Reproductions, Services & Fees
Low-Resolution Digital Copies and Photocopies
Low-resolution digital copies (watermarked PDFs) and photocopies may be ordered from the Institute Archives and Special Collections, subject to staffing, copyright restrictions, collection access restrictions, physical condition, and format limitations. Researchers are generally expected to conduct research on-site.
Fee Schedule
- Documents and photographs from manuscript or Institute archival collections: $1.00 per page/image
- Photocopy requests from manuscript collections may not exceed 50 pages
- Reproductions for current RPI students: No charge
Pre-payment by check is required prior to the release of any material.
High-Resolution Digital Reproductions
High-resolution digital reproductions may be available for approved publication, exhibition, instructional, or official institutional purposes. Availability is subject to staff review, copyright status, collection restrictions, and preservation concerns.
Digitization Fees
- Items up to 11" × 17": $10.00 per item
- Items larger than 11" × 17": Minimum $20.00 per scan (additional fees may apply)
Pricing for oversized or complex materials must be negotiated with an archivist.
Unless otherwise approved in writing, digital reproductions are provided for personal research use only.
Pre-payment by check is required prior to the release of any material.
The Institute Archives and Special Collections reserves the right to refuse any reproduction request that may compromise collection preservation, violate legal restrictions, or facilitate unauthorized mass reproduction or redistribution of archival materials.
Publication Fees and Permissions
Publication in print, online, broadcast, exhibition, or any other medium requires prior approval by Archives staff and completion of a Permission to Publish form.
Publication Fees
- Commercial publication: Minimum $40.00 per item
- Additional fees may apply depending on the nature and scope of the request
Pre-payment by check is required prior to the release of any material.
Permission to reproduce materials does not transfer copyright or other intellectual property rights. Researchers are responsible for securing any additional permissions required by copyright holders.
Reference Room Photography
Researchers may use personal cameras, phones, or tablets to photograph collection materials for private research purposes only, subject to staff approval and handling requirements.
Photography is provided as a research convenience and may be limited or revoked at any time to protect collections, comply with donor restrictions, copyright law, privacy concerns, or reading room operations.
The following activities are prohibited:
- Mass photography or systematic capture of entire collections, series, folders, volumes, or substantial portions of collections
- Creation of personal, institutional, commercial, or publicly accessible digital archives
- Automated image capture, scanning devices, robotic capture systems, or similar technologies
- Photography that endangers collection materials or disrupts other researchers
- Reproduction of restricted, confidential, or donor-restricted materials
Archives staff reserve the right to limit the quantity of photographs taken during any research visit.
Artificial Intelligence and Mass Reproduction
Permission to photograph or obtain reproductions of archival materials does not grant permission to use those materials for artificial intelligence, machine learning, or dataset creation.
Unless expressly authorized in writing by the Institute Archives and Special Collections, users may not:
- Upload archival materials to generative AI systems, large language models (LLMs), machine learning platforms, or similar technologies for training, fine-tuning, indexing, or dataset development
- Create or distribute datasets derived from RPI archival collections
- Conduct bulk extraction, scraping, harvesting, or systematic copying of archival content
- Use reproductions to develop commercial AI products or services
- Redistribute archival materials through online repositories, databases, or other digital platforms
The Institute Archives and Special Collections does not permit mass reproduction of its historical collections in any format without prior written authorization.
Use of Archival Images & Reproductions by RPI Faculty and Staff
Images from the RPI Institute Archives and Special Collections are provided for official RPI business use ONLY, not to third parties for use and distribution.
All approved uses must include the credit line: Courtesy of RPI Institute Archives and Special Collections
Images are provided for a specific approved use and may not be reused, redistributed, incorporated into datasets, uploaded to LLMs, or used in external publications without prior written permission from the Archives.
The Archives reserves the right to review, approve, restrict, or revoke uses beyond the original request.
Reservation of Rights
The Institute Archives and Special Collections reserves the right to deny reproduction requests, restrict photography, limit quantities of reproductions, and refuse publication or distribution requests that conflict with preservation requirements, copyright law, donor agreements, institutional policy, or responsible stewardship of historical collections.
