Computer programs have the nature of works, and their code expressions are protected by copyright law. Copyright does not protect the idea itself, only the form.
Application for invention patent: 1. Automatic technology processing related invention patent applications; 2. An application for a patent for invention involving the improvement of the internal operation performance of a computer; 3. An application for a patent for invention involving measurement or computer program testing. These schemes are combined with related products, equipment, computers or measuring devices to form a complete technical scheme, which can be patented.
Computer programs should be independently completed and original. As long as it is an original work, whether it is similar to a published work or not, it can obtain independent copyright. The patent right is only granted to the first applicant, which requires novelty and creativity.
A software system can apply for a patent only after applying for software copyright. Although the software copyright was applied first, the technical core, conception and model of the software system were not disclosed. If you apply for a patent, the application for software copyright will not lose its novelty, because there is no novelty, only originality.
Can computer software be patented? The answer is yes, but there are conditions.
As we all know, computer software can register software copyright and be protected by copyright law. However, some computer software related to hardware can also apply for patents, which makes the protection more sufficient and effective. For example, for industrialization.
The production of automation equipment needs to be controlled by computer software, so researchers have designed a new set of computer software to improve its control accuracy and the operation efficiency of automation equipment, thus effectively improving production.
The production efficiency has produced a good technical effect. This kind of computer software can be protected by applying for a patent, which makes the protection more powerful.
There is a passage in Chapter 9 "Several Provisions on the Examination of Applications for Patents for Inventions Involving Computer Programs" in the Guide to Patent Examination: An invention involving computer programs refers to a solution that controls or processes the external or internal objects of a computer based on all or part of the processing flow of the computer program in order to solve the problems raised by the invention. The control or processing of external objects includes controlling some external operating processes or external operating equipment, processing or exchanging external data, etc. The control or processing of internal objects includes the improvement of internal performance of computer system, the management of internal resources of computer system and the improvement of data transmission. Solutions involving computer programs do not necessarily involve changes in computer hardware.
According to Item (2) of Paragraph 1 of Article 25 of the Patent Law, no patent right is granted to the rules and methods of intellectual activities.
"Several Provisions on Examining Applications for Patent for Invention Involving Computer Programs" stipulates that applications for patent for invention involving computer programs shall be examined according to the following principles:
(1) If the claim only relates to algorithms or mathematical calculation rules, or the computer program itself or is only recorded on a carrier (such as magnetic tape, magnetic disk, optical disk, magneto-optical disk, ROM, PROM, VCD, DVD or other calculations).
Computer programs on machine-readable media, or rules and methods of games, etc. The claim belongs to the rules and methods of intellectual activities and does not belong to the object of patent protection.
If a claim only involves an algorithm or mathematical calculation rules, or the program itself, or the rules and methods of the game, etc. In addition to its subject name, this claim is essentially only related to.
The rules and methods of intellectual activities do not belong to the object of patent protection.
For example, a computer-readable storage medium or computer program product defined only by recorded programs, or a calculation defined only by game rules, and does not include any technical features, for example, does not include any physical entity features.
Computer game equipment and so on. , are not the object of patent protection, because they essentially only involve the rules and methods of intellectual activities. However, if the medium claimed in the patent application involves the improvement of its physical characteristics, such as stack structure and track room.
Partitions, materials, etc. , does not belong to this column.
(2) In addition to the above-mentioned situation (1), if a claim contains both the contents of rules and methods of intellectual activities and technical features in all its definitions, for example, when defining the above-mentioned game devices, etc.
The content includes both the rules of the game and the technical features, so the claim as a whole does not belong to the rules and methods of intellectual activities, and the possibility of obtaining a patent right should not be ruled out according to Article 25 of the Patent Law.
According to the first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law, the invention as mentioned in the Patent Law refers to a new technical scheme proposed for a product, method or its improvement. An application for a patent for invention involving a computer program is exclusive only if it constitutes a technical scheme.
The object of protection
If the solution of an invention patent application involving a computer program is to solve technical problems, then running a computer program on a computer to control or handle external or internal objects reflects the compliance with self-discipline.
However, the conventional technical means, and thus obtain a technical effect that conforms to the laws of nature, belong to the technical scheme described in the first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law and belong to the object of patent protection.
If the solution of an invention patent application involving a computer program is not to solve technical problems, or the computer program runs on a computer to control or handle external or internal objects, it is not reflected.
This scheme does not belong to the technical scheme mentioned in the first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law and does not belong to the object of patent protection.
For example, if a solution of an invention patent application involving a computer program executes a computer program for the purpose of controlling an industrial process, measurement or test process, the industrial process control program is executed by a computer, and according to
The laws of nature complete a series of controls on each stage of the industrial process, so as to obtain the control effect of the industrial process in line with the laws of nature. This scheme belongs to the technical scheme described in the first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law, and belongs to a patent.
Protect the object.
If the solution of the invention patent application involving computer program is to process external technical data, the computer will execute the technical data processing program to complete the calculation of technical data according to the laws of nature.
According to the implementation of a series of technical treatments, the technical data processing effect that conforms to the natural law is obtained. This scheme belongs to the technical scheme described in the first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law and belongs to the object of patent protection.
If the solution of an invention patent application involving a computer program is to improve the internal performance of a computer system, then the program to improve the internal performance of the system is executed by a computer, and the program is completed according to the laws of nature.
A series of settings or adjustments implemented by each component of the computer system, so as to obtain the effect of improving the internal performance of the computer system in line with natural laws. This scheme belongs to the technical scheme described in the first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law, and belongs to
The object of patent protection.
It feels strange and a little hard to understand, doesn't it?
For example:
For example, the method of solving pi with computer programs and the method of automatically calculating the dynamic friction coefficient μ are all intellectual activities and are not protected by patents.
Another example is to control the preparation of ink color by computer program, aiming at better controlling the proportion of ink color and solving technical problems. This method completes the processing of ink color preparation process by executing computer programs.
It embodies the accurate real-time control according to the natural principle (CMYK four-color preparation principle) and uses the technical means of following the natural law. Because the color ratio is accurately controlled in real time, the preparation efficiency and quality are greatly improved.
The technical effect is obtained. Therefore, the patent application of the present invention is a scheme to realize industrial process control by executing computer programs, which belongs to the technical scheme specified in the first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law and belongs to the client of patent protection.
Body.
You got it?
Another example is Chinese character coding and keyboard input method: for example, "Wu Bi font". All strokes of Chinese characters are divided into five basic stroke types (horizontal 1, vertical 2, left 3, left 4 and fold 5), and then according to some artificial rules, for example, they belong to a horizontal radical.
There is a prefix "one" and "green" ... similar to "youth beside Wang and Wu", which belongs to intellectual activities. But if we continue to do more work, we must combine it with the keyboard, and combine the key where G is located with "Youth Day and May Day" and use it.
A computer program, that is, a computer Chinese character input method or a computer Chinese character information processing method that constitutes a computer system for processing Chinese characters, enables the computer system to run programs with Chinese character information as instructions, thereby controlling or processing external objects or internal objects.
Part of the object, this computer Chinese character input method or computer Chinese character information processing method constitutes the technical scheme described in the first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law, which no longer belongs to the rules and methods of intellectual activities but belongs to the object of patent protection.
Ok. Is that clearer?
Writing of the specification and claims of an application for a patent for invention involving a computer program.
The writing requirements are basically the same as the specifications and claims of the application for a patent for invention in other technical fields. The following only focuses on the description of the application for a patent for invention involving computer programs and the writing of the claims.
Please explain as follows.
Writing instructions
The description of an application for a patent for invention involving a computer program shall not only describe the technical scheme of the invention as a whole, but also clearly and completely describe the design idea and technical characteristics of the computer program and realize its technical effects.
The realization of. In order to clearly and completely describe the main technical features of the computer program, the main flow chart of the computer program should be given in the attached drawings of the specification. The instruction should be based on the given computer program flow, according to
The time sequence of the flow describes the steps of the computer program in natural language. The description of the main technical features of the computer program in the manual shall be subject to the flow chart and its description recorded in the manual.
The computer program that can achieve the above technical effects shall prevail. For the sake of clarity, if necessary, the applicant can briefly extract some key parts of the computer source program for reference in the usual markup programming language, but it is not necessary to mention them.
Hand in all computer source programs.
Where an application for a patent for invention involving a computer program contains an invention that changes the hardware structure of computer equipment, the attached drawings of the specification shall give the hardware entity structure diagram of the computer equipment, and the specification shall be clear according to the hardware entity structure diagram.
A complete description of the hardware components of computer equipment and their interrelationships shall be subject to the knowledge of those skilled in the art..
Writing of claims
A claim of an application for a patent for invention involving a computer program can be written as a method claim or a product claim, that is, a device for realizing the method. No matter what form you write, you should say it.
Book support, and must reflect the technical scheme of the invention as a whole, and record the necessary technical characteristics to solve technical problems, rather than simply describing the functions of computer programs and the effects that can be achieved. if
When writing the method claim, the functions executed by the computer program and how to complete these functions should be described in detail according to the steps of the method flow; If written as a device claim, each component of the device and its components shall be described in detail.
The relationship between the components, and describe in detail which components complete the functions of the computer program and how to complete these functions.
If they are all based on the computer program flow, they should be written in a way completely corresponding to each step of the computer program flow or in a way completely corresponding to the method claims reflecting the computer program flow.
In the claims, that is, each component in the equipment claim completely corresponds to each step of the computer program flow or each step in the method claim, then each component in the equipment claim should be understood.
Device claims defined by such a set of functional modules should be understood as functional modules that mainly realize the solution through computer programs recorded in the specification.
Block architecture, and should not be understood as a physical device that mainly relies on hardware to realize the solution.
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