Article 24 of the Patent Law stipulates that the invention-creation for which a patent is applied shall not lose its novelty in any of the following circumstances within six months before the filing date:
(1) It was exhibited for the first time at an international exhibition sponsored or recognized by the China Municipal Government;
(2) It was first published at a specified academic conference or technical conference;
(3) others disclose the contents without the consent of the applicant.
in the above situation (1), an international exhibition hosted or recognized by China government for the first time can only be called "sponsored by China government" if it is approved by the State Council.
International exhibitions recognized by the China Municipal Government refer to international exhibitions registered or recognized by the Bureau of International Expositions as stipulated in the Convention on International Expositions, such as the Shanghai World Expo.
the first exhibition means that the applicant's invention and creation should be exhibited for the first time within 6 months before the application date (priority date), but it does not exclude that the applicant has exhibited his invention and creation several times within 6 months before the application date.
the specified academic conference or technical conference first published at the specified academic conference or technical conference in the above situation (2) refers to the academic conference or technical conference organized by the relevant competent authorities in the State Council or national academic organizations.
the above-mentioned academic conference or technical conference refers to a conference held in public, that is, a conference in which participants are not obligated to keep secrets. In case of confidentiality obligation, the technical content is not known to the public.
in the above situation (3), others disclosed their inventions without the consent of the applicant, and the inventions disclosed by others were legally or illegally obtained from the applicant.
it is against the applicant's will for others to disclose inventions and creations. When another person discloses an invention and creation after legally knowing it, the applicant shall prove that the other person has the obligation of confidentiality, thus proving that the disclosure is against his original intention. It is self-evident when others illegally learn about inventions and creations and leak them.
The grace period for novelty is a temporary protection, so that although the technical scheme or design that has been known to the public in a specific exhibition or academic conference or technical conference and in a specific way can still obtain patent protection, novelty will not be lost. The reasonable use of the grace period for novelty can avoid the influence of publicity on novelty within the time limit, but we must pay attention to the circumstances that satisfy the grace period for novelty.