11.10. NASA TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER PROGRAMS

NASA has reshaped its technology transfer program by making commercial technology transfer an integral part of the agency mission. The objective of this mission is to involve proactively private sector participation in every NASA program from the outset. This way, technology developed in the course of each aeronautics and space program is likely to have an immediate commercial linkage and a good potential for transfer.

A recent article (Comstock and Lockney, 2007) described how NASA has nurtured partnerships with the private sector to facilitate the transfer of NASA-developed technologies to benefit society. The following is a description of the NASA Innovative Partnership Program as described on the agency's website.

The Innovative Partnership Program (IPP) provides needed technology and capabilities for NASA's Mission Directorates, Programs and Projects through investments and partnerships with Industry, Academia, Government Agencies and national Laboratories. As one of NASA's Mission Support Offices, IPP supports all Mission Directorates and has Program Offices at each of the NASA Centers. In addition to leveraged technology investments, dual-use technology-related partnerships, and technology solutions for NASA, IPP enables cost avoidance, and accelerates technology maturation. IPP also seeks to be a facilitator and catalyst for innovation in technology transfer—or spinoffs—to provide solutions to the private sector or other government agencies with NASA-developed technology resulting in public benefit. IPP achieves these mission objectives through a network of offices at each of NASA's 10 field centers.

IPP consists of the following program elements: Technology Infusion which includes the Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR)/Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Programs and the IPP Seed Fund; Innovation Incubator which includes Centennial Challenges and new efforts such as facilitating the purchase of services from the emerging commercial space sector; and Partnership Development which includes Intellectual Property management and Technology Transfer, and new innovative partnerships. Together these program elements increase NASA's connection to emerging technologies in external communities, enable targeted positioning of NASA's technology portfolio in selected areas, and secure NASA's intellectual property to provide fair access and to support NASA's strategic goals. Technology transfer through dual-use partnerships and licensing also creates many important socio-economic benefits within the broader community.