Introduction to Patents and Patent...
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Introduction to Patents and Patent Searching Susan Shepherd Science & Engineering Library
Transcript of Introduction to Patents and Patent...
Introduction to Patents and PatentSearching
Susan ShepherdScience & Engineering Library
Patent Resources Guidehttp://libguides.ucsd.edu/patents
Today’s Workshop
What’s a patent?US Patents• Searching the USPTO Database
International patents• Searching esp@cenet
Other patent resources
U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 8
“The Congress shall have thepower to promote the progress of
science and useful arts by securingfor limited times to authors and
inventors the exclusive right to theirrespective writings and
discoveries.”
What is a Patent?
An official document, issued by the U.S.Patent & Trademark Office, grantingproperty rights to the inventor or assignee(owner of the patent).Term is generally 20 years from the date ofapplication in the U.S., if maintenance feesare paid.Effective only in the U.S., territories andpossessions.
Rights Granted by Patents
What is granted is NOT the right to make,use, offer for sale, sell or import, but theright to EXCLUDE OTHERS from making,using, offering for sale, selling or importingthe invention.Patents may be licensed by the assignee toanother party.
Types of Patents
Utility Patents - 20 years from filing
• Chemical• Mechanical• Electrical
Design Patents – 14 years from issue
Plant Patents– 20 years from filing
Design Patent Example
Plant Patent Example
Utility Patent Example
What Can Be Patented?
Any new and useful process, machine,manufacture, or composition of matter, or
any new and useful improvement, subject tothe conditions and requirements of the law.
Requirement of “Useful”
The invention has a useful purposeThe invention will operate to performthe useful purpose, i.e. it works.
Requirement of “New”
The invention has not been disclosedbefore (novelty).• In the US, there is a one-year grace period after
public disclosure.
The invention is non-obvious to aperson having ordinary skill in the art.
Conception
Reduction to Practice
Invention Report
(Prior Art Search)
Patentability Decision
Draft Patent Application
From Conceptionto Draft Application
The Patent Application
Description of the inventionOne or more claimsDrawing(s) if necessaryOath or declaration signed by inventorPayment of fee
Provisional Application
Claims not requiredLess expensive to fileIs not examinedEstablishes early filing dateAutomatically abandoned after 1 year,unless “regular” application filed
From Application Filingto Granted Patent or Abandonment
File in USPTO
Assign to Examiner
Examiner’s Prior Art Search
Examiner’s Action
Applicant’s Response
Examiner’s Allowance
US Patent Issues
Abandonment
Minimum Fees Over Patent LifeRegular fee Small entity fee
Filing 300 150
Search 500 250
Examination 200 100
Issue 1400 700
Maintenance
3.5 yrs 900 450
7.5 yrs 2300 1150
11.5 yrs 3800 1900
Total 9400 4700
These fees are minimal compared to the attorney costs toprepare and prosecute the patent.
Sometimes Confused - Trademarks
A trademark is a word, phrase, symbol ordesign, or a combination of words, phrases,symbols or designs, that identifies anddistinguishes the source of the goods of oneparty from those of others.Searchable at USPTO websitehttp://www.uspto.gov/main/trademarks.htm
Sometimes Confused - Copyright
A copyright protects authors of originalartistic, musical or literary work, bothpublished and unpublished.http://www.copyright.gov/
©
Why Search for Patents?
New and innovative technologiesCompetitive intelligenceBackground on technologies not covered inthe journal literaturePatentabilityFreedom to operate
Studies have shown that up to 80% of all patents containnew information not published elsewhere.
Typical Patent Questions
Inventors looking for patentability• “I have an idea for an invention that I want to patent.”
Technology search• “I want to know what’s happening in the area of ____.”
Freedom to operate search• “I want to be sure my new product or process does not
infringe someone’s patent.”
ClaimsClaims are carefully worded statements thatstake out the boundaries of the invention
Disclaimer
You can ‘search patents’ on the internet, butyou can’t ‘do a patent search.’To ‘do a patent search’ is to legallydetermine the “patentability” of aninvention.Internet searches can’t go back far enoughto examine all public-domain ‘prior art.’
Disclaimer (cont.)
Prior art can be found in books, articles,conference papers, commercialpublications, advertisements as well aspatents.Professionally done patent searchestypically include a variety of databasesusing carefully constructed booleanstrategies and can cost $2000-5000.
Internet Patent Searching
To be comprehensive, you must search byU.S. Patent Classification.Keyword searching can lead you into theappropriate classification code(s).
Patent Title:“Generally spherical object with floppy filaments to
promote sure capture” (1988)
USPTO Web Patent Database
http://www.uspto.gov/patft/index.htmlFind it from S&E websitehttp://scilib.ucsd.edu• Online Resources by Type
• PatentsIn order to view images of patent pages, youmust download the AlternaTiff plug-in fromhttp://www.alternatiff.com
Free Patent Printing
www.pat2pdf.orgConverts US patents to PDFCan print or save full document
Google Patents
www.google.com/patentsOver 7 million patentsFrom USPTO collectionUses Google search technologyBeware spelling errors, faulty OCR
Try It Out
Find patents for MP3 players assigned toApple Computer
• Google Patents:http://google.com/patents
International Patents
There are no “world patents”Application must be filed in each countryPatenting cooperation treaties havesimplified the process
World Intellectual PropertyOrganization (WIPO)
Headquartered in Geneva, SwitzerlandAgency of the United NationsAdministers patenting under the PatentCooperation Treaty (PCT)182 member countrieshttp://www.wipo.int/members/en/Searchable databasehttp://www.wipo.int/ipdl/en/
European Patent Office (EPO)
http://www.european-patent-office.orgGrants European patents for contractingcountries to the European PatentConvention (EPC) – currently 31 members• http://www.european-patent-
office.org/epo/members.htm
esp@cenet
http://www.ep.espacenet.comFree web patent database from EPOMore than 50 million patent documentsOver 70 countries and regionsMay be published in German, French,Japanese, or English
Other Patent Resourceshttp://invent.ucsd.edu
UCSD Technology Transfer and Intellectual PropertyServices Website (TechTips)
Downloadable Invention and Technology Disclosure Form
Other Patent Resourceshttp://www.vonliebig.ucsd.edu/
UCSD Von Liebig Center
Advisory services and seed funding toadvance commercialization of discoveries
Patent Resources Guidehttp://libguides.ucsd.edu/patents
Sources Used in this Presentation
Patent Searching Basics – CaseLearnshttp://library.case.edu/ksl/research/subjects/pa
tents/Patents%20-%20CaseLearns.pdfBrian GrayEngineering LibrarianCase Western Reserve [email protected]
Patents: What You Need to Know aboutIntellectual Property in 30 Minutes orLess
Penny Coppernoll-BlachReference LibrarianBiomedical LibraryUniversity of California, San [email protected]
Research US Patents on the Webhttp://library.ucf.edu/GovDocs/PatentsTrademarks/
Research.aspPeter Spyers-DuranUniversity of CentralFlorida
Searching US Patents and Trademarks on theInternet - University of Utah
http://www.lib.utah.edu/govdoc/pto/PTDL4.htmDave MorrisonDocuments and Patent LibrarianDocuments and Microforms Division, Marriott
LibraryUniversity of [email protected]
Sources Used in this Presentation(continued)
Gordon, Thomas T. PatentFundamentals for Scientistsand Engineers. Boca Raton:Lewis Publishers, 2000. CallNumber: S&E Stacks T339.G67 2000
Grubb, Philip W. Patents forChemicals, Pharmaceuticalsand Biotechnology :Fundamentals of Global Law,Practice and Strategy. Oxford ;New York: Oxford UniversityPress, 2004. Call Number:S&E Stacks T 211.G76 2004
Wherry, Timothy Lee. Patent Searchingfor Librarians and Inventors.Chicago: American LibraryAssociation, 1995. Call Number:S&E Stacks T 210.W44 1995
Susan Shepherd
Head, Reference, Instruction & Outreach
Science & Engineering Library
University of California, San Diego
http://scilib.ucsd.edu
