Pennsylvania State University announced Tuesday plans to auction off some of its intellectual property, Campus Reform reported.

From March 31 through April 11, the research university will conduct "what is expected to be the first of many auction-style events" to license intellectual property in a variety of categories, university officials said in a statement.

Penn State believes that its auction is the first of its kind conducted in the nation, according to Penn State Associate Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer Ron Huss. The auction could provide the university with revenue and allow more patents to be used to their fullest potential.

"This auction is an effort to get our [intellectual property] off of the shelf and in the hands of companies that can use the technology, at very favorable terms and price points. The buyers get the rights to use the [intellectual property], and the University gets a financial return. It's a win-win situation," Huss said in a statement.

In the first auction, about 70 engineering patents in areas as diverse as acoustics, fuel cells and sensors will be available for licensed. The required bid minimum on many will be as low as $5,000.

The winning bidder will be required to enter into a license agreement with the University's Office of Technology Management.

Penn State Interim Vice President for Research Neil Sharkey said the auction of intellectual property is a novel approach of an online auction and was chosen in part to raise awareness among interested parties in business and industry that the University does have licenses available whose commercial applications could prove extremely valuable.

"As a land-grant institution, Penn State has always strived to pursue research that has real-world impact," Sharkey said in a statement. "Our researchers have worked to develop [intellectual property] that has the potential to add significant value to companies' products and services, but it has no value if people are not made aware of it."