Patentable Discoveries and Their Protection Everyone understands what “invention” is. It’s making up something new. There are certain requirements that must be fulfilled, however, if a government is to grant you patent protection of your invention. These requirements are set out in law because, unlike the automatic copyright protection of creative expression and the protection … Continued
Once granted, and for the duration of the term of the patent, only the inventor or assignee (i.e., the patent holder) may determine whether and by whom the patented invention may be practiced. It is not a requirement of U.S. law that a new technology be used, only that it is useful. On the other … Continued
Patent protection is a national matter, so that patent protection must be sought in each country in which patent protection is wanted. Public disclosure prior to filing the patent application severely limits the ability to gain patent protection outside the United States and Canada. Generally, an inventor in the United States who has not publicly … Continued
Arguably the most important preparatory step to filing a patent application is a “patent search.” Ideally, such a search should seek out all relevant publications, because a patent examiner can cite any public document against any claim of invention. Since a pervasive search can be extremely expensive to conduct, however, the more commonly conducted patent … Continued
All that is required to file a patent application is a description of the invention detailing those items which are novel and useful. Except for a few special cases, a prototype or working model of the invention is not required by the U.S. PTO. Formal drawings will be required at some point in the application … Continued
