Technical systems and cross-sector knowledge diffusion: an illustration with drones

Abstract

If cumulativeness is one feature of knowledge as economic good [Foray, D. 2006. The Economics of Knowledge. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press], one may wonder why knowledge produced in a given sector does not result in several applications thorough the whole economy. Therefore it is important to understand the dynamics of knowledge that helps a given piece of knowledge to overcome sectorial silos and become more transversal. Here, focusing on Drones, patents analysis reveals how different technical systems use or do not use the same knowledge to solve identical issues or needs. This paper offers three major advantages. First, it allows distinguishing between component knowledge linked with technological bricks and architectural knowledge linked with system integration. Second, it opens new possibilities to measure the transversality of knowledge or its duality (beyond the debates in defense economics). And finally, it offers the opportunity to empirically analyse duality using patent databases.

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