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FEW WORDS ABOUT PATENT LAWS 2. The difference between a PATENT and a DESIGN is that a Patent is granted for a product, process or apparatus which is new, workable and ingenuous. A Design is granted for an original shape, pattern or ornament applied to a manufactured article. 3. A PATENT is an exclusive right given to the patentee to make, use, vend or import a product, apparatus, or process for the duration of the term of the patent. 4. A patentable invention is NEW, USEFUL and INVENTIVE. 5. To meet the test of NOVELTY, the invention must not have been anticipated by another patent or a publication, or anything else that would deem it to lack novelty. In other words, it must not have been known or used by other. 6. To meet the test of USEFULNESS, the invention must be operative, and have some commercial value. 7. The question to be answered to define INVENTIVENESS,
is whether on a claim date, an unimaginative skilled technician, in
the light of his general knowledge, and the literature and information on the
subject available to him on that date, would have been led directly and without
difficulty to the invention. 9. What may NOT BE PATENTED are: a mere scientific principle and an abstract theorem. 10. Once an invention is DISCLOSED TO THE PUBLIC, only the inventor or a person who has obtained knowledge of the invention from the inventor may file a patent application provided that this application is filed within 12 months following the first disclosure. Generally, this 12 month grace period for filing a patent application after a public disclosure is only available in Canada and the USA. If you want to file your patent application in Europe for example, your invention shall not have been disclosed publicly before the filing date. 11. Once a patent application is FILED IN ONE COUNTRY, in Canada for example, the same application can be filed in up to 150 countries of the Paris Union, and the date of filing of the first application may be claimed as a PRIORITY DATE in the subsequent filing, provided that the subsequent application is filed within 12 months of the first filing. A PATENT IS AN ASSET A patent is an exclusive right to manufacture, sell, import
and use an invention. This exclusive right extends over a period of 20 years
from the date of filing of the patent application. A patent is also an asset. A patent is a Aparcel of land in the field of Intellectual Property@. A patent can be sold, licensed, mortgaged and passed on as heritage. A patent allows a business to charge a premium for the patented product, to pay royalties to the inventor, to invest in marketing, to invest in product quality, in better manufacturing equipment, in employee benefits and training, in order for the business to establish and maintain a leading edge in the market place. A patentee has recourse to courts of law to prevent an infringement of a patent. The patentee can team up with one or more of its licensees to sue an infringer. It is known that infringement suits are expensive. However, the patentee has the options to sue now, to sue later, to simply do nothing or to sell a license to the infringer for a nominal fee to stop the infringing condition. Without a patent there is no option. Therefore, a patent is the most valuable asset in a business. A PATENT IS ALSO A PAGE OF
HISTORY Patents are
kept on file at the Patent Office forever. Patents are consulted extensively and
will continue to be consulted for centuries to come. Therefore, Patent Agents
have the responsibility of preparing patent applications that have outstanding
quality and which will continue to reflect the excellence and pride of the inventors for
many generations. E-mail: mario@patentway.com |
