Patents and the experimental space: social, legal and geographical dimensions of 3D bioprinting

ABSTRACT

The entanglements between social creativity, legal instruments and global policies become particularly clear in emerging technological fields where such relations are being established or improvised. In this paper, an analysis of such entanglements is delivered, focusing on 3D bioprinting. This technique amounts to the use of robotic, computer-controlled devices called bioprinters, with which bioactive structures are manufactured, with potential medical applications. Bioprinting has triggered manifold relations and processes here grasped with the concept of experimental space. It is claimed that the experimental space has several dimensions, three of which are analysed here. First, there is a legal dimension formed by the multiplication of patent documents making reference to each other and forming a discursive network. Second, there is a social dimension, as the experimental space is populated by innovative companies and universities involved with bioprinting. Finally, the geographical dimension derives from the spatial processes and global geography of bioprinting. The study of these three dimensions is underpinned by a quantitative analysis of bioprinting patents filed from 2001 to 2019 and found on two specialized websites (The Lens and Google Patents). Furthermore, fieldwork was conducted in three countries (the UK, Brazil, and Italy), involving interviews with academics and entrepreneurs exploring bioprinting.

KEYWORDS:

• Bioprinting
• patents
• experimental space

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1 Grant number 68387.

2 However, it is important to consider that ‘[…] there could be many unpublished applications that will eventually reveal a new 3D bioprinting IP powerhouse. Normally, patent applications are published 18 months after they are filed, and are secret until then’ (Hornick and Rajan 2016).

3 https://patents.google.com/patent/US20170368225A1/en

4 https://patents.google.com/patent/US9315043B2/en

5 https://www.3dnatives.com/en/mobile-3d-bio-printer-0503320195/

6 https://aibn.uq.edu.au/project/developing-microfluidic-and-3d-bioprinting-platforms-model-and-study-human-perivascular-niche

7 https://envisiontec.com/

8 http://rokithealthcare.com/

9 Organovo, Revotek, and Modern Meadow continue to occupy the first three positions when all the patents found in our analysis are considered.

10 https://www.regenerativemedicine.mx/index.php/portal/steam_cells_seccion

11 https://allevi3d.com/