Abstract
Despite substantial and sustained investment of public funds in research and development, the return in new or improved Assistive Technology devices or services has not met expectations. The paper asserts that the creation, translation and transfer of technology-based knowledge is hampered by assumptions regarding the primacy of research over development and production, and the accompanying dominance of academia over industry. Parity between methods and sectors is needed to transform ideas into inventions and on to innovations. The Need to Knowledge Model offers a framework for achieving this parity in practice.