Titan Medical Expands Patent Portfolio to More Than 200 Patents and Applications and Clarifies Third-Party Licensing Strategy
February 07 2022 - 6:30AM
Business Wire
Titan Medical Inc. (Nasdaq: TMDI; TSX: TMD), a medical device
company focused on the development and commercialization of
innovative surgical technologies for single access robotic-assisted
surgery (RAS), today announced that it has surpassed 200 patents
and patent applications. This important milestone demonstrates the
company’s commitment to being an innovation leader in single access
robotic-assisted surgery. This broad portfolio protects the
company’s proprietary technology and supports its mission in
driving better patient outcomes and offering cost benefits and
improving hospital efficiency.
Recent patents issued to the company include U.S. Design Patent
No. D940,736 for a robotic instrument graphical user interface
(GUI), European Patent No. 2785267 for a novel patient cart, U.S.
Patent No. 11,179,209 for autonomous control systems, and U.S.
Patent Nos. 11,166,771 and 11,166,769, each directed at ergonomic
aspects of robotic hand controllers. These issuances reflect the
company’s originality and creativity in the areas of ergonomic and
surgeon-friendly design and use.
“Titan’s ability to create and apply new technologies to the
field of robotic-assisted surgery is impressive,” said Paul
Cataford, Interim President and CEO of Titan. “Unconstrained by
traditional designs and technologies, we have been able to advance
directly into a novel single access RAS approach. Innovations in
the design of the Enos™ surgeon workstation and patient cart have
allowed a reduction in footprint. This means equipment can be
easily maneuvered in and out of an operating room without requiring
costly infrastructure changes. The anthropological focused design
of the Enos workstation means surgeon effectiveness, fatigue and
posture become key design elements. We believe these novel
approaches and inventions competitively position the company and
many of them may be of great value to potential collaborators and
partners.”
Titan has already announced licenses of its patent portfolio to
third parties and the company continues to evaluate options for
geographical expansion and revenue generating opportunities. To
address commonly asked questions with respect to third-party
licensing, the company offers the following responses:
- Why has Titan entered into license agreements with third
parties?
- Titan entered into license agreements with third parties to
leverage its IP portfolio and knowledge to generate new capital
funding opportunities. To date, these license agreements have
resulted in upfront license fees.
- The company believes that licensing to third parties may also
validate the value of Titan’s technology and its intellectual
property position.
- The proceeds from these license agreements have provided
capital to assist Titan in hiring and developing its in-house
engineering (hardware and software) and regulatory teams, and
expanding operations in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
- Does Titan expect to receive any ongoing royalty payments from
third party licenses?
- It depends. License fees may either take the form of an ongoing
royalty or may be “pre-paid” meaning Titan will not receive any
future royalty payments or additional revenues as payments are all
received up-front. Titan continues to retain ownership of the
licensed intellectual property and any related know-how and retains
the rights to the same licensed intellectual property, know-how and
technology necessary to commercialize and generate revenues from
the Enos surgical system.
- What has Titan presently licensed?
- Approximately 1/3 of Titan’s patent portfolio, related
generally to robotic-assisted instruments, endoscopic cameras, and
related drive system technology has been licensed to third parties
in pre-paid licensing deals. All of the technology covered by
Titan’s complete patent portfolio may be used by Titan in its Enos
surgical system.
- Is Titan able to license to other third parties, including
jurisdictions outside of the U.S.?
- With respect to about 1/3 of Titan’s patent portfolio that has
already been licensed, other than certain limited circumstances
such as distribution arrangements, the company may not further
license the technology, including in jurisdictions outside of the
U.S.
- With respect to the rest of Titan’s patent portfolio, Titan is
investigating future collaborations and/or license opportunities
which may generate additional revenue for the company.
- What happens to third-party licenses in the event Titan is
acquired?
- An acquirer of Titan would acquire Titan’s intellectual
property and know-how, including the rights under third-party
licenses.
- An acquirer would have the same rights as Titan, including the
ability to commercialize Titan’s intellectual property for use with
the Enos surgical system.
- Titan believes this type of arrangement is generally well
understood and would not hinder Titan in pursuing strategic
options.
- Do any licensees have rights or preference to any of Titan’s
other technologies?
- Will licensees compete with Titan?
- Maybe. Titan is generally not made aware of third-party plans,
including what markets or what indications/procedures may be
targeted with the licensed technologies; however, Titan may
potentially benefit with licensee use increasing awareness and
educating stakeholders on the advantages of robotic-assisted
surgery, benefiting the industry as whole.
- What is next for collaborations with third parties?
- While Titan intends to investigate future collaborations, the
company does not yet know what, if any, future collaborations may
include. That said, given the success of the recently completed
collaboration despite the challenges of a pandemic and supply chain
constraints, the company may consider other technology
collaborations and/or distribution related collaborations,
especially where foreign regulatory clearances may be advanced,
such as CE Marking for Europe and other markets.
About Titan Medical
Titan Medical Inc. (Nasdaq: TMDI; TSX: TMD), a medical device
company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario and with operations in
Chapel Hill, North Carolina, is focused on enhancing robotic
assisted surgery using innovative technology through a single
access point. The Enos™ robotic single access surgical system is
being developed with an ergonomic focus to provide a surgical
experience that imitates real-life movements that surgeons demand
and includes multi-articulating instruments designed to allow
surgeons an increased range of motion in a confined space, with
dexterity and the ability to exert the forces necessary to complete
common surgical tasks. With the Enos system, Titan intends to
initially pursue gynecologic surgical indications.
Enos™ is a trademark of Titan Medical Inc.
For more information, visit www.titanmedicalinc.com and follow
@TitanMedical on Twitter and LinkedIn.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains “forward-looking statements” within
the meaning of applicable Canadian and U.S. securities laws, which
reflect the current expectations of management of the company’s
future growth, results of operations, performance and business
prospects and opportunities. Forward-looking statements are
frequently, but not always, identified by words such as “may”,
“would”, “could”, “will”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “plan”,
“expect”, “intend”, “estimate”, “potential for” and similar
expressions, although these words may not be present in all
forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements that appear
in this release may include, without limitation, references to: the
company’s focus on the development and commercialization of
surgical technologies for single access robotic-assisted surgery;
the company’s patent portfolio protecting the company’s proprietary
technology and supporting its mission; the footprint of the Enos
system allowing equipment to be easily maneuvered; key design
elements resulting from the anthropological focused design of the
Enos system; novel approaches and inventions competitively
positioning the company and their value to potential collaborators
and partners; the company’s evaluation of options for geographical
expansion and revenue generation; the company’s belief that
licensing to third parties may also validate the value of its
technology and intellectual property position; Titan retaining
ownership of licensed intellectual property and any related
know-how, and retaining the rights necessary to commercialize and
generate revenues from the Enos system; the scope of the company’s
licensed patent portfolio; the ability of Titan to use all of the
technology covered by Titan’s complete patent portfolio in its Enos
surgical system; the company investigating future collaborations
and/or license opportunities which may generate additional revenue;
the rights that an acquirer of the company would receive on a
potential acquisition; the potential rights and preferences of
licensees over Titan’s technologies; the potential benefit to the
company resulting from a licensee competing with the company in
robotic-assisted surgery; the company considering technology
collaborations and/or distribution related collaborations; and the
company’s intention to initially pursue gynecologic surgical
indications with the Enos system. These statements reflect
management’s current beliefs with respect to future events and are
based on information currently available to management.
Forward-looking statements involve significant risks, uncertainties
and assumptions. Many factors could cause the company’s actual
results, performance or achievements to be materially different
from any future results, performance or achievements that may be
expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including,
without limitation, those listed in the “Risk Factors” section of
the company’s Annual Information Form and Form 40-F for the fiscal
year ended December 31, 2020, as well as the assumptions discussed
under the section titled “Development Plan” of the company’s
Management’s Discussion & Analysis (MD&A) for the fiscal
period ended September 30, 2021 (which may be viewed at
www.sedar.com and at www.sec.gov). Should one or more of these
risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions
underlying the forward-looking statements prove incorrect, actual
results, performance, or achievements may vary materially from
those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements
contained in this news release. These factors should be considered
carefully, and prospective investors should not place undue
reliance on the forward-looking statements. Although the
forward-looking statements contained in the news release are based
upon what management currently believes to be reasonable
assumptions, the company cannot assure prospective investors that
actual results, performance or achievements will be consistent with
these forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, the
company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update
or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220207005169/en/
Kristen Galfetti Vice President, Investor Relations &
Corporate Communications +1-781-869-2553
investors@titanmedicalinc.com
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