Technology reigns as Europe’s key to competitiveness, as judges in a pan-European awards for invention have overwhelmingly nominated inventors from high-tech fields for recognition.

Innovators from nine European nations, plus Australia and the United States, have been named to the final round of the European Inventor of the Year awards, the joint brainchild of the European Commission and the European Patent Office (EPO).

The winner of European Inventor of the Year will be named on 3 May at a ceremony in the Autoworld Museum in Brussels.

The international jury, chaired by former Dutch prime minister Wim Kok, has nominated inventors for contributions and innovations in information technology, telecommunications and medicine.

From the UK, James Dyson, developer of the bagless vacuum cleaner, who has also registered 130 patents in his name, made the final cut, as did German inventor Karlheinz Brandenburg, who developed the MP3 format, and Federico Faggin of Italy, creator of the microchip.

All three men have been put forward for the panel’s lifetime achievement award.

“The panel's selection is clear evidence that major R&D achievements, especially in marketable high-tech fields, are nowadays primarily the result of teamwork and co-operation,” said EPO president Alain Pompidou.

“Obtaining patent protection for this research is a key to successful product marketing.”

European Commission vice-president and enterprise and industry commissioner Günter Verheugen, added: “The jury's choice shows there is a good basis for leading-edge technology in Europe.

“With the partnership for growth and employment we aim to strengthen this potential and thereby bolster Europe's competitiveness.”

The awards were launched as part of a joint EU and EPO drive to strengthen Europe’s position as a centre for science and innovation in the context of the EU's Lisbon Agenda.

The list the jury has drawn up covers inventions from all the fields of technology in which the EPO granted European patents between 1991 and 2000.

The EPO said it granted over 380,000 patents in that period.