1. What is a patent ?
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Definition: The right to EXCLUDE
others from making, using or selling the claimed
invention during its term
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A Patent is a monopoly - you
don't have to know about a particular patent to infringe it
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In U.S.A., term - from date
of first regular application
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In U.S.A., issued by the Federal
government ( The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, part of the Department
of Commerce) based upon an examination of the applicant's claimed invention
to determine if it meets the applicable standards
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Time from application to issuance
- anywhere from about 1 to 4 or more years, average pendency about 2 years
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Only an inventor may apply
for a patent. At the University, an assignment is required from
the inventor before the University could consider incurring costs for the
patent application
2. The anatomy of patent:
a. Abstract
b. Disclosure
c. Drawings
d. Claims
Remember, only the claims define
the protected turf
3. What constitutes patentable
invention -- an overview
Anything is patentable
that is
1. within the realm of patentable
subject matter,
2. useful,
3. novel and
4. unobvious.
4. Scope
"May include anything
under the sun that is made by man ... .", In re Chakrabarty, 201 USPQ 352
(CCPA 1979).
5. Cost to obtain
Anywhere from about
US$5,000 to about US$70,000 or more, depending upon the complexity of the
invention and the problems encountered in prosecution
6. Examples
Process
- a method or process of doing something, e.g.
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a process for manufacturing
nylon
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a method of treating cancer
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a process for fermenting beer
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a new use of an old chemical.
Machine
- a combination of mechanical elements, e.g.
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a carburetor
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a magnetic resonance imaging
machine
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a door lock
Article of manufacture
- any tangible entity which has been manufactured (changed by human effort),
e.g.
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a chair
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a key ring
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hybridoma cells
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mutated cell lines
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a genetically engineered protein
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purified bacterial cultures
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composition of matter, e.g.
-
a new chemical
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the purified form of a naturally
occurring substance
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a new mixture of old elements,
as a superconductor
Improvement -
of any of the above, if it meets the conditions for patentability
---
Allan A. Fanucci, Pennie & Edmonds
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