06.05.2026

Researchers at the TU Ilmenau file the second-highest number of patents in the country

TU Ilmenau/ari
Over a five-year period, researchers at the TU Ilmenau have filed the second-highest number of patents in all of Germany

Researchers at the TU Ilmenau have filed the second-highest number of patents in all of Germany over a five-year average, according to a recent study by the German Economic Institute. With an average of 18 patent applications per 1,000 students per year, the TU Ilmenau ranks second nationwide, behind the TU Bergakademie Freiberg. Thuringia’s universities as a whole are also particularly innovative, as the German Economic Institute highlights: With 4.7 patents per 1,000 students, they rank second behind Saxony; the national average is two.

“Patent applications,” writes the German Economic Institute, “are a key indicator for assessing the innovative performance of universities.” Professor Stefan Sinzinger, Vice President for Research and Young Scientists at TU Ilmenau, is delighted with the university’s outstanding ranking: “This result once again confirms the exceptional research and innovation capabilities of our university as a ‘hidden champion’ in the heart of Germany. The secret to our success lies above all in the synergy between excellent basic university research, an outstanding scientific infrastructure, and application-oriented research with close ties to the regional and national economy.”

The TU Ilmenau owes its top ranking in patent applications in part to the Thuringian State Patent Center (PATON), located on the university campus, which provides researchers with professional support ranging from initial innovation ideas and intellectual property strategies to the successful filing of patents.

Hannover Messe Forum für Erfindungen made in Ilmenau

Ein Kran montiert ein Rotorblatt an eine WindenergieanlageHerbert Esser/stock.adobe.com
A patented process developed by the TU Ilmenau enables the automated assembly of wind turbine blades

At the recently concluded Hannover Messe, the world’s leading industrial trade fair for technologies related to industrial transformation, the TU Ilmenau presented numerous patented inventions, technologies, and solutions, including a method for constructing wind turbines: The automated assembly of rotor blades is more precise, faster, safer, and more cost-effective than the conventional, predominantly manual assembly using cranes. Also presented at the Hannover Messe: a lightweight exoskeleton patented by TU Ilmenau and the company SUITX by Ottobock, which is strapped on to lift and transport heavy loads. A patented materials science development from the TU Ilmenau is already generating interest among companies: “Volume-Control” solves the problem of shrinkage—that is, the contraction that occurs when plastics cool from their melting or processing temperature to room temperature.

 

German Economic Institute: Universities Are Key Partners in Patenting

The German Economic Institute highlights the importance of universities in patent applications, particularly those in eastern Germany—which are “outpacing” their western counterparts: “Nearly one in three university patents is developed in collaboration with partners—compared to only about one in twenty for other patent applicants in Germany.” In its leading position in patents, the TU Ilmenau also benefits from its four affiliated institutes, which serve as bridges between theoretical research and practical application and through which it carries out numerous innovative research and development projects: Over the five-year period, they filed 37 patent applications; the Thuringian Institute for Textile and Plastics Research (TITK Rudolstadt) alone filed 14.

 

Contact

Dr. Christoph Hoock
Head of PATON | Thuringia State Patent Center
+49 3677 69-4572
christoh.hoock@tu-ilmenau.de