Since the adoption of the Paris Convention, it has been regarded as the most important symbol of the progress of international cooperation in this field. However, it mainly involves the coordination and rationality of filing, retrieval and examination of patent applications and the dissemination of technical information contained therein.
PCT does not grant "international patents": the task and responsibility of granting patents can still only be undertaken by patent offices of various countries seeking patent protection or institutions exercising their functions and powers. PCT and Paris Convention are not competitive, but actually complementary. In fact, this is a special agreement under the Paris Convention, which is only open to the member countries of the Paris Convention.
Extended data:
Application purposes:
The main purpose of PCT is to simplify the previously established method of applying for invention patent protection in several countries, make it more effective and economical, and benefit the users of the patent system and the patent office that has the right to manage the system.
Before the introduction of the PCT system, the only way for several countries to protect inventions was to submit applications to each country separately; Since these applications must be processed separately, the application and review of each country must be repeated.
In order to achieve its due purpose, PCT suggests:
1. Establish an international system to make a patent application (international application) filed in the Patent Office (acceptance office) in one language valid in each PCT member country (designated by the applicant) where it is applied;
2. The Patent Office, that is, the international retrieval unit, may conduct formal examination of international applications;
3. Conduct an international search for the international application, and issue a search report to explain the relevant existing technologies (published patent documents related to past inventions), which can be used as a reference when deciding whether the invention can be patented; The search report should be delivered to the applicant first, and then published;
4. Provide the Patent Office with the option of international preliminary examination of the international application to decide whether to grant the patent right, and provide the applicant with a report containing the viewpoint of whether the claimed invention meets the international patentability standard.
Baidu encyclopedia-PCT
Baidu encyclopedia-PCT patent application