March 2009

“Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the THINKS you can think up if only you try!” - Dr. Seuss Oh, the THINKS You Can Think! Members met for informal discussion of various aspects of innovation. We discussed how the government is helping to finance inventors. 1. The state of Indiana supplements, and helps inventors obtain, Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants. Rich Boling (rboling@techshot.com) of Techshot told us that the state of Indiana will pay someone, such as Elizabeth Brooke Pyne (bpyne@iedc.in.gov) of the IEDC SBIR/STTR Program Office or Heidi Platt of Platinum Grants & Proposals, LLC, up to $6,500 to help a first time SBIR grant applicant prepare an application. Contact Mr. Boling or the IEDC for more details. And consider attending the SBIR workshops offered by the IEDC (Indiana Economic Development Corporation). 2. Matt Thie mentioned that the state of Indiana encourages patent activity by allowing a tax exemption on patent income. Small companies (no more than 500 employees) are eligible for an exemption of 50% of patent income for each of the first 5 years of a utility or plant patent. The percentage decreases over the next 5 years to 10% in the 10th year. The total exemption amount claimed may not exceed $5 million/year. 3. The federal government offers low interest loans to qualified inventors (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act [ARRA] Sec. 1301. Temporary expansion of availability of industrial development bonds to facilities manufacturing intangible property). This Act changes the Internal Revenue Code (section 197(d)(1)(C)(iii)) to give, for a limited time, companies in the business of creating intellectual property a new financing option. Tax-exempt small issue bonds issued by a state or local government during 2009 and 2010 may be used to finance a manufacturing facility (such as a building, equipment, or land) used to create or produce intangible property (patent, copyright, formula, process, design, pattern, know-how, format, or similar item). Generally, the maximum amount of bonds that can be issued for one manufacturer is $30 million. Rich Boling also let us know about Techshot, a technology development company which designs and builds practical solutions to engineering and scientific problems. About 20% of their business is devoted to 1- or 2-person entrepreneur entities. Mr. Boling plans to visit us again in May, so plan to attend our May meeting if you have questions about Techshot. You might enjoy watching “Flash of Genius” (now on DVD; soon to be available at the Indianapolis public library). The movie, based on the true story of Bob Kearns (inventor of the intermittent windshield wiper), shows the potential value of patents to an inventor, and shows an enthusiastic inventor’s association.