What are tangible materials?
Tangible materials are unpatented or non-patentable biological materials including organisms, cells lines, proteins, RNA/DNA, antibodies and other cellular components and their derivatives. Tangible materials may also be research results that may or may not be patentable or copyrightable and are in a tangible form as distinct from intangible (intellectual) property. Examples include prototypes, engineering drawings, clinical data, databases and other property that can be physically distributed. These materials are covered by the Patent Policy and can be licensed or otherwise transferred to interested parties by the Office of Technology Transfer. Research and development of biological materials (and their possession) is an increasingly important issue, therefore possession and rights should be governed by contract even for those without associated patent rights.
