Invention patents are granted for a long time, usually three to five years, but the granted patents are highly stable due to the need for substantive examination procedures; Patents for utility models and designs can be granted quickly without going through substantive examination procedures. The general utility model can be authorized within 6 months to 12 months from the date of application, and the design can be authorized about 6 months from the date of application. According to the relevant laws and regulations, there are three kinds of patent applications that domestic and foreign applicants can file with the China Patent Office: (1) applications for invention patents, utility model patents and design patents; (2) Invention and utility model are applications for technological improvement, and an application for a patent for invention can protect product and method inventions; (3) The utility model patent application does not protect the method invention, but only protects the product and the improvement of its structure; An application for a patent for design only protects the appearance, shape, pattern or their combination and the combination with color of the product.
Legal analysis
Article 53 of the Patent Law of People's Republic of China (PRC) is under any of the following circumstances, and upon the application of a unit or individual who has the conditions for implementation, the patent administration department of the State Council may grant a compulsory license to exploit the invention patent or utility model patent: (1) The patentee has not exploited or fully exploited his patent for three years from the date of granting the patent right, and for four years from the date of patent application, without justifiable reasons; (2) The patentee's act of exercising the patent right is recognized as a monopolistic act according to law, so as to eliminate or reduce the adverse effects of the act on competition.