Patent – Discussion and Suggestions

This is the article contains some valuable doubts and answers for those doubts about Patent and related with Intellectual Properties. This article looks like the open discussion about the Patent and patenting the new invention. If you are a person, new to the Patents or other then the patent related professional, here you can clear your all most possible doubts about legal Patents. This article had written in the type of question and answer format.

Question 1: What is Patent?

A Patent is an exclusive monopoly granted by the Government various countries to an inventor over his invention for limited period of time. It is one of the legal document explains about the new invention used to protect the inventors idea using various claims.

Question 2: What is the difference between patents and exclusivity?

Patents and exclusivity work in a similar fashion but are distinctly different from one another. Patents are granted by the patent and trademark office anywhere along the development lifeline of a drug and can encompass a wide range of claims. Exclusivity is exclusive marketing rights granted by the FDA upon approval of a drug and can run concurrently with a patent or not. Exclusivity is a statutory provision and is granted to an NDA applicant if statutory requirements are met.

Question 3: What kinds of Inventions can be patented?

An invention must be of practical use; it must show an element of novelty, that is, some new characteristic that is not known in the body of existing knowledge in its technical field. In many countries, scientific theories, mathematical methods, plant or animal varieties invention, discoveries of natural substances, commercial methods, methods for medical treatment (as opposed to medical products) and software programs are generally not patentable.

Question 4: Who can obtain the Patent?

An inventor or company assigned by the inventor can obtain the patent over his/her invention.

Question 5: What kind of Protection does a Patent offer?

Patent protection means that the invention cannot be commercially made, used, distributed or sold without the patent owner's consent/written permission. If any company/person wants to use that invention, they may need to buy that patent rights or to give royalty to that patent owner.

Question 6: How many inventors can joint together in a single patent application?

If the invention inventing by a group of people or a team means, they can joint together and make a patent application for that Patent as an inventors.

Question 7: Can a person get Patent for other person’s invention?

Yes, a person assigned by the inventor can obtain the patent for that inventor’s invention. Here the patent owner is that assigned person, but the inventor name only present in the Patent inventor’s column. If a person try to get a patent for an invention without the knowledge of inventor is illegal.

Question 8: How a patent is filed?

The inventor or his assignee obtains a patent by filing a patent application to the patent office in the stipulated forms as required by the Patent act of that country.

Question 9: Who checks the novelty features of the invention?

A patent examiner of patent office checks the novelty features of the patent application with the current state of the art available.

Question 10: Which invention qualifies for the grant of a patent?

A patent is granted only for the invention, which is new, non-obvious and has industrial applicability.

Question 11: Why an inventor should go for a patent?

If the inventor does not get the patent rights for his invention and introduce his product/process based on his invention in the market, any body can copy his invention and exploits it commercially. To debar others from using, selling or working out his invention, the inventor must go for getting a patent.

Question 12: Why does the Government encourage filing of patents?

Innovation, research and development activities of the particular country place the important roll in the technological development, industrial and economical growth of that country. So that, the government is encouraging the innovation and filing of patents.

Question 13: When will the patent get expire?

A patent can expire in the following ways:

1. The patent has lived its full term i.e. the term specified by the patent act of the country. Generally it is 20 years from the date of filing.

2. The patentee has failed to pay the renewal fee. A patent once granted by the Government has to be maintained by paying annual renewal fee.

3. The validity of the patent has been successfully challenged by an opponent by filing an opposition either in the patent office or in the courts.

Question 14: What is the different between a Country issuing patents and WIPO?

World Intellect Property Organization (WIPO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations. The patents issued by WIPO are agreed by so many nations who are all the member of this organization. But the patent granted by a country patent office is applicable within the geographical boundaries of that country only like a US Patent is applicable within USA only and has no effect in other countries.

Question 15: Is there any International/Global patent office?

 No. There is no International or Global Patent. An inventor has to file an application in each country, where he seeks to protect his invention.

Question 16: Is there any International/Global law for patent?

The Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) is an international patent law treaty, concluded in 1970. It provides a unified procedure for filing patent applications to protect inventions in each of its Contracting nations. But some countries and organizations only accepted this patent law for their invention patenting procedures.

The Patent Law Treaty (PLT) is a patent law multilateral treaty concluded on June 1, 2000 in Geneva, Switzerland, by 53 States and one intergovernmental organization, the European Patent Organization. Its aim is to harmonize formal procedures such as the requirements to obtain a filing date for a patent application, the form and content of a patent application, and representation.

The Substantive Patent Law Treaty (SPLT) is a proposed international patent law treaty aimed at harmonizing substantive points of patent law. In contrast with the Patent Law Treaty (PLT), signed in 2000 and now in force, which only relates to formalities, the SPLT aims at going far beyond formalities to harmonize substantive requirements such as novelty, innovation and non-obviousness, industrial applicability and utility, as well as sufficient disclosure, unity of invention, or claim drafting and interpretation.

Question 17: Can a person get a patent for his invention, which has already published in the National/International journal?

No. A patent is not granted to an invention if it is already available with the public either in the form product/literature/common knowledge. But many countries have some limitations like if the inventor publish his invention and put patent application within that year is acceptable. But this time limit may vary depends on each country. US time limit is within that publishing year; the inventor can apply for patent on his invention.

Question 18: Who is responsible to ensure that the patent has not been infringed?

It is the only responsibility of the patentee to see that someone else is not infringing upon his patent. So the prior art searches and previous patent analysis is important for every inventor and patent attorneys to make their invention be a unique.

Question 19: Does a Patentee get money once a patent has been granted to him/her?

No. A patentee does not get any kind of money over the grant of the patent. The Patent issuing government/granting authority will not give any money to the patentee. Rather the inventor has to spend lot of money to get the patent rights over his/her invention and also to spend some money to maintain that patent.

Question 20: Does a Patentee sell his patent to any person/company?

The patentee has all the rights to sell his invention exclusively and/or non-exclusively to any person/party/company or he may choose to sell his invention for a royalty.

Question 21: Is any rule, only the Patent attorneys do the patent draft?

No, the inventor himself can draft the application. But that application should be in the acceptable format of the particular patent issuing country/organization. A look on the closely related patent applications already filed/granted, will render help to a great extent.

Questions 22: How would you know about your patent application status?

The Patent Office will answer an applicant’s inquiries about the status of the application, and inform you whether your application has been rejected, allowed, or are awaiting action by an e-mail/direct letter.

Questions 23: Is the Patent office assist the inventors for developing and marketing of their patents?

No. The Office cannot act or advise concerning the business transactions or arrangements that are involved in the development and marketing of an invention. The Office, however, will publish for a fee, at the request of a patent owner, a notice in the Official Gazette and site that the patent is available for licensing or sale.

Question 24: Which are the main sources for patent information? 

National Patent offices, International Information vendors like Dialog, Orbit, Delphion, patent storm etc., free or charge based patent web sites on Internet.