/6, a set of patents was selected that included the ‘needles’ mentioned. This paper will point out how such mutual interference can be detected by way of semantic patent analysis, and what advice may be given to R&D managers who are faced with the risk of patent infringement.     

Trade and International R&D Spillovers among OECD Countries

This paper examines the relationship between trade patterns and international research-and-development (R&D) spillovers using Kao and Chiang's (1998) and Kao's (1999) recently developed panel cointegration techniques. Monte Carlo-type tests demonstrate that the choice of weights used in constructing foreign R&D stocks is informative of the spillover transmission when panel cointegration techniques are employed. However, the evidence does not support a relationship between import patterns and R&D spillovers. The relationship between export patterns and R&D spillovers is then considered. Consistent with recent theoretical models (Ben-David and Loewy 1998), the evidence suggests that exporters receive substantial R&D spillovers from their customers.     

The surplus prior to ruin and the deficit at ruin for a correlated risk process

This paper presents an explicit characterization for the joint probability density function of the surplus immediately prior to ruin and the deficit at ruin for a general risk process, which includes the Sparre-Andersen risk model with phase-type inter-claim times and claim sizes. The model can also accommodate a Markovian arrival process which enables claim sizes to be correlated with the inter-claim times. The marginal density function of the surplus immediately prior to ruin is specifically considered. Several numerical examples are presented to illustrate the application of this result.     

UK and German defence industry change: Some perspectives on strategic marketing

Over the past decade, the European defence industry has had to respond to increasing pressures of reduced defence spending, exacerbated more recently by removal of the immediate military threat from the former Soviet Union. Under the “Options for Change “, the UK has abandoned certain weapons programmes, while Germany has had the additional economic and social problems brought on by re‐unification. The industry's options comprise conversion, diversification or specialization, thus continuing to face structure change and competition from defence imports and “off‐the‐shelf” systems and equipment. Given the high exit barriers and past “cushioning” of the industry by governments, the presence of skills and know‐how to compete effectively is questionable. The case for strategic marketing approach for those suppliers remaining is clear; as buyer (monopsonistic) power strengthens, the threat of new entrants increases and the associated competitive rivalry intensifies. However, the ingrained “defence culture “ in many supplier organizations may be an impediment to change.