At PATINFO2025, around 250 international experts from research and industry, patent offices, law firms and the information industry met in Ilmenau from May 21 to 23 to discuss innovations and challenges in the patent system and industrial property protection. This year's conference, organized by the State Patent Centre of Thuringia (PATON) at TU Ilmenau, was dedicated to the exciting interplay between patents, norms and standards.
After a successful welcome evening in the Audimax, Ilmenau's Festhalle became a platform for exchange for two days with 32 exhibitors and specialist presentations from companies, IP experts, service providers and scientists: "Patents and technical innovation have a long tradition in Ilmenau - that is what shapes our identity," said Lord Mayor Dr. Daniel Schultheiß:
The fact that PATINFO is taking place here is part of the self-image of our city and our university. Because without an economic perspective, even the best idea is often just an idea. Clever ideas can and should generate economic profit - that is not a contradiction, but a driving force.
The statistics show just how great this drive is: according to a study by the Institute of German Business (IW) from 2023, the TU Ilmenau registered the most patents of all German universities in relation to the number of employees. Professor Stefan Sinzinger, Vice President for Research and Young Scientists, was particularly pleased about this at the conference:
As a technical and interdisciplinary university, we are working on solutions for the major challenges of our time - from sustainable technologies to the responsible use of resources. Patents are an important key to mastering these tasks and I am all the more pleased that we are one of the most patent-rich universities in the whole of Germany.
The keynote speech by Maria Skottke-Klein, Vice President of the DPMA, the largest national patent and trademark office in Europe and the sixth largest national patent office in the world, will focus on the importance of researching the current state of the art in the databases of the German Patent and Trademark Office (DPMA) before and after filing a patent application in order to identify current trends and gain inspiration for your own creative work. The subsequent panel discussion with Sibylle Gabler from DIN Deutsches Institut für Normung e. V., Gabriele Mohsler from Ericsson, Daniel Ovadya from Questel and Thomas Sporer from Fraunhofer IDMT addressed various questions on the central topic of the event: "Patents, standards and norms - quo vadis?": How do these concepts intertwine? What significance do they have for innovation and competitiveness? Are patents and standards mutually exclusive or are there fruitful interactions? What are standard essential patents (SEPs)?
“Even very good innovative technical solutions fail if they cannot be integrated into the current market due to a lack of compatibility,” explains PATON Director Dr. Christoph Hoock:
We take it for granted to communicate with various things in the Internet of Things (IoT) via our smartphones and wearables, even in distant countries. However, this is only made possible by the interaction of patents, norms and standards, such as SEPs.
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
Frederic Casañs from ATHENA Technologie Beratung GmbH in Paderborn, exhibitor and speaker at PATINFO2025, summarizes:
Cooperation between research and development, patent attorneys and patent service providers, who provide the relevant global patent databases, software tools and evaluation services, is absolutely a matter of trust. And trust does not work without personal contact. PATINFO is not only the most important conference in the German-speaking world, where all relevant partners and the most important decision-makers in patent management in Germany can meet and exchange ideas.
With its traditional event formats and special atmosphere, PATINFO is unique in its ability to facilitate the personal and professional encounters that are essential for new contacts, impetus and cooperation:
PATINFO is therefore a central and indispensable part of Germany's innovation infrastructure. It is part of the DNA of our innovation culture in Germany and, in light of the stagnation of recent years, more important today than ever. As every year, we will return home with numerous valuable and important professional impulses.
PATINFO2026 will take place in Ilmenau from June 10 to 12 under the motto "Securing the future through IP: IP rights in times of AI, geopolitical change and pressure to innovate".
Impressions from PATINFO2025
