Existing technology disclosure methods include publication disclosure, use disclosure and other disclosure methods, all of which have no geographical restrictions.
Publication Disclosure
Publications in the sense of patent law refer to independent communication carriers that record technical or design content, and it should be stated or have other evidence to prove that it has been publicly published. or the time of publication.
Publications that meet the above meanings can be various printed and typed papers, such as patent documents, scientific and technological magazines, scientific and technological books, academic papers, professional documents, textbooks, technical manuals, and officially announced conferences Records or technical reports, newspapers, product samples, product catalogs, advertising brochures, etc. It can also be audio-visual materials made by electrical, optical, magnetic, photographic and other methods, such as microfilm, film, photographic negatives, video tapes, magnetic tapes, Records, compact discs, etc., can also be materials that exist in other forms, such as materials that exist on the Internet or other online databases.
Publications are not limited by geographic location, language or mode of access, nor are they limited by age. It does not matter what the circulation of the publication is, whether anyone has read it, or whether the applicant is aware of it.
Publications with the words "Internal Information", "Internal Release", etc. are indeed issued within a specific scope and require confidentiality, and are not public publications. The printing date of a publication is deemed to be the date of publication, unless there is other evidence to prove the date of publication. If the printing date only states the month or year, the last day of the month or December 31 of the year shall be the date of publication. If the examiner believes that there is doubt about the publication date of a publication, he may require the author of the publication to provide proof.
Use Disclosure
Usage leads to the disclosure of technical solutions, or causes the technical solutions to be in a state where the public can learn about them. This method of disclosure is called use disclosure. The methods of use disclosure include manufacturing, use, sale, import, exchange, gift, demonstration, exhibition and other methods that can make the public aware of its technical content. As long as the relevant technical content is put in a state where the public can know it if they want to know it through the above methods, it constitutes use and disclosure, and it does not depend on whether the public knows it. However, product display that does not provide any description of the technical content, so that a person skilled in the technical field cannot know its structure and function or material composition, does not constitute use disclosure.
If the use disclosure is of a product, even if the product or device used needs to be destroyed before its structure and function can be known, it is still a use disclosure. In addition, public use also includes information materials and visual materials placed on exhibition stands and windows that can be read by the public, such as posters, drawings, photos, samples, samples, etc.
Usage disclosure is based on the day when the public can learn about the product or method.
Disclosure by other means
Other means known to the public mainly refer to oral disclosure, etc. For example, oral conversations, reports, seminar speeches, radio, television, movies, etc. can make technical content known to the public. Oral conversations, reports, and seminar speeches are made public on the day they occur. For radio, television or film reports that are accessible to the public, the date of broadcast is the date of publication.