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Invention disclosures

How inventors create, complete and submit an invention disclosure in EnaTTO - inventors and shares, planned publications, attachments and what comes next.

Applies to:
  • EnaTTO app
Last updated: Verified with EnaTTO 1.2.0

This article was verified with an older release. Screen names or steps may differ in the current version.

An invention disclosure tells the TTO about a new invention so that the institution can evaluate it and decide whether and how to protect it. In EnaTTO the disclosure is a confidential record that moves through a workflow: Draft → Completeness check → Evaluation → Committee → Institutional decision → Decided.

Invention disclosure workflow

Draft

Inventors write and submit

Completeness check

A TTO specialist checks the disclosure is complete

Evaluation

Assigned evaluators give their assessment

Committee

Discussed on an agenda, outcome recorded

Institutional decision

The authorized person decides

Decided

Decision and reasoning stay on the record
The stages come from the organization's workflow template; names and deadlines can be adapted in administration. The institutional decision is a recorded decision, not a legal determination.

Required role

  • Opening a disclosure needs the Open invention disclosures permission: Member, TTO staff and Owner.
  • Internal inventors listed on the disclosure can see it and edit it while it is a draft.
  • The TTO (Manage intellectual property) manages the workflow, assessments and decision.

Create a disclosure

Go to Invention disclosures → Create disclosure.

Enter the title and the Invention summary: what the invention is, which problem it solves and what is new. The summary is required to submit. Add the Technical field, Funding source (for example a project or support programme), Invention date and Priority date if known.

Check the Confidentiality. A disclosure is created as Confidential: only the inventors and the TTO see it. Strictly confidential narrows access further; the TTO then opens it only as a record member. See Confidentiality and access.

Keep Add me as an inventor on if you are an inventor; turn it off if you file on someone else's behalf. Save. The disclosure opens in the Draft stage and you can edit it as often as you like.

Inventors

Under Inventors → Edit inventors add each inventor:

  • Internal inventors are people of your institution. They can see the disclosure and edit it while it is a draft.
  • An External inventor is someone who is not an organization user (full name, email, institution). External inventors cannot see the disclosure.
  • Contribution share (%) is optional. EnaTTO shows the total and warns when it is not 100.

Shares are a record only

Contribution shares are what you enter, nothing more. Rights and ownership are set by the institution's decision; EnaTTO does not derive them from employment, affiliation or any other data.

Planned disclosures

A publication, presentation, thesis or poster made before a patent filing can destroy novelty. Under Planned disclosures list each one with its type, Planned date and Venue or publication, so the TTO can track the dates. External users (experts, attorneys) do not see this information, and it never appears in exports or notifications.

Attachments

Under Attachments → Attach document enter the code of a document from Documents, for example a technical description. Each person can open only the attachments they are allowed to see.

Submit to the TTO

When the disclosure has at least one inventor and a summary, click Submit to TTO in the workflow card. After submission the disclosure is locked for inventors; the TTO makes further changes. If the TTO requests changes (Request changes), the disclosure returns to Draft with an explanation and you can edit and submit it again. While it is a draft you can also Withdraw disclosure.

What inventors see afterwards

Inventors follow the stage and the final outcome on the disclosure page. Assessment reports, committee votes and the rationale of the decision are visible to inventors only when the TTO shares them. The institutional decision shows the result and the ownership note.

Can't find what you need?

Our support team can help, from setting up workflows to reports. Please include your organisation code.

support@enainnovation.com · 0850 308 45 91