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| Author NASA Public domain Source Wikimedia |
On 8 May 2022, I wrote Opportunities for Yorkshire Businesses in Space about an event at the 3M Buckley Innovation Centre on Opportunities for Manufacturers in Space which was promoted by the Leeds City Region Supply Chaim Programme and Space Hub Yorkshire.
Space Hub Yorkshire describes itself as "a coordinator of Space activity across the region, a catalyst for new satellite and geospatial data markets, a source of Space expertise, a facilitator of new collaborations, a driver of investments, a champion for Space start-ups and an advocate for Space research and industry opportunities." It offers businesses funding opportunities, business development events and support, a way into cutting-edge research in academia and access to skills, It has just published its first newsletter which announced a 2-day conference at the Royal Armouries in Leeds on 11 and 12 June 2024 on the theme "Ignite Space 2024".
The theme of the second day of the conference was "How the North of England can make the UK a Space Tech Superpower." This was a collaboration between Space Hub Yorkshire and the North East and North West Space Clusters to launch Space North, a project funded by the UK Space Agency to boost Space sector growth across the UK.
The Space North collaboration is likely to lead to many technical advances, In The Role of Intellectual Property in Space Commerce I made the following recommendations in NIPC Cornwall which bear repetition here:
- "Unless and until they are ready to apply for a patent, they should take great care to keep sensitive documents under lock and key when not in use and to ensure that all staff, collaborators, suppliers and others do the same.
- Any sensitive information should be disclosed in confidence with the terms of the disclosure set out in writing.
- Monitor any disclosures and require the return of any documents and copies once the purpose of the disclosure has been met.
- For suitable inventions, apply for patents not just in the UK but in all important markets and in the countries of your main competitors.
- Never forget alternatives to patenting such as copyrights for software, database right, unregistered design right and trade marks for brands."
