(M2 PressWIRE Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)
RDATE:10042008

Brussels/Munich -- Today, the European Patent Office (EPO) and the
European Commission announced the twelve nominees for the Inventor of
the Year 2008 awards. An independent and high-profile international
jury has nominated twelve outstanding researchers and their inventions
which have had a significant impact on our everyday lives and were
patented by the EPO between 1993 and 2002. The prizes will be awarded
in four categories: industry, small- and medium-sized
enterprises/research institutes, non-European countries and lifetime
achievement. Past winners include German scientist Peter Grunberg, who
won the Nobel Prize for physics in 2007 after receiving the European
Inventor of the Year 2006 award. He discovered the giant
magnetoresistance (GMR) effect, which considerably increased the
storage capacity of hard drives.

This year's awards ceremony in Ljubljana brings together some of the
foremost inventors of the past decade, such as Eric De Clerq, who
developed the drug cocktail which has become standard in AIDS
treatment; Leonardo Chiariglione, the creator of digital TV and MPEG
technology; and Stefan Hell, the scientist who overcame the
conventional physical limits in light microscopy. Other inventions
considered for the prize have brought advances in car manufacturing to
make driving safer and cleaner, or have addressed the problem of noise
pollution from aeroplane engines.

The awards will be presented by the President of the Republic of
Slovenia, Danilo Turk, and EPO President Alison Brimelow at a gala
event in Ljubljana on 6 May, held in conjunction with the European
Patent Forum 2008.

The twelve nominees are:

Lifetime Achievement:

Erik De Clercq (Belgium) for landmark contributions to antiviral
treatment, including the development of the drug cocktail which has
become today's gold standard for AIDS treatment

Stefan Hell (Germany) for overcoming long-established paradigms in
optical physics by developing the powerful STED light microscope which
facilitates new breakthroughs in medical research

Leonardo Chiariglione (Italy) for developing the video compression
technology leading to the MPEG format for motion video and audio, and
for his work in setting the technical standards for digital TV

Industry:

Svend Havelund, John Broberg Halstrom, Ib Jonassen, Asser Sloth
Andersen and Jan Markussen (Denmark) for Novo Nordisk: for
significantly improving the safety and quality of life of diabetes
patients with a new insulin derivative for once-daily administration

Alain Porte, Andre Robert and Herve Batard (France) for Airbus: for
filing the first patent effectively tackling noise pollution from
aeroplane engines, enabling airlines to serve destinations around the
world 24 hours a day

Norbert Enning, Ulrich Klages, Heinrich Timm, Gundolf Kreis, Alois
Feldschmid, Christian Dornberg, and Karl Reiter (Germany) for Audi: for
revolutionising automotive manufacturing by making car frames lighter
and safer through the use of aluminium

SMEs/Research:

Bertrand Seraphin and Guillaume Rigaut (France) for EMBL: for creating
an advanced biotechnological method for purifying biomolecule
complexes, for fast and efficient drug development and medical research

Snke Siegfriedsen (Germany) for Aerodyn: for contributing to the use
of new renewable energy sources by developing crucial technologies for
offshore wind parks

Douglas Anderson, Robert Henderson and Roger Lucas (United Kingdom) for
Optos: for developing a new ophthalmoscope laser scanning technology
for the eye which allows for painless and powerful examination of the
retina with a view to earlier detection of dangerous medical conditions
such as eye cancers, diabetes and high blood pressure

Non-European countries:

Philip S. Green (United States) for SRI International: for developing a
robotic surgery system that allows surgeons to perform complex
procedures with maximum precision

Van L. Phillips (United States) for Flex Foot: for developing an
exceptionally powerful and flexible prosthetic leg which improves the
mobility of those who have lost a limb, even allowing them to excel in
athletics

Stephen R. Quake, Marc A. Unger, Hou-Pu Chu, Todd A. Thorsen, Axel
Scherer (United States) for the California Institute of Technology: for
providing a breakthrough in nanotechnology by developing an integrated
fluidic circuit - a tool comparable to a computer microchip - which
allows researchers to run experiments with quantities of liquids
invisible to the eye

European Inventor of the Year: the background

Among the array of innovation awards, the European Inventor of the Year
stands out not only because of the eminence of the winners and the
quality of their work; it is also unique in its geographical span and
selection procedure. In making its nominations, the independent
international jury was able to draw on the expertise of patent
examiners from national patent offices and the EPO. It looked at
inventions that had been patented and successfully marketed between
1993 and 2002. The prize is purely symbolic and does not involve any
pecuniary or other recompense.

The prize recognises inventors and innovations that have made a
significant and lasting contribution to technical development in Europe
and beyond and thus have strengthened Europe's economic position. The
European Inventor of the Year Award has been jointly instituted by the
European Commission and the European Patent Office (EPO).

This year's award ceremony will be held alongside the European Patent
Forum 2008 "Inventing a cleaner future" in Ljubljana. With this
conference, the EPO will provide a platform for internationally
renowned experts to discuss the role which the intellectual property
system could have in combating climate change. Film, photos, an Audio
Podcast and further information are available under:

http://www.epo.org/about-us/events/epf2008.html

To find out more about the European Inventor of the Year 2008, see

www.epo.org/patent-forum

CONTACT: Rainer Osterwalder, Director Media Relations, European Patent
Office
Tel: +49 089 2399 1820
Tel: +49 0163 8399 527
Fax: +49 089 2399 2850
e-mail: rosterwalder@epo.org
WWW: http://www.epo.org

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