Some General Background

This page contains information, including links to a variety of outside resources, to assist you in obtaining some general background about patents and their issuing authorities, the complexity and variations in the international efforts to standardize the concept of "intellectual property," and related topics.

Page Contents

• What is a Patent?
• What is Non-Patent Literature?
• Key Organizations
• Types of Patents
• Learn More

A patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by an authority (such as a national government) to an inventor (or their assignee) for a limited period of time in exchange for public disclosure of their invention. The disclosure must be thorough and complete, so that someone skilled in the art could replicate the invention. Different governments have varying regulations regarding how and what kind of patents they allow. Patents are not generally granted for just any idea; the idea must meet certain minimum requirements. Among numerous other things, a patent is usually granted only if an invention is unique and not obvious.

Non-patent literature is any document that is not a patent. This term is often used when describing information that is appropriate to locate in advance of applying for a patent or for use during a patent examination. Non-patent literature is usually such things as technical journals, articles, white papers, textbooks, and disclosures. The IP.com Prior Art Database is an example of a collection of non-patent literature.

Below are listed some of the organizations that are responsible for or are involved in many of the world's patents. This list is by no means exhaustive.

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations. It is dedicated to developing a balanced and accessible international intellectual property (IP) system, which rewards creativity, stimulates innovation and contributes to economic development while safeguarding the public interest. WIPO was established by the WIPO Convention in 1967 with a mandate from its Member States to promote the protection of IP throughout the world through cooperation among states and in collaboration with other international organizations. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland.

The European Patent Office (EPO) is an intergovernmental organization that was set up in October of 1977 on the basis of the European Patent Convention (EPC) signed in Munich in 1973. It has two bodies, the European Patent Office and the Administrative Council, which supervises the Office's activities. The Organization is headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands, and at the time of this writing has 36 member states. It provides a uniform application procedure for individual inventors and companies seeking patent protection in its member states.

The State Intellectual Property Office of the Peoples Republic of China (SIPO) is directly affiliated to China's State Council. Some of their main responsibilities include organizing and coordinating Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) protection work nationwide and improving the construction of their IPR protection system. They are responsible for establishing the collaboration mechanism of IP law enforcement with related departments and launching related administrative law enforcement work. They also publicize IP-related information including patent laws and regulations.

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is the Federal agency for granting U.S. patents and registering U.S. trademarks. In doing so, the USPTO fulfills the mandate of Article I, Section 8, Clause 8 of the U.S. Constitution that the Executive branch promote the progress of science and the useful arts by securing for limited times to inventors the exclusive right to their respective discoveries. The USPTO also registers trademarks based on the Commerce Clause of the Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 3).

The Japanese Patent Office (JPO) consists of the General Affairs Department, the Examination Department, the Appeals Department, and other sections and departments. The main functions of these departments include: granting adequate rights for patents, drafting plans for IP policies, international exchange and cooperation, review of the IP system, and dissemination of information on IP.

Every jurisdiction has varying interpretations of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) as well as how IP should be protected by a patent process. An interesting example of this are the types of patents issued by certain patent authorities. This serves as an example of the diligence that must be undertaken to fully understand international IP protection. (As well as, possibly, an incomplete example of the impact of culture on IP law.)

In China, in general there are three types of patents:

• Invention patents for technical solutions relating to a product, a process, or improvement;
• Utility model patents for technical solutions relating to the shape, the structure, or their combination, of a product, which is fit for practical use; and
• Design patents for design of the shape, the pattern or their combination, or the combination of the color with shape or pattern, of a product, which creates an aesthetic feeling and is fit for industrial application.

In Japan, in general there are two types of patents:

• Granted patents (Tokkyo) for inventions; and
• Utility models (Jitsuyo shin-an) for minor modifications of prior art. A jitsuyo shin-an may be filed at any time, but it is not examined until it is disputed.

In addition, when speaking about patents in Japan, the terms kokai (a published, unexamined patent application) and kokoku (an examined and approved patent application) are often encountered.

In the U.S., in general there are three types of patents:

• Utility patents for invention or discovery of any new and useful process, machine, article of manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof;
• Design patents for invention of a new, original, and ornamental design for an article of manufacture; and
• Plant patents for invention or discovery of an asexual reproduction of a distinct and new variety of plant.

Similar patent types may be described by different names in different jurisdictions (Chinese "invention" patents are U.S. "utility" patents). The word "utility" can clearly carry different meanings. Each juridiction may have patent types which are exclusive to itself. Even with these differences, the world seeks to cooperate regarding IP protection.

To learn more about exclusive rights, intellectual property, patents, and the public domain, try these links at Wikipedia:

• Exclusive Rights
• Intellectual Property
• Patents
• Public Domain

To learn more about some specifics regarding U.S. Patents, try these deep links into the USPTO:

• Patent Forms
• Initiatives & Events
• Resources & Guidance
• Laws, Regulations & Policies