The emergence of new innovation patterns such as open innovation, user innovation, design innovation and community innovations involving new actors, different roles and new modes of interaction implies re-configurations in European innovation systems with diverse implications for European economy, society and policy in the long run. This report describes the results of Work package 1 of the INFU research project entitled “Identification of signals”, which aims to identify and collect new forms of innovation patterns. 

This collection of new forms of innovation patterns serves as base for the subsequent scenarios development process where some signals will be further developed and selected aiming to identiy and discuss trends which may have a signifcant impact for economy and society and also deserve policy attention. The purpose of work package 1 is to review the academic literature which describes new innovation concepts and to scan various media and

other sources for cases and examples which may alter the innovation landscape in the future. In line with these tasks, the report consists of four major chapters.

Chapter 1 introduces the INFU project objectives and the report. In chapter 2 we present a state-of-the-art research overview of new innovation concepts. New innovation concepts such as open innovation, user innovation, crowdsourcing or soft innovation have been described in the academic literature and will be briefly presented. The aim of this review is to outline the most important concepts, define them and provide selected empirical evidence of their diffusion. However, a more comprehensive discussion would go beyond the scope of this report.

In chapter 3 we present the framework for scanning weak signals. The development of this framework also benefitted from the project iKNOW, which runs parallel to INFU and is also funded within the 7th Framework Programme.

A weak signal is defined as a hint of the potential for change with a possible disruptive impact which is already apparent and visible but has not yet reached the mainstream. In our context, a weak signal hence indicates a change in an innovation pattern with a potential of disruptive impact, which is not established as a common way of doing innovation in a sector.