From the invention of the seat belt to the development of electric engines, creative thinking has driven innovation and helped change the world.
But for every transformative breakthrough, there are countless other ideas that remain hidden, trapped behind unused patents and unable to make the impact they’re capable of.
SKF—a global engineering company—is working to change this through a new initiative called The Patent Bay, an open-source portfolio of underutilized patents. The hope is that sharing knowledge, rather than letting ideas fester, unused, will allow creative thinkers to collaborate across different industries, accelerating innovation and ultimately changing society for the better.
How sharing ideas shapes history
The second Wright glider, flown at Kitty Hawk, N.C., in July and August 1901.
Photo courtesy of the US Air Force
If you look for it, it’s not difficult to find. History is full of examples where restrictive patents have slowed down progress—while the open sharing of ideas has helped propel humanity forward.
In 1903, the Wright brothers achieved something that no one before could: the first powered aircraft flight. But as the United States entered World War I, mass-produced aircrafts still hadn’t been developed, mostly due to patent designs owned by the Wrights.
The solution? A patent pool called the Manufacturers Aircraft Association. There, all aviation-related patents could be shared among manufacturers and they could collaborate, design, and create without the fear of lawsuits. This led to the country’s first mass-produced planes.
Just as shared ideas helped the airline industry take flight, The Patent Bay, SKF’s open-source patent platform, is poised to spark innovation across industries, leading to solutions that could potentially change the planet.
Patent sharing in the 21st century (and beyond)
Knowledge-sharing is poised to benefit humanity now and far into the future. With open-source patent pools, industries can collaborate on solutions for some of our planet’s most pressing issues, such as sustainability. For instance, with patent pools, energy providers, construction firms, and tech companies can all come together to collaborate on smart grid projects or battery storage, moving countries toward using solar power on a larger scale than ever before.
The effort to improve the planet is already taking shape: The Patent Bay’s first available patent is for an alloy called Arctic-15, which helps enable next-generation aircraft engines designed to cut emissions by up to 25%. Given that aviation emissions are a significant source of greenhouse gasses, lowering these emissions has the potential to stall and potentially even reverse climate change, impacting the planet more than any individual could.
A limitless future, courtesy of idea sharing
Manufacturing has always been the engine of human advancement. But when ideas are locked away and industries are siloed, it’s difficult for anyone to make meaningful progress.
By opening the doors to shared innovation, SKF’s The Patent Bay is at the forefront of demonstrating how manufacturing can become a force for good—rather than simply for profit. It shows how when industries are allowed to work together, the planet benefits: carbon emissions can be lowered, waste can be reduced, and more natural resources are able to be conserved.
Sharing in technological and manufacturing achievements empowers us to create a healthier, more sustainable planet, and reminds us that we’re better together.
Learn more about The Patent Bay and how we have the potential to change the planet.