MARCH 13, 2025 — UTSA inventors have again helped the University of Texas System (UT System) rank highly on the latest Top 100 Worldwide Universities List, which ranks universities globally by number of U.S. utility patents secured in 2024. The ranking is produced annually by the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) to recognize the critical function of patents in translating university research and innovation into real-world applications as well as the pivotal role academic institutions play in driving innovation in their regions.
The combined patents across the UT System totaled 234 in 2024. The consortium of universities has consistently appeared in the top 10 since 2014, when it ranked No. 5.
“The UT System’s research and development prowess is evident in our ability to rank highly for 11 consecutive years,” said JoAnn Browning, UTSA interim vice president for research. “This achievement reflects the ingenuity and determination of our researchers, who are empowered to innovate through the robust and supportive ecosystem provided by UTSA and the broader UT System.”
One researcher from the Bill and Marge Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design, Robert Lyle Hood, was granted a patent that addresses longstanding issues in airway management for emergency, critical care and surgical settings. In spite of the high failure rates of endotracheal tubes (ETTs), including problems like dislodgement and leakage, there has been little innovation on the devices in the past 125 years.
The patent, Methods, apparatuses, and systems for aspirating airways, is licensed to EmergenceMed LLC, a spinoff from UTSA and UT Health San Antonio.
Hood also collaborated with EmergenceMed President and Co-founder Robert De Lorenzo on an improved ETT design that was awarded a 2025 Hill Prize.
De Lorenzo and his UTSA partners plan to use the prize funding to redesign ETTs by developing a Flexible Airway Securement Tube (FAST). The new design can expand and contract to better adapt to various trachea sizes. The team aims to ultimately bring the product to market to simplify intubation and enhance patient safety.
The 10 U.S. patents secured by UTSA researchers in 2024 are:
Jing Yong Ye (Klesse College), Jonathan David Scudder
11,892,397 | Endotoxin Testing Assay and Method of Same
Amir Jafari
11,911,897 | Mechanically Over-Damped Actuators Having Adjustable Stiffness
Yusheng Feng (Klesse College), Bruce Adams, Robert A. DeLorenzo, Robert Lyle Hood (Klesse College), Forhad Akhter, Austin Richard Schoppe, Omar Navarro
12,109,349 | Methods, apparatuses, and systems for aspirating airways
Andrey Chabanov (College of Sciences), Ilya Vitebskiy, Igor Anisimov, Nicholaos Limberopoulos, Carl Pfeiffer
12,092,848 | Layered sheet polarizers and isolators having non-dichroic layers
Ravinderpal Sandhu (College of Sciences), Maanak Gupta, James Owen Benson (College of Sciences), Farhan Patwa (College of Sciences)
11,858,517 | Dynamic groups and attribute-based access control for next-generation smart cars
Stanton McHardy (College of Sciences), Hua-Yu Wang, Bryan Davies, Ashley Cunningham
11,952,330 | Antibiotic ammonium compounds and methods for the treatment of bacterial infections
Samer Dessouky (Klesse College), Zachary Balcar, Ayetullah Baha Biten, Sara Ahmed (Klesse College), Jerome Helffrich
12,041,381 | Passive infrared sensing and detection for traffic
Anson Joo Leng Ong (Klesse College), Teja Guda (Klesse College), Solaleh Miar, Gregory Robert Dion
12,029,815 | Mucoadhesive patch and uses thereof
Eugene Britto John (Klesse College), Patrick Michael Stockton (Klesse College)
Ram Narayan Krishnan (Klesse College), Eugene Britto John (Klesse College)
UTSA researchers also successfully secured one patent in Australia:
Stanton McHardy (College of Sciences), Stanley J. Watowich, Harshini Neelakantan, Hua-Yu Wang
2,018,244,463 | Quinoline derived small molecule inhibitors of nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT) and uses thereof
Collectively, the universities on this year’s global list hold over 9,600 patents. NAI Member Institutions comprise 58% of the ranking and hold over 5,600 patents. Through obtaining U.S. patents, these institutions are enabled to translate their technologies in the competitive global market.
“The Top 100 Worldwide list showcases the vital role U.S. patents play in moving technologies from bench to marketplace at academic institutions around the globe,” said Paul R. Sanberg, president of the National Academy of Inventors. “By recognizing and celebrating this crucial step in the commercialization process, we aim to highlight how intellectual property can benefit inventors and their institutions, as well as encourage them to pursue commercializing technologies that can have beneficial societal and economic impacts.”
The list is one of three annual rankings published by NAI. These rankings are based on calendar year data provided by the United States Patent and Trademark Office and aim to provide a comprehensive view of intellectual property protection in the innovation ecosystem. The Top 100 U.S. Universities and Top 60 Non-Profit Research Institutions and Government Agencies rankings will be released this spring leading up to NAI’s 14th Annual Conference held in Atlanta.
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