012-Patent_Basics_101

Patent Basics 101: 

1 Patent Basics 101 Michael C. Greenbaum Blank Rome LLP The Watergate 600 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037 Phone: (202) 772-5836 Email: greenbaum@blankrome.com Presented to University of Rochester Medical Center January 12, 2006

Basis for Patent Rights: 

2 Basis for Patent Rights United States Constitution Article I, Section 8: Congress has the power "To promote the Progress of Science and Useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries”

Legal Requirements for a Patent: 

3 Legal Requirements for a Patent Must be Statutory Subject Matter A Process (method of doing something) A Machine (an apparatus used to do something) An Article of Manufacture A Composition of Matter An Improvement on any of the above

Must be Novel: 

4 Must be Novel Invention must be novel (new) over the prior art The claimed invention has not been disclosed in the “ prior art ” (before the filing of the patent application) Identity between the claimed invention and the subject matter in the prior art is required Prior Art Publicly accessible information captured in a form that can be found by others in the field Information must be publicly accessible and the date of its disclosure must be able to be proven

Must be Non-Obvious: 

5 Must be Non-Obvious The invention must non-obvious/ involve an inventive step Obviousness measures the difference between what is in the prior art and what is claimed as the invention The prior art must not suggest what is claimed as the invention Critical inquiry is the claimed invention relative to the prior art

Must be Useful: 

6 Must be Useful The invention must have a “ practical utility ” (real world use) or application in any field of industry Abstract ideas, laws of nature and unapplied concepts are not patentable

Novelty Requirements: 

7 Novelty Requirements In the United States, a patent is awarded to the first person to invent An inventor cannot obtain a patent if the invention: Was known or used by others in the US; or Was patented or described in a printed publication in the US or a foreign country before the invention by the applicant

Novelty Requirements (Cont.): 

8 Novelty Requirements (Cont.) There is an absolute bar to obtaining a patent if the invention: Was patented or described in a printed publication in the US or a foreign country; or Was in public use or on sale in the US more than one year before the filing of a patent application The other requirements of novelty and non-obviousness also apply.

Disclosure Requirements for a Patent: 

9 Disclosure Requirements for a Patent The “quid pro quo” of the patent system is the early disclosure of technical information in return for exclusive rights for a limited time The purpose of the disclosure requirements is to put the public in possession of the invention once the patent expires

Disclosure Requirements for a Patent (Cont.): 

10 Disclosure Requirements for a Patent (Cont.) Enablement-requires that the disclosure enable a person of ordinary skill in the art to reproduce and make the invention Written Description-the patent application is viewed as evidence of what the inventor “invented” as of the filing date Best mode-what did the inventor believe to be the best mode of practicing the invention-if any-at the time the application was filed Subjective best mode-best mode is not objective, but is subjective-what the inventor actually believed at the time the application was filed

Disclosure Requirements for a Patent – Written Description: 

11 Disclosure Requirements for a Patent – Written Description The specification of the patent application must contain a written description of the invention and of the manner and process of making and using it in full, clear, concise and exact terms so that any person skilled in the art to which the invention pertains or is most nearly connected is able to make and use the invention The claims as-filed are considered part of the specification

Disclosure Requirements for a Patent –Enablement: 

12 Disclosure Requirements for a Patent –Enablement The patent specification must enable one of ordinary skill in the art to practice the patented invention

Patent Rights: 

13 Patent Rights Inventorship Ownership

Determining Inventorship: 

14 Determining Inventorship An inventor is someone who contributes intellectually to the claimed invention To determine inventorship, you must first determine what the invention is and then determine who contributed to making it Often, inventorship is defined by negatives: An inventor is not someone who merely contributed non-inventive information. An inventor is also not someone who simply ran routine tests.

Record the Invention: 

15 Record the Invention Keep contemporaneous notes of meetings, telephone calls, lab work and other writings in a bound notebook Have the pages of the lab notebook signed and dated by someone who understands the invention but is not a co-inventor Maintain records of slides and or disclosures made in presentations and copies of reports

Patent Rights Conferred: 

16 Patent Rights Conferred An issued patent grants the right to its owner to prevent others from making, using, selling, offering for sale or importing the patented invention in the United States without authorization for a period of 20 years from the date of filing An issued patent does not guarantee the right to practice the patented invention (can still be sued by other patent holders for violating their patents)

Loss of Patent Rights: 

17 Loss of Patent Rights Public Disclosure Written (Scientific Journal Articles, Abstracts, Posters, Web sites (even if material is later removed), Published or issued patents, Sales Literature, etc. Your own publication Publications of others (file early) Oral (Any oral disclosure not made under an NDA) To affect patentability, the disclosure must be enabling (teach how to make and use the invention) to the extent that it at least makes the invention obvious

Loss of Patent Rights (Cont.): 

18 Loss of Patent Rights (Cont.) Public Use In the United States In Foreign Countries Offer for Sale/Sale Lack of Evidence of Invention

Loss of Patent Rights (Cont.): 

19 Loss of Patent Rights (Cont.) Grace Periods One year grace period in US for: Own publication Offer for sale Public use No grace period in foreign countries-absolute novelty is required

Types of Patents: 

20 Types of Patents Three basic types of patents: Utility: a new and useful invention, process, design, or substance Design: a new and original ornamental design for an article of manufacture Plant: A new and unique variety of plant

Types of US Patent Applications: 

21 Types of US Patent Applications Provisional Regular Utility Continuation Divisional Continuation-in-part

Foreign Applications (filed through the PCT): 

22 Foreign Applications (filed through the PCT) International Stage International Search Report Written Opinion National Stage

Timing for Foreign Filing a US Patent Application: 

23 Timing for Foreign Filing a US Patent Application Regular Utility-have one year from US filing date to foreign file Provisional-have one year to convert to regular utility application and to foreign file

Steps in the Patenting Process: 

24 Steps in the Patenting Process Invention/conception The formation in the mind of the inventor of a definite and permanent idea of the complete and operative invention as it is later to be applied in practice Reduction to Practice Actual (make the invention and demonstrate that it works for its intended purpose) Constructive (file patent application directed to the invention)

Steps in the Patenting Process (Cont.): 

25 Steps in the Patenting Process (Cont.) Determine the Scope of the Invention Determine Inventorship

Steps in the Patenting Process (Cont.): 

26 Steps in the Patenting Process (Cont.) File application File Information Disclosure Statement Publication of Application Receive Office Action Office Action contains rejections relating to one or more of novelty, obviousness, utility, written description, best mode, et. Prepare and file response to office action, either amending claims of application or disputing position of patent examiner Notice of Allowance Issuance of Patent

PowerPoint Presentation: 

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