Singapore patently ahead in Asian tech innovation

The number of high-tech breakthroughs by Singapore researchers helped the country beat 12 other regional markets in terms of patent quality, according to the second Asia-Pacific Intellectual Property Scorecard released yesterday at the Global IP Forum.

The Republic also took top spot in 2004 in the first study carried out by the National University of Singapore's Entrepreneurship Centre.

The research team analysed patents filed annually with the United States Patents and Trademark Office (USPTO) by 13 markets, including China, Japan, South Korea and Singapore, said the centre's director, Professor Wong Poh Kam.

USPTO data was used as 'the US is the biggest market in the world'.

The team also examined data from the European patents office and found largely similar trends.

Quality was calculated based on how many times local patents were cited by other patents.

In particular, Singapore's patents in two technological classes, electronics and infocomm technology, were among the most highly cited in the region, said Prof Wong. This is at least in part due to the country's focus on these two fields.

Half of the 622 patents filed by Singapore inventors were in the electronics field, like semiconductor chips, and a quarter were in computers and communication products, like wireless antennas.

Only 1 per cent were design patents protecting the look of, say, a toy, shirt or the casing of a new media player, Prof Wong said.

In terms of quantity, Singapore's 622 patents put it in seventh place in the region. The 622 figure accounted for 0.32per cent of the 192,000 patents granted worldwide in 2009.

United States patents accounted for about half of the global total, and Japan, one-fifth.

Singapore's relatively small contribution was a function of its small population, said Prof Wong.

But, on a per capita basis, it did better, garnering nearly 134 patents per million people. This placed it in fourth place in the region - behind Taiwan (358.7), Japan (303.9) and South Korea (201.7).

The number of Singapore patents is also rising, albeit at a relatively slow clip of 8 per cent annually, making it ninth in Asia.

To boost R D, the Government said last September that it would set aside $1.6 billion to fund R D projects in the next five years.

Singapore first SE Asia country to have own locally built satellite in space

The X-Sat, a micro-satellite about the size of a refrigerator, will be launched in June or July from India's Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh.

With the launch of the 120 kg satellite, Singapore is believed to be the first Southeast Asian country that will have its own locally built satellite in space.

Singapore team develops mobile ECG machine

A team of Singaporean researchers in the private sector has developed a portable and affordable electrocardiograph (ECG) machine.

The machine - known as the CP50 - is the first of New York-based medical diagnostic equipment maker Welch Allyn's products to be designed and developed in Singapore since it started operations here six years ago.

It was first launched in the United States in February 2010.

The CP50 is mobile and can be battery operated, which allows doctors to take it to patients' homes.

Singapore 1 of top 10 nations registering inventions overseas

The number of patents registered in Singapore by local companies, individuals and institutions has grown steadily from 572 in 2005, to 729 in 2007 and 827 last year.

Overseas too, Singapore punches above its weight.

It is one of the top 10 countries registering inventions overseas, according to a study by the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development.

Singapore ranks 10th on the list. The only other Asian territory is Taiwan, in third spot.

The top filers are the national Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) and technology companies like Creative Technologies, though there are also individuals as well as universities and polytechnics.

Nanyang Polytechnic is the only polytechnic which has consistently been among the top 10 patent applicants in the last 10 years.

Braces that are almost invisible

A local start-up, BioMers, developed translucent braces and retainers in late 2008.

Nanotechnology was used to create a polymer composite wire that works as well as metal wires currently used in braces. Its latest products come coloured, as these are more popular with teens around the world.

Some local dentists are already carrying the products, which are only slightly more expensive than current aesthetic braces.

Singapore-made wireless camera memory card

A made-in-Singapore product will allow photographers to transfer their images and videos wirelessly.

The FluCard, announced by Trek 2000 - the local company which patented the now-ubiquitous ThumbDrive portable USB flash drive a decade ago - is a storage card with built-in Wi-Fi connection.

The FluCard, developed by Trek's engineers over six years at a cost of US$6million, will go on a sale in Singapore within the next couple of months.

Already the FluCard has attracted the attention of Japanese tech giant Toshiba Corporation.

The Straits Times (Jan 21 2010)

NP Researchers developed recycled-glass tiles that are tougher than concrete

Researchers from Ngee Ann Polytechnic's Environmental and Water Technology Centre of Innovation have developed an eco-friendly way of converting discarded glass products into building materials with more than twice the strength of concrete.

The research offers a more environmentally friendly way of using waste glass, which is currently either dumped as landfill waste or exported to countries such as Malaysia, where it is melted down at a scorching 1,600 deg C. This is not only energy-intensive, but also bad for the environment.

Ngee Ann has approached the Housing Board to explore the use fo the recycled products in its housing projects.

The next target is to develop materials with the quality of marble but cheaper.

Singapore schools lead the way in tech use

Singapore schools, lauded the world over for their maths and science curriculums, are now also serving as role models in the use of technology for teaching.

A group of education experts from software giant Microsoft told The Straits Times at a conference in Brazil last week that many countries have their eye on Singapore schools because they have managed to integrate the use of technology into lessons effectively - something which schools elsewhere do only superficially.

Microsoft vice-president for worldwide education programmes Anthony Salcito said one example of Singapore's success in integrating technology within the curriculum is BackPack.NET, a S$20 million project by the Ministry of Education (MOE), the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA) and Microsoft Singapore. It was started in 2003 with the aim of transforming teaching through technology and allowing mobile learning.

Ms Jenny Lewis, an adviser to Microsoft's US$500 million (S$700 million) education initiative Partners in Learning, said Singapore schools are gaining attention for the way they use technology to teach "21st century skills" such as collaboration critical and creative thinking.

The Straits Times (14 Nov 2009)

Ngee Ann Secondary School honoured for use of technology

Microsoft has listed Ngee Ann Secondary School as a "Pathfinder School" - one of 30 schools worldwide so honoured this year. Ngee Ann is the first school in Singapore to bag the title since Microsoft introduced it in 2007.

The Pathfinder status is the second highest level of recognition given by Microsoft to schools.

The highest level of recognition is the "Mentor School" status, which first went to Singapore's Crescent Girls' School in 2007. SCGS still maintains that status and is now joined by another 11 schools worldwide.

St Andrew Junior College's principal Lee Bee Yann is now an adviser to Microsoft's US$500 million education initiative, Partners In Learning. She is the only school principal and Singaporean in the 14-member International Advisory Council, which is mostly made up of university professors and government officials.

Source: The Straits Times (6 Nov 2009)