The mutual conversion between an application for a patent for invention and an application for a patent for utility model is a common occurrence in the process of patent application, but we should pay attention to skills in actual operation.
because the applicant often can't accurately judge the creativity of the technical scheme involved in his invention-creation, before applying for a patent, the applicant is not sure whether to apply for a patent for invention or a patent for utility model, and it is difficult to make a decision. However, applicants who know the patent law are eager to file a patent application in order to avoid losing the opportunity to obtain a patent right. Therefore, after filing an application, there may be cases where the applicant wants to convert an application for a patent for invention into an application for a patent for utility model, or vice versa. According to the provisions of the Patent Law, a similar conversion cannot be achieved by submitting a conversion request, and the patent administration department in the State Council cannot take the initiative to carry out a similar conversion. At this time, the most practical and effective way is for the applicant to resubmit a new patent application in time, and formally go through the formalities of applying for a patent for invention or utility model. If the previous application has not been more than 12 months, the applicant can claim the priority of the earlier application when submitting a new application, so as to make up for the shortage after the filing date of the later application has expired. At the same time, it should be noted that the substance involved in the resubmitted application documents should be consistent with the previous application documents as the basis of priority, and the applicants should be the same.