Applying for patents

Patent is basically a right that is granter to the inventor by the government. The patent restricts other person etc to use the invention for his gain. In all the countries across the globe, patents are granted to the inventors to safeguard their interests. If any person or business firm wishes to use the patent, he has to take prior permission from the inventor as per his terms and conditions. For getting the patents, the inventor has to apply for it. Unless he applies for it, he cannot get the patent. There are different provisions as well as laws pertaining to patents in each country across the world and thus, the procedure differ from one country to another. Let us try to understand the same by taking the patent applying procedure as is applicable in the United States.

APPLYING FOR PATENTS

A person in the United States can easily apply for the patent regarding any type of invention made by him. There are basically three types of patents for which a person can easily apply. The first one is the utility patent, which provides the essential cover to the inventor regarding the functional aspects as well as the processes relating to the patent. This type of patent can be applied by way of a regular patent application or by way of a provisional patent application. The second type of patent for which a person can easily apply in United States is the design patent. As the name suggest too, this type of patent is applied in order the get the appropriate cover against the ornamental design. The third and the last type of patent for which a person can easily apply in United States is the plant patent. This type of patent covers the new variety of any type of living plant. It is to be noted here that the basic purpose of applying for the patent is to exclude others from using, making, selling, offering for sale the patented product etc. It is also to be noted here that the patent also includes the importing of the invention in U.S.

The application for the patent has to be made in favor of USPTO, the United States Patent and Trademark Office. There are of course certain aspects that need to be understood that helps the person in understanding the various aspects related to the patents and he can apply for the same accordingly.

RELATED ASPECTS

For completely understanding the patent applying in the United States, there are many related aspects that have to be understood completely. First of all, if a person is applying for the plant patent, it must be understood completely that the plant patent is subject to either the 20 years term for the earlier date of filing for the patent or the 17 year term from the grant of patent, whichever is longer. As far as the design patent is concerned, it is applicable for a term of 14 years from the grant. There are some terms that are used by the government to inform the public about the patent throughout the United States. For example, the terms "patent applied for" and "patent pending" are the two terms that are used extensively by the U.S. government to inform the general public that the application for the patent has been filed. At the time of applying for a patent, a person must understand that in the United States, the patent protection starts only when the patent has been granted.

In the United States, any person who has invented or discovered any new and useful machines, processes, article of manufacture, composition of any new matter or any other useful improvement in any type of process can easily apply for the patent. As said above also, the request has to be made to the USPTO. When the request has been made to the office, the office shall send the information on the utility and the design patent applications. This would help a person know if anyone has already applied for the patent or not. The forms for filing the applications are also available from the office. A person can easily contact the UCC, i.e. the USPTO Contact Center to get the information and the request for the transfer to the IAC, Inventors Assistance Center, can also be made there.

It is to be noted here with respect to "applying for patent" that the disclosure document that is available is not a patent application at all and thus, it does not permit the person to use the term "patent pending" in connection to any type of invention. This is the mistake that is commonly made by most of the persons that apply for the patent. If done, this attracts good penalty. It is also to be noted here that the date of the disclosure document as is given in the USPTO is not the effective date for any type of patent application that subsequently filed at the office. The date as mentioned on the disclosure document is only the date of receipt of the same in the USPTO office and thus, it provides the evidence of the date of conception only. This date can easily be referenced in the application for the related patent within two years of the receipt of it.

To help the various persons that wish to apply for the patent, there is a guide that is available for the preparation of patent drawings. If a person wishes, he can easily get this by making a request for the same to Superintendent of Documents, U.S Government Printing Office, Washington DC 20402. A person can easily call at 202-512-1800 to get the required information about the guide. There is also a guide on the filing of the utility patent which tells about all the requirements related to the patent applying.

SO, APPLY FOR PATENT NOW

It is very important that any person who has made a new invention about any product, process etc that he apply for the patent. This would help him restricting others to use the same. There are different procedures that are followed in each country across the globe. The procedure as is applicable in the United States has been discussed above.