Patent

In USA a patent term lasts for a period of twenty years from date of the filing of the patent application and it's a limited right granted by a government (patents are limited by country) that allows the inventor to stop other people or companies from making, using or selling a specifically defined invention.

Patent Misunderstanding

Patents may only be used to fence off certain features of the invention from competitors, and do not mean that the owner of the patent is not infringing on the patent rights of another patent holder. The main thing about patent law that is usually misunderstood is the fact that patents grant only the right to stop others from making, using and selling the invention.

Types of Patent Applications

The process of actually obtaining a patent begins with the filing of a patent application with the USPTO. There are two types of patent applications that may be filed: provisional applications (patent pending) and non-provisional applications (Utility & Design Patents).

Provisional patent applications are not examined by the USPTO and never directly become an actual patent. They are placeholders used as a way to get a filing date for the technical description that is contained in the application. All provisional applications must have a non-provisional application filed in their place within one year of the provisional filing date. The filing date of the provisional application, however, only covers the written description contained in the provisional application. Any new information added in the non-provisional application is only entitled to the filing date of the non-provisional application.

Non-provisional applications (utility or design), unlike provisional applications, are examined by the USPTO. If all of the requirements for patentability are satisfied, the non-provisional application will mature into a patent.

Utility Patent

The best-known patent application is the Utility patent. You would apply for this type of patent to protect the functionality of an invention. A prime example is a broom. It has the function of allowing dirt and other things on the ground to be gathered more easily than if a person would merely use their hands.

Many things are patentable under the rubric of the Utility patent application other then the common "thing that has a function." Over the last few years, software has become patentable without the necessity of including the computer upon which it is going to run. Business plans have also become patentable

Design Patent

With the design patent, you may protect the look of an invention when that look is separable from the thing itself. A good example of a design patent application is a bicycle rack where in the steel tube to which the bicycle is to be locked looks somewhat like a snake. The concept of having a fixed locking mechanism for a bicycle is not patentable because it is known already. Such an invention would be rejected. But what can be protected is the look of the bicycle rack.

Plant Patent

If you have invented a way of making a new or original variety of plant via asexual reproduction you should apply for yet another type of patent, the plant patent application. It's a powerful tool in the right situation. Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) Application

Depending on the circumstances, it might be advantageous to apply for a PCT Application before applying for a Utility patent application. Most American, Asian, and European countries are signatories of the PCT, which will provide you and your invention with a priority date in those countries. Aside from extending your protection beyond the United States, the PCT is important because the PTO often considers it more quickly than a regular Utility application.

What's in a Patent?

The text of a patent typically includes a section on the background of the invention, which typically includes a review of those inventions or devices already known to the public. These older inventions and other information known to the public are called "prior art." The prior art includes all information, which is related to the claimed invention. The prior art is not what is actually known by the inventor, but what is generally known to all people skilled in the particular field that is the subject matter of the patent application. During examination, the Invention is compared to the prior art to see what the inventor has really invented. A patent continues with a detailed description of the invention itself.

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