1. About 8% of the references are cited because they provide useful background.
2. About 8% are cited because the articles showed a promising area for development.
3. About 28% are cited because they discuss a technology that can be improved upon.
4. About 13% are cited because they show an idea is technically feasible.
5. About 43% are cited by the patent attorney or patent examiner as part of the patenting process.
Based on these percentages, approximately six of ten scientific papers referenced in patents should provide some form of knowledge spillover that influences a new invention.