1. Invention patent. Invention patent, the first paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law of People's Republic of China (PRC) stipulates: "Invention as mentioned in the Patent Law refers to a new technical scheme proposed for a product, method or its improvement." This article stipulates that invention patents include "product invention" and "method invention", and can also be patents obtained by improving existing products or methods. 2. Patent for utility model. Patent for utility model, according to the second paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law of People's Republic of China (PRC): "Utility model as mentioned in the Patent Law refers to a new technical scheme that is suitable for practical use for the shape, structure or combination of products." This article stipulates that utility model refers to a patent obtained through a product design scheme with a certain shape and structure. Third, the design patent. According to the third paragraph of Article 2 of the Detailed Rules for the Implementation of the Patent Law of People's Republic of China (PRC), the patent for design refers to a new design that is aesthetically pleasing and suitable for industrial application based on the shape, pattern or combination of products and the combination of color, shape and pattern. It has the following characteristics: 1, which is a combination of product design; 2. It can be applied to industrial design; 3. Design that can give people beautiful enjoyment. The patent thus obtained is called a design patent. Theoretically, patent protection and trade secret protection are different: from the perspective of protection, patent protection is the strongest and has a strong exclusivity. For example, Article 11 of China's Patent Law stipulates that, except as otherwise provided in this Law, no unit or individual may exploit its patented technology without the permission of the patentee, that is, it shall not manufacture, use, promise to sell, sell or import its patented products for production and business purposes, and shall not use its patented methods and use or promise to use its patented technology. However, the protection of trade secrets is obviously weaker than that of patents, and independent research and development and reverse research are not regarded as infringement. From the perspective of protection time, the protection period of patents is strictly limited, and many countries in the world stipulate 20 years for invention patents. However, there is no similar restriction on the protection period of trade secrets. As long as it is kept secret, the right will exist forever. It can be concluded that the strongest protection time is the shortest and the weakest protection time is the longest; For the same technology, the inventor has the right to choose the legal protection that he thinks is most suitable. From another perspective, for the same technology, patent protection and trade secret protection are not completely mutually exclusive. Here we should pay attention to different time periods: first, there may be secrets before the patent application date; Second, secrets may exist from the date of patent application to the date of publication; Third, from the date of publicity, the secret disappears. The first stage protects trade secrets, and the second and third stages protect patents, no problem. To determine patent protection, we must first determine what is a patent: there are three kinds of patents protected by China's patent law, namely invention, utility model and design. The above invention has been applied by the applicant and examined by China National Intellectual Property Administration. Those who meet the patent requirements shall be granted a patent for invention, utility model or design respectively. The invention mentioned in China's patent law refers to a new technical scheme proposed for a product, method or its improvement. The term "utility model" as mentioned in the patent law refers to a new technical scheme suitable for practical use for the shape, structure or combination of products. The term "design" as mentioned in the patent law refers to a new design that is aesthetically pleasing and suitable for industrial application. Therefore, patent protection is based on the applicant's disclosure of his invention and creation and the authorization of China National Intellectual Property Administration. The so-called trade secret refers to the technical information and business information that is not known to the public, can bring economic benefits to the obligee, is practical, and is kept confidential by the obligee. Article 10 of China's Anti-Unfair Competition Law clearly stipulates this. Therefore, to determine the protection of trade secrets, we should consider the following six aspects: 1. The secret is known by people outside the business scope of the obligee, and it does not exist when the information called secret has been discovered by people unrelated to the obligee from professional magazines; 2. When the secret is known by people (including employees and partners) within the business scope of the obligee, and the information called secret has been mastered by the company boss and security guard at the same time, its confidentiality is in doubt; 3. Internal security measures. It is not enough to have a confidentiality agreement between the company and its employees. The company should also have its own confidentiality system and file management system. ; 4, external security measures, all means and security measures to limit outsiders' access to secrets, the result may not necessarily prevent the occurrence of stealing secrets, but at least it should increase the difficulty of stealing secrets; 5. The value of a secret, if it is a secret, can be used for profit for the obligee and competitors; 6, the difficulty of developing secrets, independent development, reverse research is not regarded as infringement.