Identifying and tracking scientific and technological knowledge memes from citation networks of publications and patents

Knowledge memes are the cultural equivalent of genes that play an important role in the evolution of knowledge. In this paper, we are trying to identify and tracking scientific and technological knowledge memes, and infer the relationship between science and technology at micro-level. A new carbon nanomaterial—graphene is taken as an example, and publications and patents are used as data sources for the representation of science and technology. Citation networks of publications and patents are constructed, on which a knowledge meme discovery algorithm is used, in order to identify memes that play a key role in the evolution of scientific and technological knowledge. Then the diffusion and co-occurrence of knowledge memes are shown, and a word embedding model is used to track the semantic change of the memes. The research could provide guidance for promoting knowledge innovation and making research policy.     

Statisticians as innovation leaders

Innovation leading to business growth is increasingly important in many industries. We discuss the unique roles that statistics and statisticians can play in facilitating and leading innovation efforts. Many of the statistical tools to improve quality can also be used to generate more business value through innovation. We also believe that many applied statisticians are especially well positioned to drive and even lead innovation efforts. For statisticians to be successful in leading innovation, they will need to strengthen their skills beyond what they have traditionally needed in the past, but we believe this will be worth the effort.     

Should we manage the process of inventing? Designing for patentability

Intellectual property is considered to provide the infrastructure of innovation, and companies could proactively generate their intellectual assets and strengthen the business opportunities by focusing on discovery phases. This paper examines whether the invention process can be managed and finds that patents appear not only as a result of inventive activity but as the purpose as well. By building on recent design theories such as the concept–knowledge design theory, this research introduces a general framework that enables controlling for ‘patentability’ criteria, describes a patent in a unique way using actions, effects, and associated knowledge, and defines a patentable subject matter based on the notion of the person skilled in the art. Using the introduced model, several patent design methods are compared and their performances are characterized. The model was tested within the European semiconductor manufacturer, STMicroelectronics. The results indicate that the quality of patent proposals depends on the capacity to extend existing knowledge combinations, to overcome the initial design reasoning of the person skilled in the art, and to ensure novelty and sufficient inventive step. Finally, the proposed model in this research, the ‘design-for-patentability’ model, demonstrates that there is an unexplored property of the concept–knowledge design theory—non-substitution—showing that the order within design is irreversible and influences the quality of results.     

基于需求层次分析的知识情境模型构建及实证研究

知识情境与企业业务执行的绩效密切相关。然而，目前缺乏知识情境对业务执行绩效影响机理的研究。基于层次需求理论，通过文献调研、企业走访座谈及调研数值分析，提出基于领导者胜任力、团队协作氛围、现场管理、绩效管理的需求四维度知识情境模型，并通过问卷调查的方式，验证知识情境对业务执行绩效的影响，揭示心理需求在知识情境与业务执行绩效之间的调节作用。本研究有助于拓展知识管理研究的视野，对提升企业知识管理绩效有重要参考价值。     

Development trend forecasting for coherent light generator technology based on patent citation network analysis

A forecasting methodology for technology development trends is proposed based on a two-level network model consisting of knowledge-transfer among patents and patent subclasses, with the aim to confront the increasing complex challenge in technology investment and management. More specifically, the patents of the “coherent light generators” classification, granted from 1976 to 2014 by examiners of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, are collected and with which the first-level citation network is constructed first. Then, a new approach to assess patent importance from the perspective of topological structure is provided and the second-level citation network, which consists of patent subclasses, is produced with the evaluation results. Moreover, three assessment indices of the subclass citation network are abstracted as impact parameters for technology development trends. Finally, two typical time series models, the Bass and ARIMA model, are utilized and compared for development trend forecasting. Based on the results of evolution prediction and network analysis, the highlighted patent subclasses with more development potential are identified, and the correlation between technology development opportunity and topological structure of the patent citation network is discussed.     

The idiosyncrasy and dynamism of technological innovation across industries: patent citation analysis

In general, the structural and behavioral patterns of technological innovation are idiosyncratic across industrial sectors and dynamic over time. Yet, despite voluminous amounts of previous research, patterns of innovation are hard to standardize or theorize. The objectives of this article are two-fold. One is to investigate distinctive and changing patterns of technological innovation across industries and observe dynamic trends over time. The other is to identify patterns of relationships among industries and examine the roles of respective industries. To this end, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) patent database was used and patent citation analysis applied. The idiosyncratic differences among industrial sectors are highlighted, especially between conventional manufacturing sectors and science-based sectors. We also found changing trends in technological knowledge flows across industries.     

Multi-cross-industry innovation patents in the USA - A combination of PATSTAT and Orbis search

Knowledge and technologies from different fields will undoubtedly be combined in order to develop the products of the future. Remarkable examples thereof can already be found in the fields of interconnected „smart“ products and natural care products. Few companies have access to the entire range of available knowledge; most are required to obtain this knowledge from other companies or research institutes. One way to acquire the requisite knowledge is through co-operation. When at least three companies from different industries are cooperating for this purpose, we speak of multi-cross-industry innovation. This kind of innovation is reflected in many cases of patenting. For a deeper understanding, we identify multi-cross-industry innovation patents in the leading market of the USA, using a combined search on PATSTAT and Orbis in the period from 1980 to 2015. We apply a time series analysis, an applicant analysis, a priority country analysis, an analysis of co-operation structure, and an analysis of the application domains to the data. Our results show an increase in the occurrence of multi-cross-industry innovation patents. The major players involved in this are Japanese companies, which apply for nearly 90% of all multi-cross-industry innovation patents. Multi-cross-industry innovation covers a broad range of application domains, from electronics to material sciences.     

Development of technology and service thinking for technical personnel: Action research at a Japanese monitor maker

The importance of services within technology-based business in terms of customer value is increasingly well-understood by manufacturing companies. Manufacturing companies are trying to restructure their business models by adding the concept of service that is required to make a process of value co-creation with customers. Human resources are a core factor in the implementation of this notion in the practical field. In a technology-based business, technical personnel must have not only technology-oriented thinking but also service-oriented thinking in order to generate new value propositions. In this work, we propose an approach to transform the way of thinking and support knowledge co-creation with others with a focus on new corporate value propositions. We combined a service innovation chart with a business model thinking methodology to create a new approach intended for the development of technology and service thinking within technical personnel. Our objective is to help manufacturing companies create a service climate and clarify the knowledge co-creation process. We conducted action research by introducing our approach to 25 technical personnel employed by a Japanese monitor maker and obtained data including feedback on its usability and the impact on corporate business models. The findings of this study will help personnel to generate technology and service-based innovation concepts, thereby promoting servitization in technology-based companies.     

Invention property-function network analysis of patents: a case of silicon-based thin film solar cells

Technology analysis is a process which uses textual analysis to detect trends in technological innovation. Co-word analysis (CWA), a popular method for technology analysis, encompasses (1) defining a set of keyword or key phrase patterns which are represented in technology-dependent terms, (2) generating a network that codifies the relations between occurrences of keywords or key phrases, and (3) identifying specific trends from the network. However, defining the set of keyword or key phrase patterns heavily relies on effort of experts, who may be expensive or unavailable. Furthermore defining keyword or key phrase patterns of new or emerging technology areas may be a difficult task even for experts. To solve the limitation in CWA, this research adopts a property-function based approach. The property is a specific characteristic of a product, and is usually described using adjectives; the function is a useful action of a product, and is usually described using verbs. Properties and functions represent the innovation concepts of a system, so they show innovation directions in a given technology. The proposed methodology automatically extracts properties and functions from patents using natural language processing. Using properties and functions as nodes, and co-occurrences as links, an invention property-function network (IPFN) can be generated. Using social network analysis, the methodology analyzes technological implications of indicators in the IPFN. Therefore, without predefining keyword or key phrase patterns, the methodology assists experts to more concentrate on their knowledge services that identify trends in technological innovation from patents. The methodology is illustrated using a case study of patents related to silicon-based thin film solar cells.     

The more you spend, the more you get? The effects of R&D and capital expenditures on the patenting activities of biotechnology firms

This paper provides evidence on the mechanisms influencing the patent output of a sample of small and large, entrepreneurial and established biotechnology firms from the input of indirect knowledge acquired from capital expenditures and direct knowledge from in-house R&D. Statistical models of counts are used to analyse the relationship between patent applications and R&D investment and capital expenditures. It focuses on biotechnology in the period 2002–2007 and is based on a unique data set drawn from various sources including the EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard, the European Patent Office (EPO), the US Patent and Trademark Office, and the World Intellectual Property Organisation. The statistical models employed in the paper are Poisson distribution generalisations with the actual distribution of patent counts fitting the negative binomial distribution and gamma distribution very well. Findings support the idea that capital expenditures—taken as equivalent to technical change embodied in new machinery and capital equipment—may also play a crucial role in the development of new patentable items from scientific companies. For EPO patents, this role appears even more important than that played by R&D investment. The overall picture emerging from our analysis of the determinants of patenting in biotechnology is that the innovation process involves a well balanced combination of inputs from both R&D and new machinery and capital equipment.     

A Dynamic Comparative Analysis of International Innovation Networks in Emerging Market MNCs

This paper compares the international innovation strategies of emerging market MNCs (EMNCs) with those of developed country MNCs (DMNCs). More specifically, we analyze the patent outcomes related to the use of international innovation networks (IINs) of EMNCs in developed markets compared with those of DMNCs in emerging markets. We explore the convergence and volatility patterns in patent generation within these IINs, considering the use of overseas R&D affiliates and the outcomes of interactions between foreign R&D affiliates and home headquarters for generating patents over a 20-year period. Our findings are broadly supportive of the idea that the trends in the volume and volatility of patents generated from the underlying IINs used by EMNCs are converging with those of DMNCs. This is in line with the predictions of a number of current international business theories regarding EMNC international expansion.     

Theory of constraint methodology where the constraint is the business model

This paper addresses the issue of business model (BM) management and its relationship to the theory of constraints (TOC). Coman and Ronen (Coman, A. and Ronen,B., 2007. Managing strategic and tactical constraints in the hi-tech industry. International Journal of Production Research, 38(7), 1631–1639) have extended TOC methodology to include the alignment of the organisation's competencies with the business arena's strategic constraints. The aim of this paper is to take TOC one step further and to combine it with the business models theory. Business models have become important value creators due to the proliferation of new and innovative business models (i.e. new ways of creating value). New firms with new business models are threatening and replacing established companies and conventional ways of doing business. Among these are the music, publishing, books, retail, airline and many other industries. This paper argues that in the wake of the World Wide Web, contract manufacturing and globalisation it not enough to manage the firms (internal, external or strategic) constraints. In addition, the management of the firm's BM as a potential constraint is a key factor in the modern management theory.     

Comparing a Pharmaceutical and an Agro-food Bioregion: On the Importance of Knowledge Bases for Socio-spatial Patterns of Innovation

The aim of this paper is to compare the socio-spatial patterns of innovation and knowledge linkages of a biopharmaceutical and an agro-food biotech cluster. Dissimilarities can be expected based on differences in terms of historical technological regimes and sectoral innovation system dynamics between the agro-food and pharmaceutical industries in general and particularly the distinctive analytical (science-based) knowledge base of biopharmaceuticals in contrast with the more synthetic (engineering-based) knowledge base of agro-food biotechnology. Drawing on bibliometric data and case material the study compares two representative bioregions: a biopharmaceutical cluster in Scania, Sweden and an agro-food biotech cluster in Saskatoon, Canada. The empirical study supports the theoretical expectations and shows that knowledge dynamics in the agro-food cluster are more localized than in the biopharmaceuticals cluster. It is important, however, to acknowledge that these differences are relative. Both sectors display local and non-local patterns of collaboration following the general pattern for biotechnology.     

Digital innovations-driven business model regeneration: A process model

The traditional ways of doing business have changed dramatically with the emergence of new digital technologies. Firms can stay competitive using the benefits of digital technologies, such as the Internet of Things, social computing, Cloud computing, cyber-physical systems, big data and analytics, wireless networks, artificial intelligence, robotics, simulation, etc. The spread of the coronavirus disease in 2019 (COVID-19) all over the world has created a better understanding of the importance of organizations’ ability to keep up with digital innovations. Therefore, the regeneration of business models is becoming an increasingly crucial factor for survival in the digital age. This study develops a process model for digital innovations-driven business model regeneration based on the design science research approach. For this purpose, the existing models and cases in the business model innovation (BMI) literature are examined and the empirical data are collected using semi-structured interviews to complement and validate this knowledge. The collected data are then analyzed and a digital innovations-driven business model regeneration method is developed. The proposed model is demonstrated with a real case. This study extends the BMI literature. The proposed process model can be used by strategic managers to analyze the impacts of potential digital innovations on their current business models and regenerate their business model. Therefore, it can help companies to be able to gain a competitive advantage over their competitors or sustain their business against technological developments.     

Analyzing the time delay between scientific research and technology patents based on the citation distribution model

Promoting knowledge diffusion and reducing the delay between scientific research and technology patents is important to achieve success in the highly competitive global environment. This paper studies the time delay between scientific research and technology patents, and focuses on the key components of time in the promotion of knowledge transformation. Based on United States Patent and Trademark Office patent data, we apply periodical citation distribution models to the patent process. The results show that our transfer function model is better than others, and is suitable for calculating the delay between basic scientific research activities and technology patents.     

Patterns of scientific and technological knowledge flows based on scientific papers and patents

This paper examines how Korean technological development is linked with scientific activities and spreads to industrial fields through knowledge flows. It empirically assesses the linkages between scientific and technological knowledge flows and technological innovation by determining whether the quantity and quality of scientific papers cited by, and the knowledge being absorbed in, Korean patents filed in USPTO varied over time, and between technology fields. We conducted MANOVA and then canonical discriminate analysis. Our findings are: the patterns of both the absorption of scientific knowledge and the diffusion of technological knowledge differ by period and by field, and the speed of knowledge diffusion differs by technology field. This implies that the time required for Korean investment in basic and applied research to impact her industrial innovation differs by technology field.     

The mutually beneficial relationship of patents and scientific literature: topic evolution in nanoscience

Patent and scientific literature are the fundamental sources of innovation in knowledge creation and transfer activities. Establishing and understanding the complex relationships between them can help scientists and stakeholders to predict and promote the innovation process. In this paper, we consider the domain of nanoscience, using a large scale collection of patents and scientific literature to find evolution patterns and distinctive keywords of each topic in a particular period. By extracting the semantic-level topics from a dataset of nearly 810,000 scientific literature from Web of Science and 160,000 patents from Derwent, the results reveal that the degree of topic popularity for both innovative platforms shows a totally different situation during the last 20 years from 1995 to 2015. In addition, the top keywords of patents and scientific literature, representing the topic content of concern, have changed respectively as time went on. Not only our analysis can be used for confirming existing topics in nanoscience, but it also gives new views on the relationship between scientific literature and patents.     

Patent activity on water pollution and treatment in China—a scientometric perspective

This research intends to investigate the patent activity on water pollution and treatment in China (1985–2007), and then compares the results with patents data about Triadic patents, South Korea, Brazil and India over the same periods, patents data were collected from Derwent World Patents Index between 1985 and May 2008. For this study, 169,312 patents were chosen and examined. Total volume of patents, technology focus, assignee sector, priority date and the comparison with other countries are analyzed. It is found that patents on water pollution and treatment filed at China have experienced a remarkable increase and the increase rate of patents filed at China change simultaneous with the percentage of domestic applications. However, the number of high quality Triadic patents with priority country as China remains small. Furthermore, in addition to individual patent assignees, both Chinese universities and enterprises also play important roles in patent activity of water pollution and treatment. In addition, the pattern of South Korea’s development can provide short-term implications for China and the regularity in Triadic patents’ development can provide some guidance to China’s long-term development. In contrast, the development pattern of Brazil and India is less influential to China’s development. Furthermore, China’s technology focuses on water pollution and treatment seem to parallel global and triadic patent trends. This research provides a comprehensive picture of China’s innovation capability in the area of water pollution and treatment. It will help China’s local governments to improve their regional S&T capability and will provide support the National Water Pollution Control and Treatment Project in China.