3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, is a new emerging technology which has already prompted significant debate and discussion regarding its social, economic and legal impacts. From the emergence of 3D printed guns and the associated concerns regarding crime and terrorism, to the possibility of 3D printed food and houses, the implementations of this technology are wide ranging and have provoked both excitement and fear in equal measures.

Among the areas of law which 3D printing impacts upon, intellectual property is very prominent. 3D printing can both create and infringe IP, and so has attracted significant attention from scholars, inventors and practitioners in the IP and innovation field.

This event will showcase interdisciplinary perspectives on 3D printing, IP and innovation from leading scholars, and will also launch the final report from the UK Intellectual Property Office-funded project ‘3D Printing and IP Futures’, led by Prof. Angela Daly (https://3dpipfutures.com/).

3D Printing and IP Futures – Angela Daly and Jiajie Lu

Prof. Daly and Dr. Lu will present their recent research conducted for the UK IPO on the current and future relationship between 3D printing and intellectual property. In particular they will focus on the findings relevant to 3DP/IP in China, which was based on fieldwork they both conducted in Shenzhen.

A copy of the final report for the 3DPIP Futures project can be found here. 

Intellectual Property Rights and Emerging Technology: 3D Printing in China – Hing Kai Chan

3D Printing (3DP) technology has been receiving increased public attention. Many companies are seeking ways to develop new means of creating and disseminating 3DP content, in order to capture new business opportunities. However, to date the true business opportunities of 3DP have not been completely uncovered. This research explores the challenges posed in the development and deployment of 3DP and focuses on China. By means of empirical semi-structured interviews with 3DP companies in China, it is found that many companies can see the benefits of 3DP, but its potential has not been delivered as promised. One reason is due to the fact that 3DP has not been integrated well in the supply chain. The other reason concerns potential intellectual property issues that cannot effectively prevent counterfeiting. To tackle the above issues, several areas have been identified that could be improved further. In particular, the legal complications concerning 3D-printed content could be overcome by a licensing platform.

About the speakers: (alphabetical order)

Prof. Hing Kai Chan, University of Nottingham Ningbo China

Prof. Hing Kai Chan joined the Nottingham University Business School China in September 2014, and is a Professor of Operations Management. Prior to joining the School, he was a Senior Lecturer in the Norwich Business School, University of East Anglia in UK. He worked in the electronic manufacturing industry over 10 years before joining the academia.

Prof. Chan has published over 100 peer-reviewed academic articles and (co-)edited several special issues for reputable international journals. His publications appear in Production and Operations Management, European Journal of Operational Research, various IEEE Transactions, Decision Support Systems, International Journal of Production Economics, International Journal of Production Research, among others. He has been the co-editor of Industrial Management & Data Systems (SCI-indexed) since 2014, and is an associated editor of Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review (SCI-indexed) since 2018. He was the Associate Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics (SCI-indexed) from 2009 to 2015, and the Associate Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics (SCI-indexed) from 2014-2017. Professor Chan also serves as an Editorial Board Member (or similar) in a number of journals such as International Journal of Logistics Research and Applications (SSCI-indexed), Online Information Review (SCI-indexed).

Prof. Chan is a Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (FIET), and the Higher Education Academy (FHEA). He is also a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, a Member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport. Prof. Chan is a Chartered Engineer and a Chartered Marketer.

Prof. Angela Daly, Faculty of Law, CUHK

Prof. Angela Daly is a socio-legal scholar of the regulation of new technologies, currently based in CUHK Law and holding visiting positions in Queensland University of Technology Faculty of Law (Australia) and the Tilburg Institute for Law, Technology and Society (Netherlands). She is a leading, internationally renowned legal expert on 3D printing. Her pioneering book, Socio-Legal Aspects of the 3D Printing Revolution was published by Palgrave in 2016. From 2016-2018 she was lead Chief Investigator of the UK Intellectual Property Office funded research project ‘3D Printing and Intellectual Property Futures’. Her current 3D printing research is a collaboration with Dr Monique Mann (QUT) on 3D printing, policing and crime: https://eprints.qut.edu.au/119689/ Before joining academia she worked in communications regulation and policy for OFCOM (UK) and has worked pro-bono for digital rights NGOs in the US (Electronic Frontier Foundation) and Australia (Digital Rights Watch Australia, Australian Privacy Foundation and Electronic Frontiers Australia) between 2012 and 2018.

Dr. Jiajie Lu, Dongguan University of Technology College of Literature and Media

Dr. Jiajie Lu is a lecturer of Dongguan University of Technology College of Literature and Media. He obtained his Ph. D degree at Queensland University of Technology in communication and media studies in 2017. Prior to his adventure in academia, Dr. Lu had been working at AGB Nielsen Media Research and Shenzhen Media Group. His recent research interest focuses on the formation and online performance of diasporic Chinese identity in the context of social media.

Prof. Marcelo Thompson (Discussant), Faculty of Law, The Univeristy of Hong Kong

Marcelo Thompson, DPhil (Oxford), is an Assistant Professor of Law at the Faculty of Law, The University of Hong Kong, where he teaches and researches in the intersection between technology law and politics.