Recent empirical research has provided compelling evidence that the proliferation of intellectual property rights (IP) and the fragmentation of patent rights among different patent holders have created barriers to innovation and impediments to the commercialization of scientific discoveries. Legal and economic scholars have suggested that due to the rising number of patent applications, the limited resources in patent offices around the world and the lack of sufficient time to prior art search, examiners have failed to conduct thorough patent examination processes. Moreover, researchers have linked the growing number of overlapping intellectual property rights to the tragedy of the anticommons and to the concept of patent thickets. Multiple studies have been performed in order to develop measures that could verify the existence of patent thickets and to better understand the social and economic impact of fragmentary patent owners. When it comes to the energy sector, the problem of patent thickets is now even more important. As the technological innovation in this sector increases and the energy-related patenting continues to grow, it has been argued that the issue of patent thickets may have a direct impact on investment decisions and the long-run development of this sector. This paper presents an overview of literature on the definition of a patent thicket and summarizes some of the possible factors causing thickets to arise. Additionally, it discusses the recent developments in patent thicket measures and patent thicket identification methods.

Renewable energy development is crucial for resolving global warming issues and achieving

sustainable development goals. The objective of this paper is to reveal renewable energy trends

using statistical data to identify the most developed technologies in the field, their distribution by

territory, checking the interrelation between investments in R&D and patent activity.

The changes in total investments made in renewables are studied for 2004–2019 and the increasing

trend has been observed with some fluctuations in certain years, major current investments in solar

and wind energy are detected. The dynamics of international patenting activity in solar and wind

technologies, geothermal and fuel cells, the total number of PCT applications over the past 10 years

by geographic region are considered. The results show some differences across various renewable

technologies. Solar is the most patented, wind and fuel cells are less patented but solar and wind

have shown an uptrend for the last five years, while fuel cell technologies showed a decline after

2008. Geothermal is the least patented.

The comparison between investment and patent application trends in renewables undercovers some

important issues – the leading role of Japan in patenting under the PCT procedure, while China is

a major investor in renewable energy; the US and Europe with big investments in renewables are

also leading in patent registration.

Correlation between investment in R&D and patenting activity in the field of global renewable

energy should be emphasized (correlation coefficient R = 0,849 for 2002–2019). Since private

and public investment is strongly stimulated by domestic renewable energy policies, IP indicators

can help identify policy instruments and their effectiveness within the further research

framework.

The article describes mine survey works during opening old St. Anthony of Padua water adit in Horní Město (Czech Republic) to make it accessible to visitors. The works cover the connecting survey and orientation measurement, traverse measurement of the first opened part, setting-out projection of the end of opened part to the surface to make shaft from the surface, new connecting survey and orientation measurement by shaft and traverse measurement of the rest of water adit. Non-standard aids and techniques were used during surveying. One of the tools is a suspended prism holder developed at Institute of geodesy and mine surveying, VSB – Technical university of Ostrava, registered as a utility patent.

This study investigated the utility of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) closure with hemostatic clip by comparing with traditional PDA closure. Medical records of 51 dogs with surgical closure of PDA were reviewed and retrospective study was conducted. 29 dogs were treated by procedure with hemostatic clip (Group HC), and 22 dogs were treated by surgical ligation (Group SL). Data pertaining to breed, sex, age and body weight at the time of surgery, echocardiographic minimal ductal diameter, duration of surgery, hemostatic clip size, echocardiographic findings, hemorrhage, residual ductal flow and recanalization were collected from records. The results showed that procedure with hemostatic clip had been selected in lighter dogs than traditional PDA closure. Duration of surgery performed only hemostatic clip technique was significantly shorter than that in group SL. Preoperative LVIDd, E-wave and FS were significantly lower than postoperative ones. As regard all parameters, the differences between pre- and postoperative periods were not significantly different between group HC and group SL. Hemorrhage, residual ductal flow, and recanalization were not significantly different in both groups. The present study showed that procedure with hemostatic clip is beneficial in that it is available in smaller dogs and can make shorter operation duration than traditional PDA closure. Moreover, the procedure is effective for the resolution of volume overload of the left atrium and ventricle in short-term outcome. Complications including hemorrhage, residual ductal flow and recanalization were not significantly different with both techniques.

Industry 4.0 (I4) as a concept offers powerful opportunities for many businesses. The set of Industry 4.0 technologies is still discussed, and boundaries are not perfectly clear. However, implementation of Industry 4.0 concept becomes strategic principle, and necessary condition for succeeding on turbulent markets. Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) was used before I4 emerged. However, it should be treated as its important part and even enabler. The question arises how adoption of RFID was impacted by I4 paradigm. Therefore, to answer this question a set of technology management tools was selected and applied to forecast RFID potential development in forthcoming years. Moreover, case studies were conducted for technology management tools and their applications for RFID for qualitative discussion of its relevance. It aimed to prove that existing toolset should be applied for modern technologies related to I4. Tools were proven to be necessary and successful. However, some specific challenges were observed and discussed.

The urachus is a tubular structure that is apparent on the third week and connects the ventral cloaca to the yolk sac, as a progression from the allantois. Following the normal regression procedure, the urachus remains as the median umbilical ligament.
Urachal remnants are present in 1.03% of paediatric patients while in 92.5% of cases represent incidental findings. Urachal anomalies are classified in four types as patent urachus (50–52%), urachal sinus (15%), urachal cyst (30%) and urachal diverticulum (3–5%). Ultrasound scan is the most commonly performed diagnostic imaging study.
In case of symptomatic urachal remnants, surgical excision is indicated. Asymptomatic urachal remnants that are diagnosed at the neonatal period or early infancy should be watched up to 6 months of age, as they are likely to resolve. In persistent or symptomatic urachal remnants there is a risk of inflammation or even malignancy development, therefore we believe that there is indication for preventive surgical excision that may be performed either open or laparoscopically or by robot-assisted laparoscopy.

The article is a part of materials regarding current problems of Polish science and higher education. It provides an in-depth analysis of the Act on degrees and academic titles as well as several other laws which introduce the so-called Ph.D. implementation in Poland. These laws were adopted by the Sejm of the Republic of Poland in April 2017. The author focuses on several problems, discussing them in separate chapters. The article also tries to predict the far-reaching results of the new rules. At the same time, the author proposes specific solutions that should be included in the future in the Act on degrees and academic titles, or in the Act of industrial property. They should eliminate the negative effects of conflicts between the provisions of various legal acts.