Patent

Patent

A Patent is a form of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of years in exchange for publishing an enabling public disclosure of the invention. In most countries, patent rights fall under civil law and the patent holder needs to sue someone infringing the patent in order to enforce his or her rights.

History

The procedure for granting patents, requirements placed on the patentee, and the extent of the exclusive rights vary widely between countries according to national laws and international agreements. Typically, however, a granted patent application must include one or more claims that define the invention. A patent may include many claims, each of which defines a specific property right. These claims must meet relevant patentability requirements, such as novelty, usefulness, and non-obviousness.

Types of patents

There are three types of patents: utility patents, design patents, and plant patents.

Utility patents

A Utility patent may be granted to anyone who invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, article of manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof.

Design patents

A Design patent is a form of legal protection granted to the ornamental design of a functional item.

Plant patents

A Plant patent is granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office to an inventor (or the inventor's heirs or assigns) who has invented or discovered and asexually reproduced a distinct and new variety of plant.

See also

• Copyright
• Trademark
• Trade secret

References

Patent Resources
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