Patent cooperation treaty. The application filed according to PCT is called PCT international application.
PCT was concluded in 1970, revised in 1979 and revised in 1984 and 200 1. PCT is open to parties to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property (1883). The instrument of ratification or accession must be deposited with the Director General of WIPO. Through this treaty, as long as the applicant submits an "international" patent application, he can request patent protection for the invention in every country in many countries at the same time. Such an application may be submitted by any national or resident of the State party. Generally speaking, an application can be filed with the State Patent Office of the Contracting State of which the applicant is a national or resident, but the applicant can also choose to file an application with the WIPO International Bureau in Geneva. If the applicant is a national or resident of a contracting state that has acceded to the European Patent Convention, the Harare Protocol on Patents and Industrial Designs (Harare Protocol), the revised Bangui Agreement on the establishment of the African Intellectual Property Organization or the Eurasian Patent Convention, he may also apply to the European Patent Office (EAPO), the African Regional Industrial Property Organization (ARIPO), the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI) or the Eurasian Patent Office respectively.
Then, the international application needs the so-called "international search". This retrieval was designated by the PCT Congress as one of the major patent offices of the International Retrieval Unit (ISA). Through this search, an "international search report" will be obtained, which extracts quotations from published documents that may have an impact on the patentability of the invention claimed in the international application. At the same time, the international retrieval unit will also compile a written opinion on patentability.
The international retrieval unit will notify the applicant of the international retrieval report and written opinions, and the applicant may decide to withdraw the application according to the report or opinions, especially if the patent may not be granted.
If the international application has not been withdrawn, it will be published by the International Bureau together with the international search report. No written comments are allowed.
PCT procedure is of great benefit to applicants, patent offices and the public:
(i) The applicant has 18 months more time than his procedures outside the PCT to consider whether he wants to seek protection in a foreign country, appoint a local patent agent in each foreign country, prepare necessary translation materials and pay state fees; He can be sure that as long as his international application is submitted in the form specified in the PCT, any designated competent authority shall not reject the application for formal reasons at the national stage of handling the application; He can also confidently evaluate the possibility of his invention being granted a patent right according to international search reports or written opinions; The applicant may also modify the international application during the international preliminary examination, so as to make the application meet the requirements before being processed by the designated competent authority;
(ii) With the international search report, written opinions and, where applicable, the international preliminary examination report attached to the international application, the labor intensity of the search and examination work of the Patent Office can be greatly reduced or even basically disappeared;
(iii) Because each international application is published together with the international search report, the third party can better form an informed opinion on the patentability of the claimed invention.
PCT has established an alliance. The league has a congress. Every state party to the PCT is a member of the conference.
Some of the most important tasks of the congress are to revise the implementation rules formulated according to the treaty, adopt the biennial plan and budget of the alliance, and determine some expenses related to the use of the PCT system.
Above sources:
China National Intellectual Property Administration official website -PCT column