Precision Optics Co. has cashed in on a licensing agreement for its robotic surgery equipment. The company has received $2.5 million as part of the agreement with Intuitive Surgical Operations to license all of its patents.
For over 25 years, Precision Optics has provided high tech optics and optical systems for industrial, biomedical, and medical applications, including endoscopes, fiberscopes and micro optics. On the other hand, Intuitive Surgical is based in California and specializes in manufacturing equipment for surgery that is robotically assisted. Precision Optics retains a royalty-free license for the patents for use in other fields.
Precision Optics Co. entered into the asset purchase licensing agreement with Intuitive Surgical Operations, Inc on July 28, 2011. They received $2.5 million for the sale of their intellectual property, which assigned all of their patents, both current and pending, to Intuitive Surgical. The agreement satisfies immediate cash needs at the company and allows them to pursue their core business.
The $2.5 million payout will further research and development at Precision Optics. Precision Optics will use the proceeds from the agreement to build on their recent success in new product development, including work on their Lenslock endoscopes, Microprecision optical elements and cutting edge hand held stereoendoscopes.
Precision Optics is currently working on these new surgical devices which utilize tiny optical elements that enable imaging in body areas that were not accessible in the past, as well as devices for minimally invasive procedures.
As part of the agreement, Intuitive Surgical also agreed to grant to Precision Optics a royalty-free, transferable international non-exclusive license to use, develop, make, combine and distribute for sale in vitro products, services and procedures that use a genomic lab on a chip or proteomic benchtop diagnoses which can be used inside and outside the medical robotics industry in countries around the world.
