Specific problems in applying for invention patents!

Preparation before applying for a patent

1< Pay attention to confidentiality 2 > Conduct feasibility analysis: search domestic and foreign patents, consult relevant professional publications, understand the current situation of similar technologies or products, and conduct feasibility analysis on whether patents can be obtained, so as to avoid the waste of manpower, material resources and financial resources.

Two ways to apply for a patent

1. Apply by yourself

The patent applicant directly mails the application to the China National Intellectual Property Administration Patent Office or handles the patent application in its agency. The address of the reception desk of China National Intellectual Property Administration Patent Office is No.6, West Tucheng Road, Jimenqiao, Haidian District, Beijing, and the postal code is 100088. China National Intellectual Property Administration has a patent agency in Guangzhou, and its address is at the Institute and Provincial Intellectual Property Office at Xianlie Middle Road 100, Guangzhou.

2. Application for agency

In accordance with the provisions of the Patent Law, the patent applicant entrusts a legal agency established upon examination and approval by the state to apply for a patent in the name of the client to the China National Intellectual Property Administration Patent Office or its agency.

The procedure for entrusting an agent to apply for a patent is:

1) Sign a patent agency entrustment contract with the Patent Office.

2) Provide the technical data required for patent application (legal provisions: patent agents are responsible for confidentiality).

3) Pay agency fees and application fees.

What documents do I need to submit to apply for a patent?

1, apply for a patent for invention or utility model.

Request, specification (the patent for utility model must have attached drawings), abstract and claim.

2. Apply for a patent for design

Pictures or photos of requests and designs, etc.

3. Preventive measures

The request can be downloaded from the website of China National Intellectual Property Administration (www.sipo.gov.cn).

All application documents must be written or prepared in the format prescribed by the state.

Determination of application date

The date when the China National Intellectual Property Administration Patent Office or its patent agency receives the patent application documents shall be the filing date. If the application documents are mailed, the postmark date of mailing shall be the application date.

The organ that accepts the patent application shall give the application number, determine the application date, and issue a notice of acceptance to the qualified application.

approve

If the application for a patent for invention has been examined in substance, and the application for a patent for utility model and design has not found any reason for rejection after preliminary examination, the Patent Office shall make a decision on granting the patent right, issue a patent certificate, and register and announce it.

General procedures for applying for foreign patents

1. You must apply for a patent in China first.

2. Go to China National Intellectual Property Administration Patent Office to handle the priority certificate and formalities.

3. Entrust a foreign-related patent agency to act as an agent

4. Where an invention-creation involving national security or vital interests needs to be kept confidential applies for a patent abroad, it shall be handled in accordance with the relevant provisions of the state.

How should citizens apply for patents?

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Patent is the exclusive right granted by the state to the inventor or designer to enjoy the results of his invention and design within a certain period of time. According to China's patent law, patents are divided into invention patents, utility model patents and design patents. According to Article 25 of the Patent Law, the rules and methods of scientific discovery and intellectual activities, methods of disease diagnosis and treatment, species of animals and plants, and substances obtained by nuclear transformation do not apply for patents, but the production methods of animals and plants can apply for patents. Citizens should pay attention to the following matters when applying for a patent:

(1) First of all, it is necessary to make clear whether the invention it holds is a service invention or a non-service invention: a service invention refers to an invention that the inventor or designer has completed the task assigned by his own unit, or that is mainly obtained by using the material conditions of his own unit. The patent for service invention is applied by the unit, and no individual has the right to apply. Non-service invention refers to the invention and creation made by employees after completing the work assigned by their units. Non-service inventions can be patented by individuals. (2) Requirements of application documents: To apply for a patent, a request, specification, abstract, patent claim and other documents shall be submitted. The request shall specify the name of the invention, the name of the inventor or designer, the name and address of the applicant and other matters. The specification shall give a clear and complete description of the invention, and the patent claim shall specify the scope of patent protection.

(3) Principle of first application: In China, the patent right is granted on the basis of the principle of first application, that is, when two or more applicants apply for a patent for the same invention respectively, the patent right is granted to the first applicant.

(4) Examination and approval of patent application: After receiving an application for a patent for invention, the Patent Office, after preliminary examination, finds that it conforms to the provisions of the Patent Law, and shall publish it after 18 months from the date of application.

How to apply for a patent in China?

1. Documents and materials required to apply for invention patent

1. Invention patent application documents (including specifications, claims, drawings and abstracts);

2. The applicant shall provide the following information in the power of attorney: the name of the invention, the name and address of the applicant and the name and address of the inventor. If priority is claimed, it includes the priority date, priority number and the name of the first applicant country; If the applicant comes from a country where Chinese characters are used, such as Japan and South Korea, it is best to provide the names and addresses of the applicant and inventor as well as Chinese character information; For applications from Hongkong, Macau and Taiwan Province Province, Chinese is generally enough;

3. Power of attorney (which can be supplemented within two months after submitting the application);

4. For the application claiming priority, priority certification documents shall be provided (which can be supplemented within three months after the application is submitted);

5. If the number of applicants is changed or increased when the application for priority is filed in China, the priority transfer document (original or notarized copy) shall be provided.

2. Documents and materials required for applying for a patent for utility model.

It is the same as that provided when applying for the above invention patent.

Three. Documents and materials required for applying for design marks

1. Pictures or photos in duplicate. For products involving six sides, six front views should be provided, namely, front view, back view, top view, bottom view, left view and right view; For products involving one or several faces, provide front and perspective views of the faces involved; The plane appearance design involving only one surface provides an orthographic view of the surface;

2. Other documents and materials are the same as items 2-6 above.

4. Validity period of patent

According to Article 42 of China's Patent Law, the validity period of the invention patent right is 20 years, and that of the utility model and design patent right is 10 years, which shall not be extended from the date of filing.

I. Examining whether the conditions for granting a patent are met:

The basic conditions are novelty, creativity and practicality.

Novelty means that before the filing date, no identical invention or utility model was published in publications at home and abroad, used in China or known to the public in other ways, and no identical invention or utility model was applied to the patent administration department in the State Council by others and recorded in the patent application documents published after the filing date.

Creativity means that compared with the prior art before the filing date, the invention has outstanding substantive features and remarkable progress, and the utility model has substantive features and progress.

Practicality means that the invention or utility model can be manufactured or used and can produce positive effects.

The design to which the patent right is granted shall be different from or similar to the design that has been published in domestic and foreign publications or publicly used in China before the date of application, and shall not conflict with the legal rights previously obtained by others.

An invention-creation applying for a patent shall not lose its novelty in any of the following circumstances within six months before the date of filing:

(1) It was exhibited for the first time at an international exhibition sponsored or recognized by the China Municipal Government;

(2) It was first published at a specific academic conference or technical conference;

(3) Others disclose the contents of the application without the consent of the applicant.

The state does not grant patent rights to the following projects:

(1) scientific discoveries;

(2) rules and methods of intellectual activities;

(3) Methods of diagnosis and treatment of diseases;

(four) animal and plant varieties (except the production method of products);

(5) substances obtained by nuclear transformation.

II. Basic procedures and relevant provisions of patent application

1. To apply for a patent for invention or utility model, the applicant shall submit a request, a specification and its abstract, a patent claim and other documents.

The request shall specify the name of the invention or utility model, the name of the inventor or designer, the name and address of the applicant and other matters.

The specification shall give a clear and complete description of the invention or utility model, which shall be subject to the realization of the technical personnel in the technical field; Attached drawings shall be attached when necessary. The technical points of the invention or utility model shall be briefly explained.

The patent claim shall be based on the specification and indicate the scope of patent protection.

2. To apply for a patent for a design, the applicant shall submit a request, pictures or photographs of the design and other documents, and shall specify the products and their categories that use the design.

3. An application for a patent for an invention or utility model shall be limited to one invention or utility model. Two or more inventions or utility models belonging to a general inventive concept may be filed as one application.

4. An application for a patent for design shall be limited to the design used by a product. Two or more designs of products sold or used in the same category in sets may be filed as one application.

Before the patent right is granted, the applicant can withdraw his patent application at any time.

6. The applicant may modify his patent application documents, but the modification of the application documents for patents for inventions and utility models shall not exceed the scope recorded in the original specifications and claims, and the modification of the application documents for patents for designs shall not exceed the scope shown in the original pictures or photographs.

Third, related concepts:

1. filing date: the date when the patent administrative department of the State Council receives the patent application documents is the filing date. If the application documents are mailed, the postmark date of mailing shall be the application date.

2. Priority and enjoyment conditions: If an applicant files a patent application for an invention or utility model in China within 12 months from the date when a foreign country first filed a patent application, or within 6 months from the date when a foreign country first filed a patent application for a design, he may enjoy priority according to the agreement signed between the foreign country and China, the international treaties to which both countries are parties or the principle of mutual recognition of priority.

An applicant who files an application for a patent for invention or utility model with the administrative department for patent in the State Council within 12 months from the date when he first filed an application in China may enjoy priority.

Where the applicant claims priority, he shall make a written statement at the time of application and submit a copy of the first patent application document within three months; Failing to submit a written statement or a copy of the patent application documents within the time limit shall be deemed as not claiming priority.

Four. Examination and approval of patent application

After receiving an application for a patent for invention, the administrative department for patent in the State Council, after preliminary examination, finds that it conforms to the provisions of this Law, and shall publish it immediately after 18 months from the date of application. The patent administration department of the State Council may publish its application at an early date upon the request of the applicant.

Within three years from the date of filing, the patent administration department of the State Council may conduct substantive examination according to the request made by the applicant at any time; If the applicant fails to request substantive examination within the time limit without justifiable reasons, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.

The patent administrative department of the State Council may, when it deems it necessary, examine the application for a patent for invention on its own.

When requesting substantive examination, the applicant for a patent for invention shall submit reference materials related to his invention before the filing date.

Where an application for a patent for invention is filed in a foreign country, the patent administration department of the State Council may require the applicant to submit the information retrieved during the examination of his application in that country or the information on the examination results within a specified time limit; If the application is not submitted within the time limit without justifiable reasons, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn.

After examining the application for a patent for invention in substance, the administrative department for patent in the State Council considers that it does not conform to the provisions of this Law, it shall notify the applicant and ask him to state his opinions or amend his application within a specified time limit; If no reply is made within the time limit without justifiable reasons, the application shall be deemed to be withdrawn.

If, after the applicant has stated his opinions or made amendments, the administrative department for patent in the State Council still considers that the application for a patent for invention does not conform to the provisions of this Law, it shall be rejected.

If the application for a patent for invention is rejected after substantive examination, the administrative department for patent in the State Council shall make a decision to grant the patent right for invention, issue a patent certificate for invention, and register and announce it at the same time. The invention patent right shall take effect as of the date of announcement.

If the application for a patent for utility model or design is not found rejected after preliminary examination, the administrative department for patent in the State Council shall make a decision to grant the patent right for utility model or design, issue the corresponding patent certificate, and register and announce it at the same time. The patent right for utility model and the patent right for design shall take effect as of the date of announcement.

The Patent Administration Department of the State Council has set up the Patent Reexamination Board. If the applicant for a patent refuses to accept the decision of the patent administrative department of the State Council to reject the application, he may, within three months from the date of receiving the notice, request a reexamination with the Patent Reexamination Board. After reexamination, the Patent Reexamination Board shall make a decision and notify the patent applicant.

If the patent applicant refuses to accept the reexamination decision of the Patent Reexamination Board, he may bring a lawsuit to the people's court within three months from the date of receiving the notice.