Patents: MIMIT exhibition, ENEA showcases hi-tech sensors for monitoring large-scale structures

ENEA participates with an invention in the field of optical fibers at the exhibition "L'Italia dei Brevetti. Invenzioni e innovazione di successo", organized and hosted by the Ministry of Business and Made in Italy in Rome until March 2, 2025.

The ENEA patented technology ^[1]  allows to reduce production costs for optical fiber sensor chains used to monitor large structures like viaducts, dams and bridges. Designed by ENEA researchers Michele Caponero and Andrea Polimadei of the Micro and Nanostructures for Photonics Laboratory, it was developed and engineered by Ascanio srl, a spin-off of a project funded by the ENEA “Proof of Concept” Program, comprising Earth System and GEI Elettronica two Parma-based companies operating in structural and geotechnical monitoring. The “Proof of Concept” Program funds projects aimed at the development and technological innovation for the market based on ENEA research outcomes with an open innovation approach.

The exhibition wants to celebrate both the 140th anniversary of the foundation of the Italian Patent and Trademark Office and the 550th anniversary of the publication of the first Patent Statute, promulgated by the Republic of Venice in 1474.

The purpose is to tell the past and the present through the impact over 100 industrial invention patents have had on Italian society and the international context, by comparing different generations of creators: those who in the early days deposited their inventions individually and those who today work increasingly in multidisciplinary teams within universities, research centers and startups.

The exhibition is open to the public on weekends from 10 am to 7 pm at the Ministry (Palazzo Piacentini, via Veneto 33 - Rome), with last admission at 6:30 pm.