Post by account_disabled on Feb 18, 2024 11:37:10 GMT
SpaceX will become a co-owner of valuable data, biological samples and possibly even patents and intellectual property related to human spaceflight, under the terms and conditions of a new program inviting research into human Dragon missions. The company began quietly inviting proposals “for exceptional scientific and research ideas that enable life in space and on other planets,” which will be executed in orbit using its Dragon spacecraft capsule. Specifically, SpaceX says it is looking for research studies and experiments focused on fitness, or solutions to increase "efficiency and effectiveness," and those focused on human health during long-duration spaceflight missions. Select research study groups would have access to SpaceX's crewed Dragon missions, opening up an entirely new use case for one of the company's core products. The company has discussed using Dragon as an orbital laboratory, similar to the International Space Station (ISS), for a decade. Obviously, the business case didn't make sense until recently. But by betting on orbital research, the company would also gain access to valuable data on top of any fees or other conditions presented to customers.
In the terms and conditions of the research collaboration, SpaceX states that it and the entity behind the scientific research will “jointly own” the rights to all recorded data and samples obtained during the course of the in-orbit research, regardless of whether this information was captured by SpaceX. himself or the research institution. The document further specifies that all “technology,” which is broadly defined to include software, inventions, proprietary information America Mobile Number List and more, jointly developed by SpaceX and the research institution will be jointly owned. The agreement also states that the technology would be jointly owned “without accountability to the other parties,” legal language meaning that each party could essentially commercialize or license the technology without any duty or obligation to the other party. “Each party can grant licenses to any other party, [although] they can't grant an exclusive license to anyone else, because they don't have exclusive rights themselves,” Steven Wood, a space law attorney at Vela Wood, explained in a recent interview. “They can trade independently and have no duty or obligation to share any profits with the other party.
There are clear exceptions: the document specifies that any technology developed using only the researchers' own equipment (defined here as equipment used “for the measurement, recording and transmission of data”) is the exclusive property of the researcher; However, even in this case, the data and samples would clearly still be jointly owned. These are pretty standard terms for patents and inventions in this context, Wood explained, sharing that ownership of data and samples is also not out of bounds. But he reveals that commercializing Dragon would provide SpaceX with much more than just revenue. “Expanding the light of consciousness” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has always been explicit about the company's primary goal: making human life multiplanetary, starting with Mars. The company has made considerable progress in its mission, the most visible example being the massive Starship rocket, which is being designed with deep space travel in mind. SpaceX has conducted two Starship orbital flight tests and is set to conduct a third sometime this month. But getting to Mars is only half the problem.
In the terms and conditions of the research collaboration, SpaceX states that it and the entity behind the scientific research will “jointly own” the rights to all recorded data and samples obtained during the course of the in-orbit research, regardless of whether this information was captured by SpaceX. himself or the research institution. The document further specifies that all “technology,” which is broadly defined to include software, inventions, proprietary information America Mobile Number List and more, jointly developed by SpaceX and the research institution will be jointly owned. The agreement also states that the technology would be jointly owned “without accountability to the other parties,” legal language meaning that each party could essentially commercialize or license the technology without any duty or obligation to the other party. “Each party can grant licenses to any other party, [although] they can't grant an exclusive license to anyone else, because they don't have exclusive rights themselves,” Steven Wood, a space law attorney at Vela Wood, explained in a recent interview. “They can trade independently and have no duty or obligation to share any profits with the other party.
There are clear exceptions: the document specifies that any technology developed using only the researchers' own equipment (defined here as equipment used “for the measurement, recording and transmission of data”) is the exclusive property of the researcher; However, even in this case, the data and samples would clearly still be jointly owned. These are pretty standard terms for patents and inventions in this context, Wood explained, sharing that ownership of data and samples is also not out of bounds. But he reveals that commercializing Dragon would provide SpaceX with much more than just revenue. “Expanding the light of consciousness” SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has always been explicit about the company's primary goal: making human life multiplanetary, starting with Mars. The company has made considerable progress in its mission, the most visible example being the massive Starship rocket, which is being designed with deep space travel in mind. SpaceX has conducted two Starship orbital flight tests and is set to conduct a third sometime this month. But getting to Mars is only half the problem.