MightyRecruiterAn invention patent issued by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) awards property rights to the creator of the device. Patents issued in the United States are only valid in the U.S., usually for a term of 20 years from the date the application for the patent.
The Right of Exclusion
The right granted by the patent is the power to exclude others from selling, using, offering for sale, or importing it into or making the invention in the U.S. The right of exclusion is what the patent grants, not the right to make the product. The patentee is expected to enforce the patent without aid of the USPTO after it is issued.
Patent Types
A patent grants a monopoly to the inventor for a specified period of the development and use of a plant, design, or invention, which are the three types of patents. The most common type is a utility patent, covering inventions that operate in a unique manner to create a useful result.
- Utility patents: If you have a novel, useful device that is not obvious to others in the field of innovation, you may be eligible for a utility patent. Examples include computer software, biological inventions, and magic tricks.
- Design patents: If you create a unique and new design that embellishes a manufactured device, you might fulfill requirements for a design patent. Examples include a computer screen icon or designer clothing.
- Plant patents: The least-frequently issued patent is a plant patent, which is granted for any non-obvious, novel, asexually propagated plant. This may include cultivating a variety of plants to create hybrids or mutants and also recently discovered seedlings.
The patent law designates patentability conditions and the subject matter of issuing a patent.
What Can Be Patented
Understanding what is patentable is a complicated issue. In the U.S., an invention is required to meet four conditions to be deemed patentable:
- The invention must meet subject matter requirements. It must fit into one of the following five sanctioned classes of ideas and devices that are patentable:
- A method or process
- A manufactured object
- A machine with moving parts
- A new pharmaceutical composition
- An asexually reproduced novel plant variety
- The innovation must be useful. One feature of the utility test is that the device cannot be just a theoretical aspect.
- The design must be novel. It must be something that no one has created in the past.
- The invention must be non-obvious. An individual in the field with ordinary skills in the subject matter should not consider it obvious.
The non-obvious requirement is the one on which a patentability dispute will wobble.
Novelty and Non-Obviousness Conditions for Obtaining a Patent
An invention must be novel as defined by the patent law to be patentable. The statutes state that an invention in ineligible for a patent if the following criteria is met:
- The invention was patented, represented in a printed publication or in public use, put on sale, or made available to the public before the valid filing date of the invention
- The device was listed in a patent approved by the USPTO or in a previously filed application for patent published by the USPTO in which the application or patent names another creator and was submitted before the effective filing date of the declared invention
Not all inventions are patentable. Just about 50 percent of the patent applications result in a patent each year. Furthermore, not every patented invention will be successful. In fact, less than three percent of all patented inventions are financially advantageous.
Applying for a temporary patent for an invention that is not expected obtain a permanent patent or earn funds is not necessary, so it makes sense to estimate the potential commercial success of your invention before you file.
Legal Disclaimer
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.