I. Step improvement in the application process
According to the Patent Law, the examination and approval procedure of an application for a patent for invention is divided into five stages: acceptance, preliminary examination, publication, substantive examination and authorization:
(1) In the acceptance stage, the Patent Office will review the patent application after receiving it. If the conditions for acceptance are met, the Patent Office shall determine the date of application, give the application number, and after checking the list of documents, issue an acceptance notice to inform the applicant. Therefore, the application documents shall be typed, printed or written clearly and shall not be altered; Or use drawing tools and black ink to draw drawings and pictures, and the photos are blurred and clear without alteration; Or the application documents are complete; Or specify the name and address of the applicant in detail in the request; Or the categories of patent applications are clear, and foreign units and individuals need to send patent applications directly through foreign-related patent agencies to improve application efficiency.
(2) The patent application accepted in the preliminary examination stage will automatically enter the preliminary examination stage if the application fee is paid in accordance with the regulations. Before the preliminary examination, the application for a patent for invention must be examined in confidentiality, and if confidentiality is required, it shall be handled in accordance with the confidentiality procedures. During the preliminary examination, the contents of the application shall be thoroughly examined, mainly including whether the examination contents fall within the scope of the patent right granted by the Patent Law, whether there is an obvious lack of technical contents that can constitute the technical scheme, whether there is a lack of oneness, whether the application documents are complete and whether the format meets the requirements. If it is a foreign applicant, it is necessary to conduct qualification examination and application formalities examination. If it is unqualified, the Patent Office will notify the applicant to make corrections or statements within the prescribed time limit, reply as soon as possible and apply for reconsideration. Where an application for a patent for invention has passed the preliminary examination, a notice of passing the preliminary examination shall be issued. In addition to the above examination, the application for a patent for utility model and design shall also be examined whether it is obviously the same as the existing patent, not a new technical scheme or a new design, and no reason for rejection has been found after preliminary examination. Will directly enter the authorization instruction. Therefore, we should be fully prepared for patent-related matters.
(3) Publication stage The application for a patent for invention shall enter the publication stage from the date when the notice of preliminary examination is issued. If the applicant does not make an early request for publicity, it will not enter the public preparation procedure until 18 months after the application date. If the applicant requests to be made public in advance, the application will immediately enter the public preparation procedure. After format review, editing and proofreading, computer processing, typesetting and printing, about three months later, the abstract of its instructions was published in the Patent Gazette, and a brochure was published. After the application is published, the applicant has the right to temporary protection.
(4) After the publication of the application for a patent for invention in the substantive examination stage, if the applicant makes a request for substantive examination and the request has taken effect, the applicant will enter the substantive examination procedure. If the applicant fails to make a request for real trial within three years from the date of application, or the request for real trial does not take effect, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn. In the actual trial process, whether the patent application is novel, creative and practical will be comprehensively examined. After examination, if it is found that the application does not meet the authorization conditions or there are various defects, the applicant will be notified to state his opinions or make amendments within the specified time. If no reply is made within the time limit, the application shall be deemed to have been withdrawn. If the application still fails to meet the requirements after repeated replies, the application shall be rejected. The actual probation period is very long. If it is not authorized within two years from the date of application, the application maintenance fee shall be paid every year from the third year. Failing to pay within the time limit shall be deemed to have withdrawn the application. If the substantive examination finds no reason for rejection, it shall enter the authorization procedure as required. So people who enter the actual trial should pay attention to it in real time. Avoid overdue review.
(5) In the authorization stage, the application for a patent for utility model and design has been preliminarily examined, and if the application for a patent for invention has not found any reasons for rejection after substantive examination, the examiner will make an authorization notice and apply for authorization registration preparation. The Patent Office examines the legal effect and completeness of the authorized text, proofreads and modifies the description items of the patent application, and then issues a notice of authorization and a notice of registration. After receiving the notice, the applicant shall go through the registration formalities in accordance with the requirements of the notice and pay the prescribed fees within 2 months. If the registration formalities are completed on schedule, the Patent Office will grant a patent right, issue a patent certificate, record it in the patent register, and announce it in the patent bulletin two months later. Failure to go through the registration formalities in accordance with the provisions shall be regarded as giving up the right to obtain the patent right. Therefore, at this stage, we should fully follow up the patent application process.
Second, the required materials are fully prepared, complete and detailed.
1, Request for Invention Patent (standard format, no typos, strong professionalism and no alteration)
2. Instruction (if the instruction has attached drawings, the attached drawings shall be submitted)
3, claim (timely preparation)
4, abstract (if necessary, there should be a summary map).
(Each of the above is in duplicate)
Third, fully cooperate in the application and acceptance
1. Filling and writing of patent application documents
There are specific requirements for the filling and writing of patent application documents, and the applicant can fill in and write them by himself or entrust a patent agency to handle them on his behalf. Although it is not mandatory to entrust a patent agency, considering the importance of carefully writing patent application documents and the legal rigor of examination and approval procedures, it is worth promoting for applicants with little experience.
2. Acceptance of patent applications
After receiving the patent application, the Patent Office's acceptance office or the Patent Office's agency shall determine the application date, give the application number and issue a notice of acceptance for the application that meets the acceptance conditions.
To sum up, improving efficiency can not be improved in one step or two. These processes need to be gradual and interlocking. So it is not impossible to improve efficiency. When the application has no rejection or objection, the patent certificate will be issued soon.