Many companies are in the business of creating new products and inventions. Some businesses deal exclusively with asexually producing or discovering new types of plants. Similarly to how inventors would acquire a patent for a new invention, you will need to get a special type of patent on any new plant species that come into existence. Getting a plant patent is similar to getting a normal type of patent with a few minor variations.
Before Preparing Your Application
Before you start getting all the forms you need, you should make sure the plant you are dealing with is indeed unique. This involves two things. First, you need to identify key characteristics of the plant in question. You may have bred a new plant into existence, or a certain plant could have developed a mutation that makes it different from anything else.
Secondly, you will need to ensure the plant is stable. The difference in the plant must extend to the plant’s genotype. A plant containing unique traits cannot be the result of infections, diseases or other outside agents. You should be able to test both qualities by creating clones of the plant and showing the clones are identical in every way. Before getting ahead of yourself, take the time to ensure you have a new plant that is worth patenting.
Putting Together Your Application
Once you have proven the above mentioned points, you are ready to start assembling your application. First, you and anyone else who discovered or created the new plant need to sign a declaration or oath stating you are the ones who found or invented the plant. If the plant in question was discovered, then you need to state the plant was discovered in a place of cultivation. You also need to state you have successfully reproduced the plant asexually.
Another component your application needs to include is a drawing. Generally, the easiest route to take is to provide photographs of your plant showcasing what makes it unique. However, some people choose to incorporate a permanent water color portrait. Water colorings will be accepted so long as they accurately display the overall appearance of the plant. An examiner may require you to include references characters or figure numbers in order to provide more information, but this is not always necessary.
Completing Your Application
In order to ensure your application is as thorough as can be, you need to carefully observe and take notes of your plant throughout a testing process. This is the only way to ensure you get the most accurate description possible of all of the botanical characteristics. This involves observing the plant for a minimum of one growth cycle. Every last detail should be jotted down because it is often not sufficient to simply describe the most obvious components of a plant, which generally entail leaves, flowers or fruit.
Once your application is finished, it will be reviewed by an examiner. The examiner will usually look at your application and compare it to other patents filed for similar plants. Uniqueness will be observed, and in many cases, the market activity of a given plant variety will play a factor into the level of scrutiny your patent application receives. Plants that are currently experiencing high levels of market activity may need more details than plants that are experiencing low levels of commerciality.
In order to get more details about acquiring a patent for your new plant, it is best that you review information provided by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Your new plant is due protections, and you are owed certain benefits by acquiring the patent. As soon as you discover something new, start getting your patent application underway.
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The content on our website is only meant to provide general information and is not legal advice. We make our best efforts to make sure the information is accurate, but we cannot guarantee it. Do not rely on the content as legal advice. For assistance with legal problems or for a legal inquiry please contact you attorney.