Auburn ranks among Top 80 for patents in latest National Academy of Inventors recognition

Auburn University has been ranked among the Top 100 U.S. Universities Granted Utility Patents in 2024, a list published recently by the National Academy of Inventors (NAI).

With 20 new patents issued in 2024, Auburn was ranked 80th on the list, seven places higher than the previous year. The list was created to highlight and celebrate American innovation and to recognize those universities that play a large role in advancing the innovation ecosystem within the U.S. and beyond.

Notable among Auburn’s 2024 patents are:

• A patent for improving physical components of mechanical systems using data element mapping and analysis — a methodology currently being tested by industry partners; and

• A patent for an additive nanomanufacturing system and method to facilitate the manufacture of 3D-printed materials in space. The technology will soon be tested in a microgravity environment as part of NASA’s Flight Opportunity program.

“We're thrilled that Auburn continues to be featured on this list. It's a testament to the focus on and strength of innovation on our campus,” said Patrick Reed, executive director of Auburn’s Intellectual Property Exchange (IPX). “An issued patent represents potential commercialization opportunity; collaborating with commercialization partners unlocks that potential, turning it into real-world impact. We look forward to putting these patents to work for the benefit of the public."

In addition to the list, Auburn has been recognized by NAI as several faculty members were named NAI fellows and one named an NAI senior member. The prestigious NAI fellows program honors academic inventors “who have demonstrated a spirit of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development and the welfare of society.”

Current and emeritus faculty members who have previously been recognized as fellows include Mehmet Arik, Yonhua Tzeng, J. David Irwin, Joseph W. Kloepper, John Weete, the late S.D. “Dave” Worley, Bruce Tatarchuk and the late Vitaly Vodyanoy. Jin Wang was the first Auburn faculty member to be named an NAI senior member.

Founded in 2010 to recognize and encourage inventors with patents issued from the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the NAI is a member organization of U.S. and international universities and governmental and non-profit research institutes, with over 4,600 individual inventor members and fellows encompassing more than 260 institutions worldwide.