eChapters

ABSTRACT

This paper discusses IPR concepts in the light of Indian culture and issues emanating from enforcement of those concepts in developing countries such as India.

INTRODUCTION

The adage “Knowledge is wealth” suits the present era well than any other period. India is known for its innovative thoughts since ages. However, it never monopolized the knowledge it possessed. In India, the knowledge of a person is thought to be utilized for the benefit of the society as an obligation of the knowledge holder. Does this mindset of Universal humanity (Vasudevo Kudumbagam) and common good (Sarva Sugino Bavandu) would benefit us in the materialistic society? This paper is an attempt to answer this query.

ABSTRACT

This paper is an attempt to analyze the plausible impacts on the economy and social issues of developing countries with reference to enforcement of IPR.

Introduction

From commodity based nature, business has changed during the past hundred years in a way that ideas and knowledge have taken higher value than commodities. Today, many companies find their most valuable assets being intangible and they are therefore dependent on functioning IPR systems. But does the rigid protection of IPR serve all the people in our globalized world? The purpose of this paper is to discuss the impact of the introduction of IPR protection on developing and under developed countries in the light of TRIPS Agreement.

ABSTRACT

This paper attempts to portray prevailing scenario of IPR in the light of globalization with special emphasis on harmonization of IPR systems and laws of different countries. 

INTRODUCTION

The globalization of information, facilitated by the Internet, has significant implications for intellectual property regimes of national and international levels. Assessment of these implications and their probable outcomes is unavoidably value-driven. Globalization represents ever-increasing influence of developed nations and transnational entities over developing and less developed nations. The process has also brought in significant changes in understandings of sovergenity. An analysis of the implications of globalization of information on international and domestic intellectual property rights and legal regimes is a complex endeavor.

ABSTRACT

This paper takes cues from the previous paper on the evolution of IPR concepts and attempts explaining the nuggets of TRIPS and analyzes the current trends in its implementation.

Introduction

As the TRIPS Agreement signifies stronger protection of conventional and new areas of intellectual property, the question that how implementation of TRIPS could influence developed and developing countries is to be addressed. The implications of such influence have far reaching consequences in terms of socio-economic development of Nation States, including geopolitical strategies and hence, a proper understanding on the plausible influence is essential.

ABSTRACT

This paper provides an account on the origin of the concepts of IP, gradual development and their culmination at the TRIPS.

Introduction

Intellectual property rights form the most prominent and ever-expanding category of rights in the 21^st Century. It differs from other proprietary rights in many respects and prevails in most articles of law, which influence our daily life. The economic significance of intellectual property rights has made it a subject of global political interest. In the broader sense, the term “intellectual property rights” connotes different categories of rights such as patents, copyrights, trademarks, designs, plant varieties, semiconductors, geographical indications, trade secrets and data exclusivity with varying scope

ABSTRACT

This paper provides an overall view on the history, structure and functions of World Intellectual Property Rights Organization.

Introduction

Human genius is the source of all works of art and invention. These works are the guarantees of a life worthy of men.  It is duty of the state to ensure with diligence the protection of the arts and inventions,” reads an inscription on the copula in the WIPO Headquarters building in Geneva. True to this inscription, WIPO functions through various mechanisms fostering judicious utilization of human intellect.  This paper intends presenting an overview on WIPO.

Abstract

Intellectual property right (IPR) is the most serious, new branch of law and a legal right conferred by federal government in accordance with International conventions and treaties. IPR protects some of the finer manifestations of human achievement. IPR safeguards the application of ideas and information that are of commercial value. The exploitable ideas become more sophisticated and hope for a successful economic future depends increasingly upon the superior corpus of new knowledge and fashionable conceits.  Copyright law is one of the effective tools of IPR. Copyright law provides an incentive to creative activity of author and permits the society to benefit from those inventions. However, the technological advancement has made violation of copyright very easy and regulation very difficult. This paper aims at familiarizing  copyright laws and the powers enshrined in copyright laws.

ABSTRACT

This paper presents an outline on the patenting system prevailing in India. 

INTRODUCTION

Ideas and knowledge are increasingly important parts of trade. Most of the value of new medicines and other high technology products lies in the amount of invention, innovation, research, design and testing involved. Hence, protection of such values is paramount. This paper details how these values are protected in India.

ABSTRACT

This paper provides an overview on existing IP protection and registration systems of India and adds information culled from publicly available sources pertaining to modernization efforts of Government of India towards establishment of foolproof IP protection in accordance with international treaties, conventions and bilateral and multilateral agreements.

ABSTRACT

The law of intellectual property has assumed utmost importance the World over, in the recent past and it is being considered as one of the most important subjects of law in view of its implications on economic, social and cultural realms. The term “intellectual property” has come to be internationally recognized as covering, patents, industrial designs, copyrights, trademarks, know-how and confidential information or trade secrets. This paper presents an overview on nature and scope of these elements of IPR.

ABSTRACT

Concomitant with paradigm shift from agrarian and brick and mortar economy to knowledge and service based economy, India needs to adhere to the international conventions for the benefit of enriching its knowledgebase with which economic development and social welfare could be achieved. Although geoscientific research has been at the forefront and contributed immensely to our country’s economic development, number of applications for patents, copyrights, etc., on geoscientific concepts, databases, innovations, designs or processes has been negligible when compared with other branches of science. This paper intends drawing the attention of geoscientists on this lacuna and provides information on fundamental aspects of IPR that may be of help to geoscientists whose innovations are waiting to be filed for patents or copyright.

22.1 Introduction

Nanotechnology has proved to have infinite potential in increasing the quality of life of the human population. There is however, a growing realization regarding the potential health and safety risks of associated with development, production and application of these nanoparticles. Nanoscale particles are produced from a variety of different processes. Nanoparticles are the end product of a wide variety of physical, chemical and biological processes, some of which are novel and radically different, others of which are quite commonplace. Nanometer sized particles are also found in the atmosphere where they originate from combustion sources (traffic, forest fires), volcanic activity, and from atmospheric gas to particle conversion processes such as photochemically driven nucleation. A large quantity of nanoscale particles are also produced during the various human activities, Welding can generate large quantities of nanoparticles usually in the form of a well defined plume of aggregated nanoparticles.

21.1 Introduction

Nanotechnology is an emerging field of science which is being highly exploited in the sphere of medicine where “nano” plays a vital role in delivery of drugs or chemical molecules to the point it is required in précised quantities in right proportions. Nanoscience infuses intelligence to the truck load of chemical constituents that are to be delivered at appropriate locations and cleave from the site after the task is complete. Such process will likely to reduce the cost besides ensuring environmental safety. Nanoscale devices with its unique properties make the agricultural system more smart and effective; such devices are capable of responding to different situations by themselves, thus taking appropriate remedial action with the need of external directions from humans. In short, these devices act as a detectors and if need arises serve as a solution/remedy for the particular issue. These smart delivery systems of chemicals in controlled and targeted manner can be considered synonymous to the proposed nano-drug delivery system in human (Patolsky et al., 2006). 

20.1 Introduction
  
Fertilizers play an important role in improving soil fertility and productivity of crops regardless of nature of cropping sequence or environmental conditions. It has been unequivocally demonstrated that one third of crop productivity is dictated by fertilizers besides influencing use efficiencies of other agri-inputs. In the past four decades, nutrient use efficiency (NUE) of crops had hardly exceeded 35-50%, 18-20% and 30-35 % for N, P and K, respectively, despite our relentless efforts. The remaining nutrients stay in soil or enter into the aquatic environment causing eutrophication. In addition to the low nutrient efficiencies, Indian agriculture is facing a problem of low organic matter, imbalanced fertilization and low fertilizer response that eventually caused crop yield stagnation (Biswas and sharma, 2008).The fertilizer response ratio in the irrigated areas of the country  has dcreased from 13.4 kg grain / kg nutrient applied in 1970’s to just 3.7 kg in 2005. In other words, more amounts of fertilizers is required to produce the same quantity of grain output. For instance, 27 kg NPK ha-1 was required to produce one tonne of grain in 1970 while the same level of production can be achieved by 109 kg NPK ha-1 in 2008. 

19.1 Introduction

Nano technology or Nano Science is a new branch of research though nano materials or Nano Structures are not new. In nature nano particles or nano materials are abundant .The idea of manipulation, production, controlling size and physico - chemical properties and application as well as making devices out of these nano materials is the subject of Nano Science & Nano Technology. As the name suggests, the domain of Nano starts from 10-9 m but especially the effect of nano structures exists mostly in the 1-100 nm regime where quantum - mechanical behiviour is prevalent. Molecules with more than 10 atoms fall into the nanometer range  and scientists were not able to visualize individual molecules and nano scale objects until the invention of some very powerful microscopes. Working in Nano domain requires two basic facilities -

18.1 Introduction

Nano – Science & Technology is design, fabrication and application of nanostructures or nanomaterials, and the fundamental understanding of the relationships between physical properties or phenomena and material dimensions at nano meter scales.

17.1 Introduction

In industrialized nations the air is filled with numerous pollutants caused by human activity or industrial processes, such as carbon monoxide (CO), chlorofluorocarbons (CFC), heavy metals (arsenic, chromium, lead, cadmium, mercury, zinc), hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides, organic chemicals (volatile organic compounds, known as VOCs, and dioxins), sulphur and other particulates. The presence of nitrogen and sulphur oxide in the air generates acid rain that infiltrates and contaminates the soil. The high levels of nitrogen and sulphur oxide in the atmosphere are mainly due to human activities, particularly burning of oil, coal and gas. Only a small portion comes from natural processes such as volcanic action and decay of soil bacteria. Water pollution is caused by numerous factors, including sewage, oil spills, leaking of fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides from land, by-products from manufacturing and extracted or burned fossil fuels.

16.1 Introduction

The stabilization of ultra fine as nano-particles in suspension is very important for both controlling the particle size and for developing process based application of these suspensions to achieve a desired result. Generally, two approaches, namely, Top Down and Bottom-Up approaches are followed for the preparation of ultra fine or nano particles. In the Top-Down method, production starts from the micro-scale and the particles size is reduced to nano-size through repeated impact and collision in high-energy ball mills. However, controlling of size, morphology, surface properties and electrostatic charge is often difficult. In the Bottom-up approach, production of nano-particles starts with the individual atoms and building up to a nano-structure by chemical processes.

15.1 Introduction

It is important that we understand some terms like clay, mineral, clay mineral, activated clay, and nanocomposite clearly. In fact, “clay” is a soil separate consisting of particles of <2 µm (equivalent to <0.002 mm) in equivalent diameter (Brady & Weil, 2002; pages 18-19) in both USDA and International systems. While in nanotechnology, uniqueness of micro- and nana- aggregates is of crucial consideration. (In Chapter 8: The Colloidal Fraction (Brady & Weil, 2002) size dimensions of minerals are given eliminating any chance of confusion.) Now let us look at some definitions provided in the Glossary of the Clay Minerals Society (CMS) Nomenclature Committee – Clay Science Project (www.clay.org; August 2011).

14.1 Introduction

The fast growing field of nanotechnology presents great potential to influence various sectors in the areas of energy, environment, agriculture, health care and consumer goods. To overcome the demanding need of nano-based applications, various strategies to synthesize nanoparticles have been attempted. The major focus is to synthesize nanoparticles of desirable properties such as shape, size and compositions. Various strategies have been employed to synthesize nanoparticles. Foremost among these are physical and chemical methods which include sol-gel technique, solvothermal synthesis, chemical reduction, laser ablation and inert gas condensation. But altogether they suffer from process limitations like difficulty in controlling experimental conditions, feeble reproducibility, polydispersity, costly instrumentation and recovery as well as energy intensive and eco-hazardous processes. However, various factors like cost, speed, efficiency, biocompatibility etc. are still not concerned. Thus, finding a balance between scalability, price and applicability is still a true challenge. These limitations can be potentially overcome by using biological methods for nanoparticle synthesis.

13.1 Introduction and Physical Principles

A microscope is a tool that enables the user to see objects at a magnification greater than the actual specimen. Resolution and magnifying power are the two integral aspects of microscopy. Resolution is a measure of capability of an image forming system to separate images of adjacent objects. The resolving power (8) is numerically defined as d = 0.61l/n sin a, where,  l is the wavelength of the light, n is the index of refraction of the medium between the specimen and lens, a is half the angle of the cone of light from the specimen plane accepted by the front surface of lens and n sin a is the numerical aperture (NA). The NA represents the light gathering power of the lens aperture or in other words, the measure of obliquity of rays which the lens can accept and utlilize and is limited by blurring of image due to spherical aberration of the lens.

12.1 Introduction

“Precision farming,” also known as site-specific management, describes a bundle of new information technologies applied to the management of large-scale, commercial agriculture. Precision farming technologies include, for example: personal computers, satellite-positioning systems, geographic information systems, automated machine guidance, remote sensing devices and telecommunications. If they function as designed, ubiquitous wireless sensors will become an essential tool for bringing this vision of precision farming to maturity.

11.1 Introduction

Nanotechnology is the manipulation or self-assembly of individual atoms, molecules, or molecular clusters into structures to create materials and devices with new or vastly different properties. Nanotechnology can work from the top down (which means reducing the size of the smallest structures to the nanoscale e.g. photonics applications in nanoelectronics and nanoengineering) or the bottom up (which involves manipulating individual atoms and molecules into nanostructures and more closely resembles chemistry or biology). The definition of nanotechnology is based on the prefix “nano” which is from the Greek word meaning “dwarf”. In more technical terms, the word “nano” means 10-9, or one billionth of something. It is a very promising new branch of small-scale technology named for the unit of measure at which it operates: the nanometer. Nanotechnology enables us to create functional materials, devices, and systems by controlling matter at the atomic and molecular scales, and to exploit novel properties and phenomena. Consider that most chemical and biological sensors, as well as many physical sensors, depend on interactions occurring at these levels and you’ll get an idea of the effect nanotechnology will have on the sensor world.

10.1 Introduction

A single-walled carbon nanotube (SW-CNT) is a nano scale tube formed by a cylindrical shell of single atomic layer of carbon atoms. Nanotubes have diameter of a few nm and length up to 100 nm so that they form extremely thin wires. The atomic structure of SWCNT can be formed by wrapping a stripe of single atomic layer of graphite sheet al.,ong a certain direction, and this direction determines the diameter and chirality of the nanotubes. Experimental and theoretical studies have found that these nano-meter sized CNTs have novel electronic properties, which can be metallic or semiconducting, depending on their radius or chiralities (Mintmire 1992, Hamada 1992, Saito et. al., 1992, Rao 1997, Wildoer 1998 and Odom et al., 1998).

9.1 Introduction

Nanoparticles (NPs) are particulate matter with at least one dimension less than 100 nm (Christian et al., 2008). Although NPs are naturally present in the environment, manufactured NPs may have distinctive surface properties and chemistry in comparison with natural NPs (Handy et al., 2008). Manufactured NPs have a large area-to-volume ratio and size-dependent properties, which impart novel properties and behaviors that make them suitable for nanotechnology applications (Auffan et al., 2009). Range of applications for NPs has brought about a rapid development of the nanotechnology industry.

8.1 Introduction

Nanotechnology is the manoeuvring or self-assembly of individual atoms, molecules, or molecular clusters into structures to craft materials with new properties. The definition of nanotechnology is based on the prefix “nano” which is from the Greek word meaning “dwarf”. In more technical terms, the word “nano” means 10^-9, or one billionth of something. The word nanotechnology is generally used when referring to materials with the size of 1 to 100 nanometres, which is true for metallic nano-material. In case of polymeric nano-material, size may reach 600 nm, as polymeric materials are larger in size compression to metallic material. Nano-materials have different properties from bulk materials as a result of their size. These differences include physical strength, chemical reactivity, electrical conductance, magnetism, and optical effects (Schmid, 2006).

7.1 Introduction

Organic polymers can play important role in ecosystems by accumulating biologically important elements and also by retaining soil moisture after aggregating soil particles. Extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) play an important role in cell aggregation, cell adhesion, and biofilm formation that subsequently protect cells from a hostile environment. Furthermore, certain polysaccharides from microbial sources are surface active, and thus attempts have been made to use them as metal chelaters, emulsifiers and flocculants in industrial and environmental fields/domain. Such use of microbial polysaccharides has infused renewed interest in its production and characteristics.

6.1 Introduction

Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic or a molecular scale that deals with particle sizes between 1 and 100 nano meters at least in one dimension. Particles reduced to the nanoscale show some unusual properties which are different from what they exhibit on a macro scale, enabling unique systematic applications Tarafdar et al. (2012). The unexpected properties of nanoparticles are broadly due to the large surface area of the material, which dominates the contributions made by the very small quantities of the material. Nanoparticles, thus, take advantage of their dramatically increased surface area to volume ratio.

Nanotechnology has the potential to revolutionize the agricultural and food industry with new tools for the molecular treatment of diseases, rapid disease detection, nanofertilizer, enhancing the ability of plants to absorb nutrients etc. Nanotechnology opened doors to new ways of identifying and quantifying biomolecules through use of nanosensors and nanoprobes.

5.1 Introduction

Phosphorus fertilization is a problem in acid soils due to the high fixation characteristics of these soils. Soluble phosphorus carriers such as triple super phosphate tend to get reverted into insoluble and slowly soluble forms, for e.g. iron and aluminium phosphates.  Some soils in Mauritius have been shown to fix up to 90% of applied phosphorus. The fixation characteristics as related to soil properties have been studied for some soils of Mauritius. Rock phosphate offers a good alternative or complement to triple super phosphate.  In volcanic soils of Chile it is recommended to apply rock phosphate in combination with triple super phosphate because of the high phosphorus-retention capacity of these soils.  However, in Western Australia it has been shown that rock phosphate response is low. Possible explanations are slow dissolution of rock phosphate due to the moderately acid pH (5.5 -6.5), low pH-buffering capacity, low calcium absorption in soil, which increases concentration of calcium in soil solution, and poor water holding capacity of these soils.

4.1 Introduction

More and more industrial applications require self cleaned surfaces, water repellent, anti-dirt pickup and many other specific surface requirements. Introduction of nanotechnology has changed the coating scenario drastically. Hard, anti-scratch, hydrophobic coatings are achieved by the addition of small amounts of nano-pigments which help in creating hydrophobic surface. It is also possible to grow certain nano-fibers which on chemical treatment give surfaces which can either attract water or repel it. It is also possible now to create self healing coatings which can repair surface once they are damaged by scratch. Capacitance coupler pads have been devised to reach those corroding areas which are not covered by other corrosion protection methods. Stringent requirements of many modern industrial application resulted in developing coatings which can give special surface properties such as high hardness, scratch resistance, hydrophobicity, anti-dirt pickup etc.  This brief article presents a few new researches which provide one or more special properties to the surface.

3.1 Introduction

The concept of nanoscience was first described in 1959 by physicist Richard P. Feynman in a lecture to the American Physical Society and it was Japanese researcher Norio Taniguchi who coined the term nanotechnology in 1974 to describe precision engineering with tolerances of a micron or less. Eric Drexler in 1986 in his book Engines of Creation, brought nanotechnology into the public domain.

2.1 Introduction

The word Nanotechnology has originated from a Greek word which means “dwarf” and nanometer is one billionth of a meter (1 nm = 10^-9 meter). The nano-scale is not just another step toward miniaturization but a qualitatively new scale. The new behiviour of matter at nano-scale is dominated by quantum mechanics, material confinement, large interfacial volume fraction and other unique properties, phenomenon and processes. At nano-scale, physics, chemistry and biology converge towards the same principles and tools. Nanotechnology cannot be considered as a discipline in science or technology but it is domain in science and technology. Nanotechnology is a multidisciplinary area, any scientist, engineer, medical doctor can do research on nanotechnology. Presently, it is more of a science and less of a technology because of a lack of proper tools for studying the properties of nano-material. There is an immediate need to convert this science into technology and get out of this transition stage.

1.1 Introduction

With the rise in the global population, the demand for increased supply of food has motivated scientists and engineers to design new methods to boost agricultural production. With limited availability of land and water resources, growth in agriculture can be achieved only by increasing productivity through good agronomy and supported with an effective use of modern technology. Advanced agronomical methods lay stress not only on boosting agricultural produce through use of more effective fertilizers and pesticides, but also on the hygienic storage of agricultural produce. The detrimental effects of modern agricultural methods on the ecosystem have raised serious concerns amongst environmentalists. The widespread use of persistent pesticides globally over the last six decades has contaminated groundwater and soil, resulting in diseases and hardships in non-target species such as humans and animals. The first step in the removal of disease causing microbes from food products or harmful contaminants from soil and groundwater is the effective detection of these damaging elements. Nanotechnology can augment agricultural production and boost food processing industry through applications of these unique properties.