TY  - JOUR
AU  - Trajtenberg,Manuel
TI  - Patents, Citations and Innovations:  Tracing the Links
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 2457
PY  - 1987
Y2  - December 1987
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w2457
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w2457.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Manuel Trajtenberg
Eitan Berglas School of Economics
Tel-Aviv University
Tel-Aviv 69978
ISRAEL
Tel: 972-3-640-9911
Fax: 972-3-640-9908
E-Mail: manuel@post.tau.ac.il
AB  - The goal is to tackle anew the main problems encountered in using patent data in economic research, namely, the large variance in the value of patents, and the difficulties in matching patents with economic categories. The first is addressed with the aid of patent citations, the second with computerized search techniques for large databases. The proposed solutions are applied to the case of Computed Tomography (CT) Scanners, a pathbreaking innovation in medical technology. The main findings are that patents weighted by citations are highly correlated with the value of innovations, and that important innovations generate further innovative activity (R&D), and hence bring about down-the-line patents.
ER  -