What is a patent?
A patent is a legal right for an invention: a new product or a new way of doing something.
- The owner can stop others from making, using, selling or importing it without permission.
- It lasts about 20 years from the filing date.
- In return, the inventor must publish how it works. After 20 years anyone can use it.
Three tests (patentability)
- Novelty: nobody has shown it publicly before, anywhere.
- Inventive step: an expert would not find it obvious.
- Industrial use: it can be made or used in practice.
Not patentable: discoveries of nature, pure maths, ideas alone, and in many countries software as such, plant and animal varieties, and methods of treating patients.
Registering rights: types of intellectual property
| Right | Protects | Typical length |
|---|---|---|
| Patent | How an invention works | 20 years |
| Utility model (some countries) | Small technical improvements | about 10 years |
| Industrial design | How a product looks (shape, pattern) | 10 to 25 years |
| Trademark | Brand names and logos | 10 years, renewable forever |
| Copyright | Books, music, art, code text | life of author + 50 to 70 years |
Patents, designs and trademarks must be registered at a government office. Copyright comes automatically when the work is made.
Writing a patent specification
The specification is the main document. Its parts:
- Title: short and clear.
- Field and background: the problem and the old solutions (prior art).
- Summary: what is new and why it is better.
- Detailed description and drawings: enough detail that a skilled person could build it.
- Claims: numbered sentences that set the exact legal limits. Claim 1 is the broadest; later claims add details.
- Abstract: a short summary (about 150 words).
Think of claims as a fence around land. Too wide, and it includes old ideas (rejected). Too narrow, and copiers can step around it.
Filing a patent: the steps
- Prior art search: look in patent databases and papers to check the idea is new.
- Keep it secret until you file. Showing it in public first can destroy novelty.
- File the application at the patent office (a provisional application can save the date for 12 months).
- Publication: usually 18 months after filing.
- Examination: an examiner checks the three tests and may raise objections; the applicant replies.
- Grant, then pay yearly renewal fees to keep it alive.
A patent is territorial: it works only in countries where it is granted. An international (PCT) application lets you keep options open in many countries for about 30 months.
Employee inventions and patents in R&D
When an employee invents something as part of the job, the employee is named as the inventor, but the employer usually owns the patent, because it paid for the time and tools. Many countries require a fair reward for the employee. Clear contracts avoid fights.
In research and development (R&D), companies use patents to:
- search prior art so they do not reinvent or copy;
- protect new products and attract investors;
- license patents to others for a fee (royalty);
- read patent maps to spot new trends.
Try it
Pick an everyday problem at home (a bottle cap that is hard to open, say). Sketch one solution. Write one claim: "A bottle cap comprising …". Then search a free patent database for similar caps. Is yours new?
Key formulas and definitions
- Patentable = novel + inventive step + industrial use
- Patent term ≈ 20 years from filing date
- Publication ≈ 18 months after filing
- Claims = the legal fence around the invention
- Patent is territorial: one country, one right
- Employee = inventor; employer usually = owner
Worked examples
1. A patent was filed on 1 March 2020. Until when can it last if all fees are paid?
About 20 years from filing: until 1 March 2040 (subject to local rules).
2. Riya shows her new water filter at a public fair in January and files a patent in June. What problem might arise?
Her own public showing is now prior art. In many countries this destroys novelty, so the patent may be refused. She should have filed first (some countries give a short grace period, but it is risky).
3. Sort into the right IP: a new engine valve, a soft-drink logo, a song, the curved shape of a bottle.
Engine valve → patent. Logo → trademark. Song → copyright. Bottle shape → industrial design.
Common mistakes
- Thinking you can patent an idea alone. You must show how it works in enough detail to build it.
- Showing the invention in public before filing. This can destroy novelty.
- Thinking one patent protects you worldwide. A patent is territorial.
- Mixing up patent and copyright. Copyright protects the expression (words, music, code text), not the working technical idea.